Shakespeare in the world
Celebrating Elizabethan Cooking, with Sam Bilton
What did people eat in Shakespeare’s England? In Much Ado About Cooking, food historian Sam Bilton uncovers the vibrant and surprising world of early modern cuisine, a delicious world shaped by global trade, humoral medicine, and delight in spectacle.
Maggie O’Farrell’s Hamnet on film
Austin Tichenor takes a look at Chloé Zhao’s film adaptation of Maggie O’Farrell’s 2020 novel Hamnet, writing that Jessie Buckley’s performance as Agnes is the fiercest and most fully-rounded onscreen portrait of Shakespeare’s wife ever seen.
Shakespeare in the news
Shakespeare stories in the news this fall, from the Hamnet film to a new discovery in Shakespeare Quarterly about Shakespeare’s father. Plus a surprising connection between the middle school phrase “6-7” and Richard II.
Pioneering Shakespeare in Ukraine
Director Les Kurbas’s 1920 Macbeth was the first production of a Shakespeare play in Ukraine. Scholar Irena Makaryk talks about his work and the role that Shakespeare and theater played in Ukrainian culture, the Russian Empire, and the early Soviet Union.
The fate of Ophelia
The first track on Taylor Swift’s new album, The Life of a Showgirl, is “The Fate of Ophelia.” Refresh your memory about Hamlet’s ingenue and why we can’t stop writing, painting, and singing about her.
Shakespeare in the news
A round-up of stories about Shakespeare in the news this month—a September issue of our own—with discoveries about miniature portraits, Emma Smith’s webinar series, reading recs for kids, and ad parodies from Improvised Shakespeare.
Shakespeare in the News
A round-up of stories about Shakespeare in the news this summer from theater, film, and science.
Shakespeare and James Gunn's Superman
There’s a new Superman with more than a few Shakespearean echoes. Austin Tichenor writes that it’s no surprise given director James Gunn got his start on a B movie adaptation of Romeo and Juliet.
Celebrating a spectacular Fourth with Folger exhibitions
On display: A letter from Abigail Adams and other extraordinary American items help celebrate the Fourth of July.
“Speak what terrible language you will”: Shakespeare and TikTok
Austin Tichenor on whether TikTok, like Shakespeare, is adding new words and phrases.
Order It: "Sermons in stones" from As You Like It
Shakespeare’s phrase “sermons in stones” is from a speech in As You Like It. Take this quiz to see if you can correctly order the lines.
A touch of Shakespeare in new Folger spaces
Explore the new landscape and public spaces of the Folger Shakespeare Library to find touches of Shakespeare and the early modern age in which he lived.