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.
Orson Welles’s film about Shakespeare’s Falstaff is turning 60. Austin Tichenor rewatches the legendary movie and finds some new things worth celebrating in Welles’s take on the beloved knight.
19th-century audiences adored Charlotte Cushman in Shakespeare, including Hamlet and Romeo but also Viola (and Cesario). Check out these Twelfth Night finds in our collection.
What were papal conclaves like in Shakespeare’s time? Scholar John M. Hunt shares what’s changed from the early modern period and what remains the same.
Twins, sometimes separated or confused for one another, appear more than once in Shakespeare’s plays. Test your knowledge with our quiz on the subject.
ICYMI we’re sharing several recent news stories about the Folio that caught our eye—from auctions of rare copies to groundbreaking research to new exhibitions.
Austin Tichenor travels back to Elizabethan England with Nicole Galland’s novel Boy about Shakespeare’s acting company member Alexander Cooke in a surprisingly contemporary exploration of gender roles onstage and off.
One of 18th-century Britain’s most prolific narrative painters, Henry Fuseli found inspiration in Shakespeare, with his painting of Macbeth and the witches one of his “best poetical conceptions.”
Learn about the rich history of foraging and the many pleasures and benefits of gathering and eating plants like dandelion, elderberry, mushrooms, and many others.
