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.
Shakespeare & Beyond also explores the topics that shape our experience of Shakespeare today: trends in performance, the latest discoveries and scholarship, news stories, pop culture, interesting books, new movies, the rich context of theater and literary history, and more. As the word “beyond” suggests, from time to time Shakespeare & Beyond also covers topics that are not directly linked to Shakespeare.
Chimes at Midnight, the 1966 film directed by and starring Orson Welles, constructs a rich, complex, and moving portrait of the larger-than-life Sir John Falstaff, who appears in three of Shakespeare’s plays and is among the best-known characters in all…
Mistress Quickly: From Hostess in 'Henry IV Part 1' to Fairy Queen in 'The Merry Wives of Windsor'
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Author
Georgianna Ziegler
The Hostess seems to have been a favorite character from the beginning, ruling the tavern where Prince Hal hangs out with Falstaff. Evidently aware of her popularity with audiences, Shakespeare developed her character further in later plays, where she evolves…
Elizabethan education and Ben Jonson's school days
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Author
Karen Lyon
See education in Shakespeare’s day through the eyes of Ben Jonson: learning ABCs and the Lord’s Prayer with hornbooks, and drilling Latin grammar endlessly.
Charles Gounod: The tragedy of Romeo and Juliet in four beautiful duets
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Author
Matthew Shilvock
Charles Gounod’s 19th-century opera “Roméo et Juliette” is a love story of heartbreaking tragedy, punctuated by four masterful duets. Matthew Shilvock of San Francisco Opera explains why the work is such a masterpiece.
"The heavens speed thee in thine Enterprise!": Shakespeare in Star Trek
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Author
Austin Tichenor
Star Trek owes a striking thematic and linguistic debt to William Shakespeare, as in classic episodes like “The Conscience of the King” and “The Defector.”
The Folger Shakespeare Library building is filled (inside and outside) with inscriptions of quotations by famous writers praising Shakespeare. See if you can successfully fill in the blanks for these quotes
