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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.

From Hero to Lady Susan: Kate Beckinsale in 'Love & Friendship'
Shakespeare and Beyond

From Hero to Lady Susan: Kate Beckinsale in 'Love & Friendship'

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Author
Janine Barchas Kristina Straub

As curators of the upcoming exhibition Will & Jane: Shakespeare, Austen, and the Cult of Celebrity opening at the Folger on August 6, we could not help viewing the new Austen film Love & Friendship through a Shakespearean lens—and with…

Ask a Librarian: Summertime in Elizabethan England
Shakespeare and Beyond

Ask a Librarian: Summertime in Elizabethan England

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Author
Karen Lyon

Q: I know about Queen Elizabeth I’s summer progresses, but how did ordinary people spend their summers in Shakespeare’s time? A: For most Elizabethans, summer presented little opportunity for a vacation from regular work routines. There were still farms to tend,…

"An elegant collection of enigmas"
Shakespeare and Beyond

"An elegant collection of enigmas"

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Author
Sarah Hovde

“You have not the Book of Riddles about you, have you?” So Slender asks Simple in Shakespeare’s The Merry Wives of Windsor. Riddles have been around since ancient times, and are present in many cultures: from Babylonian and Sanksrit texts, to Norse and…

The Elizabethan Garden: 11 plants Shakespeare would have known well
Elizabethan Garden
Shakespeare and Beyond

The Elizabethan Garden: 11 plants Shakespeare would have known well

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Author
Esther French

The text for this blog post is adapted from an article in the Summer 2009 issue of Folger Magazine. Shakespeare, who grew up in a riverside country town and was the grandchild of prosperous farmers, refers with familiarity to an extraordinary number of plants…

The perfect Shakespeare-inspired cocktails for summer: Juliet’s Emoji-to and Caliban's Wrong Island Iced Tea from 'Shakespeare, Not Stirred'
Shakespeare and Beyond

The perfect Shakespeare-inspired cocktails for summer: Juliet’s Emoji-to and Caliban's Wrong Island Iced Tea from 'Shakespeare, Not Stirred'

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Author
Esther French

Mix your own drinks with recipes inspired by Shakespeare characters! Two professors combined their love of cocktails with their love of Shakespeare to create Shakespeare, Not Stirred: Cocktails for Your Everyday Dramas, a collection of recipes with names like “Kate’s…

War and America's Shakespeare
American soldier in Vietnam
Shakespeare and Beyond

War and America's Shakespeare

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Author
Esther French

“Extremity is the trier of spirits/ Common chances common men will bear.” Quoting from Shakespeare’s Coriolanus, Abigail Adams praised the courage of the militiamen at the Battle of Bunker Hill in a letter to her husband, John Adams, in 1775. From the…

How Queen Elizabeth I spent her summer vacation
Queen Elizabeth I arriving at Nonsuch
Shakespeare and Beyond

How Queen Elizabeth I spent her summer vacation

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Author
Karen Lyon

Part political theater, part theme park extravaganza, the summertime progresses of Queen Elizabeth I helped shape her image and ensure her legacy.

Follow the First Folio tour! Updates from Louisiana, Massachusetts, Montana, Hawaii, West Virginia, and North Carolina
Shakespeare and Beyond

Follow the First Folio tour! Updates from Louisiana, Massachusetts, Montana, Hawaii, West Virginia, and North Carolina

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Author
Esther French

(Photo Credit: Tulane School of Liberal Arts) Tulane University welcomed the First Folio to its city earlier this month in true New Orleans style: Dr. Michael White and the Liberty Brass Band led a jazz funeral for Shakespeare, followed by a…

Quiz: How well do you know the history of Shakespeare in America?
Shakespeare and Beyond

Quiz: How well do you know the history of Shakespeare in America?

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Author
Esther French

America’s ShakespeareHow well do you know the history of Shakespeare in America?The Booth BrothersLess than a year before John Wilkes Booth became infamous for assassinating Abraham Lincoln, he and two of his brothers (normally onstage rivals) teamed up for a…

Shakespeare and Cervantes: Dying well after living well
The dying hour
Shakespeare and Beyond

Shakespeare and Cervantes: Dying well after living well

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Author
Kathryn Swanton

The dying hour of the rich man from the parable of Lazarus and the rich man. Crispijn van de Passe. Between 1590 and 1610. Folger Shakespeare Library In The Art of Dying Well, the Italian Jesuit Robert Bellarmine, a contemporary…

Orson Welles and the Voodoo 'Macbeth' that launched his directing career
Shakespeare and Beyond

Orson Welles and the Voodoo 'Macbeth' that launched his directing career

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Author
Esther French

That’s a hot ticket! (Photo Credit: Library of Congress) Can you feel the feverish excitement in the air? This photograph from April 14, 1936, shows the crowded streets outside the Lafayette Theatre in Harlem on opening night for the Federal Theatre…

Creating Shakespeare's First Folio
First Folio
Shakespeare and Beyond

Creating Shakespeare's First Folio

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Author
Esther French

A First Folio at the Folger Shakespeare Library. Photo by Lloyd Wolf. Imagine a world without Macbeth, Twelfth Night, or Julius Caesar. We likely wouldn’t have half of Shakespeare’s plays without the First Folio. Who was responsible for making this book,…

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