The Folger is celebrating Shakespeare—and the 400th anniversary of the printing of the First Folio—the entire month of April in partnership with DC Public Library.
Searching for Shakespeare includes an exhibition, a world-premiere play, a citywide scavenger hunt, our annual Shakespeare’s Birthday Lecture, family programs, workshops, and more at DC Public Library locations in all eight wards of Washington, DC.
Take a look at what’s this week’s programs and performances, free and open to all. Many events require pre-registration, so click the links to sign-up!
One of the Folger’s Shakespeare First Folios will be on display at the Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial Library through April 30.
Saturday, April 1
Pass the Story On: Shakespeare’s First Folio at 400
Exhibition | Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial Library, 9:30 am – 5:30 pm
Come see a First Folio — the book that gave us Shakespeare — and explore how some stories are preserved while others are lost. Pass the Story On: Shakespeare’s First Folio at 400 connects Shakespeare’s friends’ efforts to preserve the memory of his work with today’s efforts to preserve stories of D.C.’s Go-Go and Punk scenes.
Join us Saturday, April 1 at 1 pm for a guided exhibition tour!
Exhibition and the First Folio are located in different spaces of the Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial Library. See First Folio hours.
The Bard, the Griot, and the Hip-Hop Tradition
Workshop | Lamond-Riggs/Lillian J. Huff Neighborhood Library, 11 am
Actor, writer, and musician Malik Work leads an interactive workshop that explores the connection between the Bard and hip-hop.
Words! Words! Words!
Family Program | Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial Library, noon
Shake up your Saturday and get ready to shout, whisper, and laugh as you play with compliments and insults from the worlds of Shakespeare, go-go, and punk.
Afterward, join a guided tour of our exhibition Pass the Story On: Shakespeare’s First Folio at 400.
Sunday, April 2
Pass the Story On: Shakespeare’s First Folio at 400
Exhibition | Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial Library, 1 pm – 5 pm
Monday, April 3
Pass the Story On: Shakespeare’s First Folio at 400
Exhibition | Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial Library, 9:30 am – 9 pm
Kalen Robinson in a staged reading of “Our Verse in Time to Come” at The Reading Room, January 2023. Photo by Peggy Ryan.
Our Verse in Time to Come
By Malik Work and Karen Ann Daniels, in collaboration with Devin E. Haqq | Directed by Vernice Miller
Performance | Lamond-Riggs/Lillian J. Huff Neighborhood Library, 6 pm
A world-premiere play by Malik Work and Karen Ann Daniels, in collaboration with Devin E. Haqq. Inspired by the works and words of Shakespeare, Our Verse in Time to Come bridges the past with the present through verse, song and memory, and interrogates whose stories remain and whose role it is to ensure they survive. Told through music, hip-hop, and Shakespeare, and featuring DJ Nick the 1da.
This performance is ASL-interpreted.
Tuesday, April 4
Pass the Story On: Shakespeare’s First Folio at 400
Exhibition | Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial Library, 9:30 am – 9 pm
Shakespeare Lightning Round: Malik Work
Virtual Talk | Live on Instagram, 5 pm ET
Who is Malik Work’s favorite Shakespeare character? Shakespeare’s most overrated play? Best poetic meter? The Our Verse in Time to Come co-author answers our 30 lightning-fast Shakespeare questions.
Our Verse in Time to Come
Performance | Anacostia Neighborhood Library, 6 pm
This performance is ASL-interpreted.
Wednesday, April 5
Pass the Story On: Shakespeare’s First Folio at 400
Exhibition | Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial Library, 9:30 am – 9 pm
Our Verse in Time to Come
Performance | Francis A. Gregory Neighborhood Library, 1 pm & 5 pm
The Bard, the Griot, and the Hip-Hop Tradition
Workshop | Shepherd Park/Juanita E. Thornton Neighborhood Library, 7 pm
Thursday, April 6
Pass the Story On: Shakespeare’s First Folio at 400
Exhibition | Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial Library, 9:30 am – 9 pm
Our Verse in Time to Come
Performance | Southwest Neighborhood Library, 4 pm & 7 pm
Our 7 pm performance is ASL-interpreted.
The Bard, the Griot, and the Hip-Hop Tradition
Workshop | Tenley-Friendship Neighborhood Library, 7 pm
Friday, April 7
Pass the Story On: Shakespeare’s First Folio at 400
Exhibition | Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial Library, 9:30 am – 5:30 pm
Tell Your Story: Story-Making Workshop with Evan Keeling
Family Program | Southwest Neighborhood Library, 4 pm
Artist and DC-native Evan Keeling teaches you how to create your own mini 8-page comic book out of a single sheet of paper.
Saturday, April 8
Pass the Story On: Shakespeare’s First Folio at 400
Exhibition | Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial Library, 9:30 am – 5:30 pm
Tell Your Story: Story-Making Workshop with Evan Keeling
Family Program | Francis A. Gregory Neighborhood Library, 2 pm
Our Verse in Time to Come
Performance | Petworth Neighborhood Library, 3 pm
Sunday, April 9
Pass the Story On: Shakespeare’s First Folio at 400
Exhibition | Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial Library, 1 pm – 5 pm
Searching for Shakespeare
Learn more about our citywide celebration and plan to join us for more events.
In partnership with DC Public Library
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