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.
In his plays Shakespeare deploys the cormorant as a symbol of insatiable hunger and gluttony, drawing also on the bird's reputation as a portent of doom and evil.
King John (2022): Jessika D. Williams in “King John,” at the Oregon Shakespeare Festival. Photo by Jenny Graham. The fall harvest is ready, and this year, we’ve got a bumper crop of Shakespeare plays! If you’re in the mood for…
Excerpt - "Super-Infinite: The Transformations of John Donne" by Katherine Rundell
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Shakespeare & Beyond
"Spiritually speaking, many of us confronted with the thought of death perform the psychological equivalence of hiding in a box with our knees under our chin: Donne hunted death, battled it, killed it, saluted it, threw it parties." Read more from Katherine Rundell in this excerpt from her new biography of the English poet John Donne, "Super-Infinite: The Transformations of John Donne."
Excerpt: "The Final Curtain: The Art of Dying on Stage" by Laurence Senelick
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Shakespeare & Beyond
Shakespeare's plays provide ample opportunity for dramatic deaths onstage, and 18th-century English actors like David Garrick transformed simple stage directions in the text into "stirring set-pieces," as Laurence Senelick writes in the below excerpt from his new book, "The Final Curtain: The Art of Dying on Stage."
“Worthy service": The Tempest-uousness of The White Lotus
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Austin Tichenor
HBO's Emmy-winning "The White Lotus" transforms Shakespeare’s "The Tempest" into a darkly funny satire of the hospitality industry, writes Austin Tichenor.
Arthur Murphy's 18th-century collection of humor - Excerpt: "Laughing Histories" by Joy Wiltenburg
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Shakespeare & Beyond
"Murphy may be the first person in history to subject laughter to such intensive and extensive study, at least from the perspective of a laughter professional," writes Joy Wiltenburg about the 18th-century writer's 500-page compilation of humor, in this excerpt from her book, "Laughing Histories." Murphy's commonplace book is part of the Folger collection.
Henry VIII and herbals: Prince Charles and Camilla's visit to the Folger Shakespeare Library
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Shakespeare & Beyond
See some of the Folger collection items that Charles and Camilla examined when they visited the Folger in 2005, including an early modern book on plants that got the prince's attention.
Adapting Shakespeare's 'Antony and Cleopatra' for opera
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Lucia Scheckner
Get an insider's look at adapting a Shakespeare play for opera with this blog post by the dramaturg and libretto consultant for the new John Adams opera of "Antony and Cleopatra."
Excerpt - "Susanna Hall, Her Book" by Jennifer Falkner
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Shakespeare & Beyond
In the opening scene of Jennifer Falkner's novella "Susanna Hall, Her Book," the queen of England has just arrived at New Place in Stratford-upon-Avon. But Susanna, the eldest daughter of William Shakespeare, has reasons for not wanting to host Henrietta Maria, wife of Charles I.
