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.
For many creators in the fantasy genre, from books to shows to games, the action takes place in a distant past. Why is medievalism so often the default setting for fantasy and what does that say about us?
The cozy mysteries of Shakespeare & Hathaway: Private Investigators
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Author
Austin Tichenor
Austin Tichenor discovers the TV series Shakespeare & Hathaway, which features former police detective Frank Hathaway teaming up with amateur sleuth Luella Shakespeare to solve crimes in—where else?—Stratford-upon-Avon.
After 138 years, Edmond Dédé’s Morgiane—the first known opera by a Black American composer—is receiving its world premiere. Learn about this important American composer and how his magnum opus is being brought to life.
The Old Globe’s Barry Edelstein on Shakespeare and Community
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Author
Shakespeare & Beyond
Learn how Edelstein adapted and directed Shakespeare’s rarely produced Henry VI, Parts I, 2, and 3, turning it into a theatrical event with a cast and crew of over a thousand and bringing their community-based work even closer to the center of the organization.
Folger Finds: New Year's Gift Rolls of Elizabeth I and Henry VIII
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Author
Shakespeare & Beyond
In early modern England, New Year’s Day was celebrated with a long-standing custom of giving gifts to the monarch. Each gift was carefully recorded on “gift rolls.” What were the top gifts in 1539 and 1585?
Buds, Bugs, and Birds in the Manuscripts of Esther Inglis
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Author
Georgianna Ziegler
Flowers, bugs, birds, frogs—all and more are found in the manuscripts of Esther Inglis (1570?–1624) now on display in Little Books, Big Gifts, a special Folger exhibition highlighting her artistry with pen and brush.
“God help the wicked”: Searching for redemption in Shakespeare
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Author
Austin Tichenor
Austin Tichenor explores how the shift of a narrative’s perspective can offer answers to questions about which characters deserve redemption and our forgiveness, from Lear to Iago to Richard III.
