The University of Virginia has been given the honor of hosting Shakespeare’s First Folio from now until October 26th as part of the Folger Shakespeare Library’s traveling exhibition “First Folio! The Book That Gave Us Shakespeare.” The First Folio is an original collection of 36 of William Shakespeare’s plays published in 1623.
“About half of the plays had been published previously in small, single-work ‘quarto’ editions,” Special Collections Curator Molly Schwartzburg said. “This is the earliest known place of publication for some of the most famous plays, including The Tempest and Macbeth.”
The Folio takes center stage beside the University’s “Shakespeare By The Book” exhibition in the Albert and Shirley Small Special Collections Library.
This exhibition commemorates the 400th anniversary of William Shakespeare’s death. In addition to the First Folio, there will be other Shakespeare relics and artifacts, such as early editions, on display.
Additional events will also be held to celebrate the event. On October 12 at 4 p.m. a special lecture, “Shakespeare for the American People” will be given by Virginia Mason Vaughan of Clark University inside the Special Collections auditorium. A “Vigil for the Bard!” will also take place in Special Collections on October 14 at 4pm, October 23 at 2pm, and October 25 at 6pm. The event will feature a performance involving scenes, monologues, and sonnets in honor of Shakespeare’s body of work, and is directed by University of Virginia’s Associative Professor Kate Burke.
Special Collections Library is open seven days a week; Monday – Thursday, 9 a.m. – 7 p.m, Friday – Saturday 9 a.m. – 5 p.m., and Sunday from 1 – 5 p.m. Admission is free.
