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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.

Shakespeare's patriotic empathy
Photograph from Laurence Olivier's movie of Henry V
Shakespeare and Beyond

Shakespeare's patriotic empathy

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Author
Austin Tichenor

Austin Tichenor writes about Shakespeare’s history plays, the political considerations of the day, and patriotic portrayals centuries later.

Taffety Punk and Bootleg Shakespeare: Henry VI, Part 3
Taffety Punk - Henry VI, Part 3
Shakespeare and Beyond

Taffety Punk and Bootleg Shakespeare: Henry VI, Part 3

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Shakespeare & Beyond

Taffety Punk presents Henry VI Part 3 for its 2018 Bootleg Shakespeare performance, in which actors perform after only one day of rehearsal.

Six things to look for when you watch "A Midsummer Night's Dream"
Shakespeare and Beyond

Six things to look for when you watch "A Midsummer Night's Dream"

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Author
Ben Lauer

What should you watch for in a production of Shakespeare’s “A Midsummer Night’s Dream?” We asked some friends what they look for in this classic play.

Thomas Jefferson and Shakespeare
Shakespeare and Beyond

Thomas Jefferson and Shakespeare

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Author
Shakespeare & Beyond

“Shakespeare must be singled out by one who wishes to learn the full powers of the English language,” Thomas Jefferson wrote.

Shakespeare Unlimited: Hearing the voices of discovery
Shakespeare and Beyond

Shakespeare Unlimited: Hearing the voices of discovery

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Author
Esther Ferington

In our Shakespeare Unlimited podcast, now celebrating its 100th episode, you can hear so many surprising and often first-person stories by scholars, musicians, authors, actors, and others on all manner of Shakespearean topics.

Celebrating 100 episodes of Shakespeare Unlimited
Shakespeare and Beyond

Celebrating 100 episodes of Shakespeare Unlimited

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Author
Ben Lauer

Today, we’re releasing the 100th episode of our podcast, Shakespeare Unlimited. Since 2015, when we kicked things off with an episode about Nelson Mandela and the Robben Island Shakespeare, we’ve met the people who answer letters to Juliet, chatted with rappers (on more…

Play on! Q&A: Elise Thoron and Julie Felise Dubiner on translating 'The Merchant of Venice'
Julie Felise Dubiner and Elise Thoron
Shakespeare and Beyond

Play on! Q&A: Elise Thoron and Julie Felise Dubiner on translating 'The Merchant of Venice'

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Author
Shakespeare & Beyond

The playwright and dramaturg who worked on translating ‘The Merchant of Venice’ share insights into the play and the translation process.

What's onstage at Shakespeare theaters in June
Photo: Rosalind stands alone onstange with her arms outstretched in
Shakespeare and Beyond

What's onstage at Shakespeare theaters in June

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Author
Ben Lauer

Each month, we bring you a snapshot of Shakespeare in performance across America. Grab your picnic basket and follow us: June is the start of summer Shakespeare season, and we know just where to go.

Excerpt - Shakespeare in the Theatre: Peter Sellars
Shakespeare and Beyond

Excerpt - Shakespeare in the Theatre: Peter Sellars

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Author
Shakespeare & Beyond

This excerpt from Ayanna Thompson’s book explores Peter Sellars’s “uniquely American take on William Shakespeare” and his 1980 production of King Lear.

Explore promptbooks from the 1950s festival Shakespeare Under the Stars
King Henry VIII prompt book
Shakespeare and Beyond

Explore promptbooks from the 1950s festival Shakespeare Under the Stars

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Author
Esther French

The Folger collection contains a number of prompt books from Shakespeare Under the Stars productions, which were gifts from Arthur Lithgow.

Questionable parenting: Shakespeare and the father portrayals in his plays
Leontes - the father in The Winter's Tale
Shakespeare and Beyond

Questionable parenting: Shakespeare and the father portrayals in his plays

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Author
Austin Tichenor

What kind of father was Shakespeare? The fathers he portrays in his plays don’t always come off looking so good, but he also explores parental regret.

How Restoration playwrights reshaped Shakespeare’s plays to fit changing political norms and theatrical tastes
Shakespeare and Beyond

How Restoration playwrights reshaped Shakespeare’s plays to fit changing political norms and theatrical tastes

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Author
Claude Fretz

Restoration Shakespeare was a complex theatrical experience that integrated song, music, dance, and acting; indeed, music and dance, alongside stage machines and movable scenes, were central to the success of Restoration theatre more generally.

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