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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.

Excerpt: The Private Life of William Shakespeare
Shakespeare and Beyond

Excerpt: The Private Life of William Shakespeare

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Shakespeare & Beyond

Lena Cowen Orlin, the Folger Institute’s former Executive Director, illuminates key parts of Shakespeare’s life in her new book, from his father and his wedding to his home, will, and memorial bust; the replica of the bust shown here is…

What's onstage at Shakespeare theaters in November
Shakespeare and Beyond

What's onstage at Shakespeare theaters in November

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Author
Ben Lauer

If you’re looking for a side of Shakespeare to go with that Thanksgiving turkey, check out the plays that the Folger’s theater partners have cooking this month!

Folger Finds: Edwin Booth's royal tunic
Shakespeare and Beyond

Folger Finds: Edwin Booth's royal tunic

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Esther Ferington

Marking the anniversary of actor Edwin Booth’s birth on November 13, 1833, we explore a stunning historical costume from the Folger collection: an embroidered-velvet tunic that Booth wore onstage as King Richard III.

Order It: Mark Antony's "Friends, Romans, countrymen"
Shakespeare and Beyond

Order It: Mark Antony's "Friends, Romans, countrymen"

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Shakespeare & Beyond

Interested in politics and communication? Try our quiz and rearrange the lines of Mark Antony’s “Friends, Romans, countrymen” speech from Julius Caesar, a famous passage from Shakespeare’s plays and a brilliant example of political oratory.

Baz Luhrmann’s Romeo + Juliet turns 25
Shakespeare and Beyond

Baz Luhrmann’s Romeo + Juliet turns 25

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Author
Carla Della Gatta

Carla Della Gatta writes about Baz Luhrmann’s movie Romeo + Juliet, starring Leonardo DiCaprio and Claire Danes, which became an indelible version for Gen X, Gen Y, and even Gen Z. In homage to West Side Story, it Latin-izes the…

Sweet are the comedies of adversity: Shakespeare and Ted Lasso
Shakespeare and Beyond

Sweet are the comedies of adversity: Shakespeare and Ted Lasso

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Author
Austin Tichenor

Austin Tichenor explores some surprising parallels between “Ted Lasso” and Shakespeare’s comedies, then tops off the post with paired quotes from both.

Digital humanities and Macbeth's "creepiest" word
Shakespeare and Beyond

Digital humanities and Macbeth's "creepiest" word

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Shakespeare & Beyond

Celebrate Halloween and Shakespeare with the remarkable story of Macbeth’s “creepiest” word — a common, simple term whose unusual use in the play was identified by data analysis in 2014 and highlighted in a recent online column.

Circe: A transformative enchantress
Shakespeare and Beyond

Circe: A transformative enchantress

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emma poltrack

The enchantress Circe, best known for turning men into pigs, is mentioned several times in Shakespeare’s plays and has been a literary inspiration for more authors up to the present day. Explore her story in the latest installment of our…

West Side Story: 60 years as a cultural barometer
Shakespeare and Beyond

West Side Story: 60 years as a cultural barometer

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Author
Carla Della Gatta

Sixty years old this week, the 1961 movie West Side Story, based on the acclaimed Broadway musical inspired by Romeo and Juliet, also became a de facto representation of US Latinx in musicals for many years.

Helena Modjeska, a shining Polish-American star
Shakespeare and Beyond

Helena Modjeska, a shining Polish-American star

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Author
Esther Ferington

Born on October 12, 1840, the Shakespearean star Helena Modjeska shone bright in two very different theatrical worlds, first becoming a leading lady in Warsaw and then, after moving to Anaheim, California, launching a second career as a leading actress…

Quiz: The animals in Shakespeare's plays
Shakespeare and Beyond

Quiz: The animals in Shakespeare's plays

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Shakespeare & Beyond

Take our quiz on the amazing variety of animals in Shakespeare’s plays, from a mix of dogs and horses to song birds, ferocious wild animals, and much more.

What's onstage at Shakespeare theaters in October
Shakespeare and Beyond

What's onstage at Shakespeare theaters in October

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Author
Ben Lauer

October brings a bumper crop of productions from the Folger’s theater partners, including a ‘King Lear’ performed in Original Pronunciation, ‘Romeos and Juliets’ galore, and a new adaptation of ‘As You Like It’ featuring the music of the Beatles.

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