William Charles Macready and the restoration of William Shakespeare’s ‘King Lear’
Imagine a King Lear that cut the character of the Fool, created a romance between Edgar and Cordelia, and featured a happy ending in which Lear and Cordelia both live. That was the most popular version of Shakespeare’s play for…
BECOMING OTHELLO! A gender-flipped journey onstage and in the archive
Debra Ann Byrd writes about encountering an early female Othello in the Folger collection and developing her memoir and solo show, Becoming Othello.
The irony of the American Moor
‘American Moor’ playwright and actor Keith Hamilton Cobb writes about speaking back to Shakespeare, White American Theater, and frameworks of privilege.
Your Guide to Streaming Shakespeare this Summer
Wondering where you’ll find Shakespeare this summer? We’ve gathered a wealth of online performances, conversations, and programs from the Folger’s theater partners that you can check out in July and August.
Your guide to streaming Shakespeare in June
Check out performances, conversations, classes, and podcasts available online in June from Shakespeare theaters all across the country.
Your guide to streaming Shakespeare in May
Suddenly, there’s a lot of Shakespeare available online. Here are our tips for exploring the wealth of films, Zoom readings, online classes, and more in the month of May.
A history of Theatre Royal Haymarket and its struggle to break through London's restrictions on Shakespeare
William Capon. Theatre Royal Haymarket. August 1803. Folger Shakespeare Library. During a time when performing Shakespeare in London was a legal right belonging only to certain theaters, the Haymarket theater’s rise to greatness is directly linked to its struggle to…
Shakespeare at a distance: When the playhouses close but performance continues
Watercolor sketch of the Globe stage by Cyril Walter Hodges. Folger Shakespeare Library. The coronavirus pandemic has forced the closure of theaters around the world, and it might seem at first glance that the theater community has come to a…
Edward Dering and the earliest record of an amateur private performance of a Shakespeare play
Recently New York Times theater critic Ben Brantley extolled the virtues of reading plays out loud in your living room as a way to while away the COVID-19 time at home. Memories of his own time reading Hamlet as a…
Your guide to streaming Shakespeare in April
Here’s how to watch Shakespeare from home this month, featuring performances from your favorite theater companies and films on streaming platforms like Amazon Prime, Hulu, Netflix.
Teller on his magical 'Macbeth' at Folger Theatre
Ian Merrill Peakes (Macbeth), Macbeth, conceived and directed by Teller and Aaron Posner, Folger Theatre in a co-production with Two River Theater Company, 2008. Carol Pratt. “Our premise is that Macbeth is Shakespeare’s supernatural horror thriller, and should be done…
Your guide to streaming Shakespeare in March
Streaming platforms are a great way to get some Shakespeare while you’re social distancing. Here’s what’s streaming now, featuring Anthony Hopkins, Bollywood, “The Twilight Zone,” and more.