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Macbeth

ENCORES: ‘Davenant’s Macbeth’ produced by Folger Theatre and Folger Consort (2018)
Folger ENCORES, red theater seats fading into darkness
Folger Spotlight

ENCORES: ‘Davenant’s Macbeth’ produced by Folger Theatre and Folger Consort (2018)

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Folger Theatre
Folger Public Programs is pleased to present ENCORES, a weekly online series highlighting past performances and recalling the rich history of programming on the historic Folger stage. See a clip of ‘Davenant’s Macbeth’ from Folger Theatre/Folger Consort’s 2018 production.
Strange Shakespeare: Macbeth and the even weirder sisters
Shakespeare & Beyond

Strange Shakespeare: Macbeth and the even weirder sisters

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David Taylor
Shakespeare’s witches haven’t always terrified audiences. For a century and more – from the late 17th to the early 19th centuries – actors played these parts for laughs. During the period in which Shakespeare became “the Bard”, the witches in fact brought a large dose of comedy to Shakespeare’s bloody tragedy. The origins of this surprising, but long-lasting, stage interpretation go back to 1664.
Order It: Macbeth’s “Out, out, brief candle!”
Shakespeare & Beyond

Order It: Macbeth’s “Out, out, brief candle!”

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Shakespeare & Beyond
As the play’s climactic battle approaches, Macbeth is told of his wife’s death. He responds, “She should have died hereafter. There would have been a time for such a word.” And then he launches into one of Shakespeare’s most famous soliloquies, about the fleeting and fragile nature of life. Can you correctly order these lines from Act 5, Scene 5?
Excerpt – ‘Lady Romeo’ by Tana Wojczuk
Shakespeare & Beyond

Excerpt – ‘Lady Romeo’ by Tana Wojczuk

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Shakespeare & Beyond
American actress Charlotte Cushman was a 19th-century theatrical icon, known for playing traditionally male roles like Romeo and Hamlet. She was not the only actress of her time to play these parts, but her style was uniquely assertive and athletic. However, her breakout acting role was Lady Macbeth.
Teller on his magical 'Macbeth' at Folger Theatre
Macbeth and Lady Macbeth with the bloody daggers
Shakespeare & Beyond

Teller on his magical 'Macbeth' at Folger Theatre

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Shakespeare & Beyond

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…

"Thorny hedgehogs, be not seen": Hedgehogs in Shakespeare's plays and the early modern imagination
hedgehog illustration
Shakespeare & Beyond

"Thorny hedgehogs, be not seen": Hedgehogs in Shakespeare's plays and the early modern imagination

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Haylie Swenson

Edward Topsell. The historie of foure-footed beastes. 1607. FOLGER STC 24123 copy 1 While the global population of European hedgehogs (Erinaceus europaeus) is stable, their numbers have been rapidly declining in the UK for decades, especially in rural areas. This…

Possets, drugs, and milky effects: A look at recipes, Shakespeare's plays, and other historical references
posset recipe
Shakespeare & Beyond

Possets, drugs, and milky effects: A look at recipes, Shakespeare's plays, and other historical references

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Khristian S. Smith

Shakespeare’s plays are full of references to food and cookery, but they’re not always very appetizing. In Hamlet, the ghost of elder Hamlet describes the effect of the poison that Claudius pours into his ears, how it winds its way…

Verdi's Macbeth: "The opera without a love affair!"
Title page with Macbeth and witches
Shakespeare & Beyond

Verdi's Macbeth: "The opera without a love affair!"

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Effie Papanikolaou

Macbeth posta in musica da Giuseppe Verdi e per grata memoria dedicato al suo amatissimo suocero Antonio Barezzi Riduzione per Pianoforte solo de E. Muzio. . 1847. FOLGER 266549“L’opera senza amore!” That was the Italians’ reaction to Verdi’s Macbeth when…

Drawing Shakespeare: Macbeth
Macbeth bas-relief. Drawing by Paul Glenshaw.
Shakespeare & Beyond

Drawing Shakespeare: Macbeth

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Paul Glenshaw
Artist Paul Glenshaw describes drawing John Gregory's bas-relief of Macbeth, the three witches, and their cauldron, with a focus on the vast cloud of smoke made from stone. "I realized as I drew it that the smoke was as much a character in this setting as the witches and Macbeth himself," he writes.
Toil and trouble: Recipes and the witches in 'Macbeth'
recipes
Shakespeare & Beyond

Toil and trouble: Recipes and the witches in 'Macbeth'

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David B. Goldstein
Shakespeare’s witches, like nearly all witches of Shakespeare’s time, have their roots in the kitchen more than in the study.
“A Strange Perfection”: Staging Bedlam in our Restoration Macbeth
Folger Spotlight

“A Strange Perfection”: Staging Bedlam in our Restoration Macbeth

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Folger Theatre
Dramaturgical intern Sarah Lind previously introduced us to the historical Bedlam asylum, the setting for Folger's current production of Macbeth. Today, she looks more closely at how the production uses Bedlam to explore this Restoration version of Shakespeare's bloody tragedy, and what things audience members should look out for when they come to the production.
Playlist: A Guide to the Music in Folger's Restoration Macbeth
Folger Spotlight

Playlist: A Guide to the Music in Folger's Restoration Macbeth

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Folger Theatre
Musical Director Robert Eisenstein provides insights on the music performed in Folger's current production of Macbeth.
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