Twelfth Night
Judi Dench's take on Viola in Shakespeare's Twelth Night
What’s going through Viola’s head as she woos Olivia on Orsino’s behalf? Dame Judi Dench reflects on this key scene in this excerpt from her newly published book.
5 things to look for when you watch Twelfth Night
We ask a few of our favorite Shakespeareans what you should keep an eye out for when you watch Twelfth Night.
Order It: "If music be the food of love" from Twelfth Night
“If music be the food of love, play on.” Take this quiz to see if you can correctly order the lines of the opening speech of Twelfth Night, with its memorable reference to a bank of violets.
ENCORES: ‘Shakespeare’s Virtues’ Lecture by Julia Reinhard Lupton (2018)
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 an excerpt of Julia Reinhard Lupton’s lecture “Shakespeare’s Virtues,” the 2018 Shakespeare…
ENCORES: ‘Twelfth Night’ produced by Folger Theatre (2013)
Folger Public Programs presents ENCORES, a weekly online series highlighting past performances and recalling the rich history of programming on the historic Folger stage. See a clip of ‘Twelfth Night’ from Folger Theatre’s 2013 production.
Twelfth Night: The Hamlet of the comedies
Austin Tichenor suggests that “Twelfth Night” is the “Hamlet” of the comedies, dealing with loss, separation, and death and using some surprisingly similar elements — but in a far happier way.
Shakespeare, improvisation, and the art of rhetoric
Shakespeare characters like Viola and Iago are masters of improvisation, says Folger Director Michael Witmore in this excerpt from the 2017 Shakespeare’s Birthday Lecture.
A recipe for Twelfth Night cake
Park’s Shakspearean Twelfth-Night Characters. Handcolored print, ca. 1830. Folger Shakespeare Library. Twelfth Night is a Christian holiday typically celebrated on January 5 or 6, concluding the 12 days of Christmas and celebrating the visit of the Magi (the three kings). Twelfth…
A beautiful Twelfth Night
Folger Finds delivers delightful and insightful moments with the Folger collection. Sarah Hovde, a cataloger at the Folger Shakespeare Library, reveals a 1932 edition of Twelfth Night with beautiful engravings by Eric Ravilious. Twelfth Night, the last of the twelve…
Elizabethan Holidays: Christmas, New Year's Day... and Plough Monday?
The Twelve Days of Christmas, from December 25 to January 6, was the longest and most enthusiastically celebrated festival in the Elizabethan calendar. On Christmas Eve, people decorated with evergreens, ivy, and holly, burned a Yule log, sang carols, and…
Twelfth Night
What better play to consider on the twelfth night of Christmas than Twelfth Night? Viola Allen and James Young as Viola and Sebastian (1904) Although there are discrepant practices today whether the Feast of the Epiphany—marking the visit of the…
Louis Butelli: Folger Audio Recordings
Louis Butelli as Feste in Twelfth Night. Photo by Scott Suchman. Hello once again from your friend Louis Butelli, most recently Feste in Folger Theatre’s Twelfth Night. We closed our show on June 9 after a great run: thanks to…