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Shakespeare & Beyond

Shakespeare & Beyond

The Shakespeare & Beyond blog features a wide range of Shakespeare-related topics: the early modern period in which he lived, the ways his plays have been interpreted and staged over the past four centuries, the enduring power of his characters and language, and more.

These Violent Delights: Retelling Romeo and Juliet
Shakespeare and Beyond

These Violent Delights: Retelling Romeo and Juliet

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Author
Chloe Gong

Chloe Gong writes about adapting “Romeo and Juliet” into her debut novel, “These Violent Delights,” which focuses on the blood feud at the heart of Shakespeare’s play. The story is about two teen heirs of rival gangs in 1920s Shanghai.

The early modern precursor to turducken: Adapting an old recipe to make mini pies
Shakespeare and Beyond

The early modern precursor to turducken: Adapting an old recipe to make mini pies

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Author
Michael Walkden

Learn about the early modern precursor to turducken (a huge turkey pie with duck but no chicken) and make your own mini pies using this adapted recipe.

Strange Shakespeare: The anti-Shylock in the boxing ring
Shakespeare and Beyond

Strange Shakespeare: The anti-Shylock in the boxing ring

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Author
Daniel O’Quinn

Actor Edmund Kean’s more sympathetic portrayal of Shylock onstage in the early 19th century connected with the Jewish boxer Daniel Mendoza’s merciful defeat of an English champion.

Before the Thanksgiving turkey came the banquet peacock
Shakespeare and Beyond

Before the Thanksgiving turkey came the banquet peacock

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Author
Elisa Tersigni

Lavish dinners—and the cookbooks and instruction manuals for how to execute them—were popular during the Renaissance, and they emphasized the art of food, in addition to—and at times, over—its taste. Peacocks were thus an ideal banquet food because their colorful…

Where to watch Shakespeare in November
Shakespeare and Beyond

Where to watch Shakespeare in November

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Author
Ben Lauer

Shakespeare companies have lots of creative programs happening this month both online and in-person. Here’s what the Folger’s theater partners are up to this November.

“Comic sport”: Shakespeare’s depictions of governments in chaos
Shakespeare and Beyond

“Comic sport”: Shakespeare’s depictions of governments in chaos

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Author
Austin Tichenor

Chaotic and ineffective government may be a problem in our current life, but it makes for excellent drama in the theater — and in William Shakespeare’s hands, excellent comedy as well.

“More strange than true”: Finding America among the fairies
Shakespeare and Beyond

“More strange than true”: Finding America among the fairies

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Author
Victoria Muñoz

“I have had a most rare vision…” Bottom’s words in Shakespeare’s “A Midsummer Night’s Dream” echo the language of Spanish conquistadors describing Aztec Mexico.

A Shakespeare Halloween guide: What to watch, listen to, read—and wear
Shakespeare and Beyond

A Shakespeare Halloween guide: What to watch, listen to, read—and wear

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Author
Shakespeare & Beyond

We’ve put together a Shakespeare Halloween guide for you this year, with ideas for Halloween costumes and recommendations for what to watch, listen to, and read. Happy Halloween!

Up Close: A poll book from the 1710 election in London
Shakespeare and Beyond

Up Close: A poll book from the 1710 election in London

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Author
Shakespeare & Beyond

Voting was not a secret process in early modern England. The poll book shown here published the names of all the voters in London and which candidates and party they voted for in 1710.

Roast joint of mutton: A recipe from ‘Fat Rascals’
Shakespeare and Beyond

Roast joint of mutton: A recipe from ‘Fat Rascals’

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Author
Shakespeare & Beyond

John Tufts is an award-winning actor and the author of “Fat Rascals: Dining at Shakespeare’s Table,” a cookbook featuring over 150 authentic recipes straight out of Shakespeare’s plays. Here, he shares his recipe for a roast joint of mutton, inspired…

Dante vs. Shakespeare: An excerpt from ‘Take Arms Against a Sea of Troubles’ by Harold Bloom
Shakespeare and Beyond

Dante vs. Shakespeare: An excerpt from ‘Take Arms Against a Sea of Troubles’ by Harold Bloom

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Shakespeare & Beyond

The excerpt begins: “Dante, poet and man, is obsessive. This is particularly true in the Latin meaning of the word: besiege or be besieged. Shakespeare’s protagonists sometimes are obsessive or besieged. Yet they can and do change. Leontes emerges from…

Where to Watch Shakespeare in October
Shakespeare and Beyond

Where to Watch Shakespeare in October

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Author
Ben Lauer

There are a ton of places to watch Shakespeare in October, both online and in-person. Here’s what the Folger’s theater partners are up to this month.

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