Five things to look for when you watch 'The Winter's Tale'
If you’re going to see a performance of The Winter’s Tale, perhaps you’ve read the play (or maybe just the plot summary)—or maybe you’re going in cold. So, what should you look for in this Shakespeare play?
Hearing island voices: Roomful of Teeth's Caroline Shaw talks Shakespeare and 'The Tempest'
In this special anniversary year for Shakespeare, the Folger has commissioned Caroline Shaw to compose a new vocal piece inspired by The Tempest. Shaw, who has toured with Kanye West and is the youngest person to win the Pulitzer Prize…
What's onstage in November at Shakespeare theaters across America
Soldiers returning home. Armies clashing in a bloody struggle for power. Government officials abusing their authority. These are the Shakespeare characters populating the post-election landscape at our theater partners around the U.S. this month. Henry VI Two of the Folger’s…
From jazzercise to Rococo garden: Four different takes on Love's Labor's Lost
In Shakespeare’s Love’s Labor’s Lost, four friends forswear women so that they can focus on their studies. But, of course, as soon as they do, four lovely ladies enter their lives. Oh, what to do? Romance and comedy ensue. Four of our…
How to counteract the curse of Macbeth (er, The Scottish Play)
Don’t say “Macbeth” in a theater, or you’ll be cursed. Or at least that’s how the old superstition goes. That’s why you’ll often hear actors refer to it as “The Scottish Play.” It’s one of many stories connected with the performance…
What happens when actors, musicians, and scholars collaborate on a Restoration Shakespeare play
Participants watch as directors Amanda Eubanks Winkler and Richard Schoch give preliminary stagings to the actors and dancers, for Gildon’s 1700 adaptation of “Measure for Measure.” Part of the November 2014 Folger Institute weekend workshop, “Performing Restoration Shakespeare.” Part of…
Measure for Measure + Dido and Aeneas: A Shakespeare-opera mash-up from 1699 takes the stage
Sometimes characterized as a “problem play,” Shakespeare’s Measure for Measure was first performed in the early 1600’s and was printed in the 1623 First Folio where it is listed as a comedy. During the Restoration, many of Shakespeare’s plays were adapted to suit the times, and…
Shakespeare's 'Merchant of Venice': Perpetuating stereotypes or sparking much-needed conversations?
Matthew Boston (Shylock) in District Merchants, a variation on Shakespeare’s The Merchant of Venice. Folger Theatre, 2016. Photo by Teresa Wood. Shakespeare’s The Merchant of Venice ends badly for Shylock, with the court ruling against him and his claim on Antonio’s…
Shakespeare Live: Staging the plays outdoors
Bree Murphy (left) as Mistress Quickly and Marco Antonio Vega as Bardolph in the Utah Shakespeare Festival’s 2016 production of Henry V. Photo by Karl Hugh. Copyright Utah Shakespeare Festival 2016. Whether they are produced under the stars, in the moonlight, by…
Charlotte Cushman, an American star
Thomas Sully. Charlotte Cushman. Oil on canvas, 1843. As we celebrate Shakespeare in 2016, it’s also time to mark some other dates on the calendar. This Saturday, July 23, 2016, is the 200th anniversary of Charlotte Cushman’s birth. Cushman was among the…
Staging Shakespeare in a day
Kimberly Gilbert will play Joan la Pucelle in 2016 in Bootleg Shakespeare: Henry VI, Part 1. Photo by Marcus Kyd. On Monday, July 18, the Taffety Punk Theatre Company will take over Folger Theatre to plan and perform a “bootleg” version…
Orson Welles and the Voodoo 'Macbeth' that launched his directing career
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…