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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.

Rome’s encounter with Egypt in Antony and Cleopatra
Rome and Egypt
Shakespeare and Beyond

Rome’s encounter with Egypt in Antony and Cleopatra

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Shakespeare & Beyond

In this excerpt from “Shakespeare’s Roman Trilogy,” Paul Cantor writes about the Romanization of Egypt and the Egyptization of Rome in “Antony and Cleopatra.”

Richard Burton, Shakespeare, and the search for the source of the Nile
Shakespeare in Swahililand
Shakespeare and Beyond

Richard Burton, Shakespeare, and the search for the source of the Nile

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Shakespeare & Beyond

When European explorers first began traveling into the interior of the African continent, they brought Shakespeare with them. This excerpt from Shakespeare in Swahililand, written by Edward Wilson-Lee, relates the expedition of Richard Francis Burton and his search for the…

What's onstage at Shakespeare theaters in September
A Midsummer Night's Dream
Shakespeare and Beyond

What's onstage at Shakespeare theaters in September

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Esther French

Every month, we check in with our theater partners to share a snapshot of Shakespeare in performance around America.

An English Garden: Dancing tunes and lyric poetry in Elizabethan England
Shakespeare and Beyond

An English Garden: Dancing tunes and lyric poetry in Elizabethan England

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Shakespeare & Beyond

As the arts and culture flourished in Shakespeare’s England, musical life blossomed as well.

The rise and fall of sumptuary laws: Rules for dressing in Shakespeare's England
A court costume of the time of James I. Folger Shakespeare Library.
Shakespeare and Beyond

The rise and fall of sumptuary laws: Rules for dressing in Shakespeare's England

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Author
Karen Lyon

In Shakespeare’s England, those wearing clothes adjudged to be above their station were subject to fines or imprisonment under sumptuary laws.

The well-dressed Elizabethan: Renaissance fashions as social markers
English clothing
Shakespeare and Beyond

The well-dressed Elizabethan: Renaissance fashions as social markers

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Author
Karen Lyon

Renaissance fashion was unquestionably distinctive, especially among the upper class, who favored clothing with luxurious fabrics and dramatic silhouettes.

Quiz: How well do you know Shakespeare's genres?
Shakespeare First Folio
Shakespeare and Beyond

Quiz: How well do you know Shakespeare's genres?

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Author
Esther French

The Folger, along with many Shakespeare scholars, recognizes five categories of Shakespeare’s work: comedies, histories, tragedies, romances, and poems. Take the quiz to see if you can match the right works with the right genres!

San Francisco Shakespeare Festival celebrates its 35-year history with 35 Shakespeare speeches
San Francisco Shakespeare Festival
Shakespeare and Beyond

San Francisco Shakespeare Festival celebrates its 35-year history with 35 Shakespeare speeches

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Author
Esther French

San Francisco Shakespeare Festival has been presenting a series of free, short performances of famous Shakespeare speeches at notable San Francisco landmarks to celebrate its 35-year history in the city.

Educating and training a child in the early modern period
Guild chapel and school
Shakespeare and Beyond

Educating and training a child in the early modern period

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Author
Karen Lyon

Education was increasingly important in the early modern period with the rise of social mobility, but children were also put to work around the household.

Eclipses in Shakespeare's plays
Shakespeare and Beyond

Eclipses in Shakespeare's plays

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Author
Esther French

Here are three of the ways Shakespeare used eclipses in his plays and poems. Did you know? In 1598, England experienced a total solar eclipse.

What's onstage at Shakespeare theaters in August
Hamlet at The Old Globe
Shakespeare and Beyond

What's onstage at Shakespeare theaters in August

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Author
Esther French

Every month, we share a snapshot of Shakespeare in performance around America. Which plays are opening this month? We check in with our theater partners.

Completing the Shakespeare canon
Colorado Shakespeare Festival Henry VI Part 2
Shakespeare and Beyond

Completing the Shakespeare canon

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Author
Esther French

Colorado Shakespeare Festival has completed the canon for the second time since its inaugural season. See which other theaters have completed the canon.

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