Hamlet
Shakespeare and Girlhood
Shakespeare Unlimited: Episode 60 How does Shakespeare portray girls and girlhood in his plays, and what do those portrayals tell us about life in Elizabethan and Jacobean England? Our guest for this Shakespeare Unlimited episode, Deanne Williams of York University…
Shakespeare, in the original Klingon
Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country (1991). Directed by Nicholas Meyer. Shown from left: David Warner (as Chancellor Gorkon), Christopher Plummer (as General Chang), William Shatner (as Captain James T. Kirk), Walter Koenig, Leonard Nimoy (as Captain Spock), Nichelle Nichols, DeForest Kelley,…
Reading ahead for "Will & Jane"
As you’ve seen on this blog already, the next Folger exhibition, Will & Jane: Shakespeare, Austen, and the Cult of Celebrity (August 6 to November 6), will be a fascinating look at the posthumous celebrities of William Shakespeare and Jane…
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…
Portraits in Hamlet: ‘Look here upon this picture, and on this’
One of the oldest theatrical legends about Shakespeare is that he played the ghost in Hamlet. We know that Shakespeare was both an actor and a playwright, but we have no idea whether he acted this small, but memorable role.…
Gravedigger’s Tale On the Road in Mississippi
Actor Louis Butelli is traveling the world in Gravedigger’s Tale as part of the First Folio! The Book That Gave Us Shakespeare tour. Read an update from his travels below! Hello, friends! It’s your very own Gravedigger, Louis Butelli writing you. I recently…
Debating Ophelia’s Death—and Becoming a Better Teacher
I am an English teacher because of my English teachers. What dedication I have I learned from a man who had Paradise Lost taken off of his syllabus but came into work an hour early, each day, to teach…
Gravedigger's Tale On the Road in Florida
Actor Louis Butelli is traveling the world in Gravedigger’s Tale as part of the First Folio! The Book That Gave Us Shakespeare tour. Read an update from his travels below! Louis Butelli Hello again from your intrepid Gravedigger, Louis Butelli! Activities for Folger…
Hamlet on Wheels: Teaching Shakespeare in a Special Education Classroom, Part 2
(Image: Kathy Leonard) As promised, I’m back with the follow-up post on Hamlet on Wheels. This time, I’m sharing some practical suggestions that are essential for my special education classroom—and often beneficial for all learners. I primarily use Shakespeare…
“Conscience Does Make Cowards of Us All” - Embracing Your Fears While Teaching Shakespeare
(Image: Chasidy Burton) I have a confession to make. As a high school English teacher, I have not always been obsessed with teaching Shakespeare. Yikes! I know that makes me sound sacrilegious as a lover of language, but after…
Hamlet on Wheels: Teaching Shakespeare in a Special Education Classroom, Part 1
Wheels? Yes, wheels. All of my students are physically disabled, and many are diagnosed with intellectual disabilities as well. Able-bodied students can get up on their feet to perform. My students can’t get on their feet, but that doesn’t stop…
Hamlet wasn't always the prince with the common touch
When we think about Shakespeare on the stage we usually imagine two different historical moments: ‘then’ and ‘now’. ‘Then’ is Shakespeare’s lifetime, when Richard Burbage, the original Hamlet, first spoke ‘To be or not to be’ from the stage of…