Theater and performance
Setting the Stage for 'King John'
From the battlefield to the throne room, scenic designer Andrew Cohen offers a glimpse into the inspirations behind the set for Folger Theatre’s King John.
Dramaturg's Notes: King John
olger Resident Dramaturg Michele Osherow introduces us to King John—Shakespeare’s play about the troublesome, Magna-Carta-signing English ruler—before this rarely performed play takes the Folger stage later this month.
Minding the Gaps of Early Modern Drama
A Guest Post by Heidi Craig The history of early modern drama and theatre is punctured with gaps, unknowns, and absences. Over half of the estimated 3,000 professional plays performed before the closure of the theatres in 1642 have evaporated…
“A Strange Perfection”: Staging Bedlam in our Restoration Macbeth
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…
Bedlam and the “Theatre of Madness”
Dramaturgical intern Sarah Lind takes us on a tour of Bedlam’s history in anticipation of Macbeth’s first preview on September 4th.
What is Lost is Found Again: the Lost Plays Database
We had one answer right on the money for this July’s Crocodile Mystery—each of the images featured evidence of lost plays. The first image is a scrap from the Henslowe papers, recording a payment for John Day for the third…
A Toast to the Props in 'The Way of the World'
Props designer Tony Koehler recently spoke with The Folger Spotlight about the secrets behind the glitz and glamour of Theresa Rebeck’s smart satire.
Setting the Scene for 'The Way of the World'
We spoke to scenic designer Alexander Dodge to find out what it was like turning our Elizabethan theater into a chic Hamptons setting for Theresa Rebeck’s The Way of the World.
Dramaturg's Notes: The Way of the World
Folger Dramaturg Michele Osherow offers her insights on Theresa Rebeck’s new adaptation of Congreve’s The Way of the World.
In Rehearsal with The Way of the World
Photographer Teresa Wood captures The Way of the World cast rehearsing a pivotal scene in Theresa Rebeck’s cunning new comedy.
Snakes on a Stage: Behind the Scenes with Tony Koehler
Props master Tony Koehler returns to the Folger Spotlights to talk about the foresight needed to bring a fortune teller to life, how to make a bed (from scratch), and, of course, the trial-and-error involved in creating a number of…
Theatrical disturbances and actors behaving badly: what the Drury Lane Prompter’s Journal tells us about nineteenth-century theatrical life
Guest post by Dr. Sarah Burdett What was life like inside the nineteenth-century London theatre? How smoothly did performances run? And how professionally did actors behave? The Drury Lane Prompter’s Journal, 1812-1818, held at the Folger, provides an excellent resource…