Shakespeare’s First Folio Visits Annapolis
Time-stained pages printed and bound almost 400 years ago hold 36 plays written by William Shakespeare. That’s the Shakespeare considered “the most important writer in the English language.” So says Daniel De Simone, Eric Weinmann Librarian at Folger Shakespeare Library.
This book is one of the 82 First Folios Folger Library owns. That’s a lot.
About 750 first editions of the First Folio — the first book collection of his plays — were printed in 1623. By then, the author was seven years dead, and his plays were scattered to the wind.
“They were put together by members of his acting troupe who wanted to preserve the texts and also wanted to sell books,” De Simone said. “So it was a commercial venture as well.”
Only 233 of that rare first printing surviv. The Folger’s 82 are the world’s largest collection, locked away in the library’s basement vault. The temperature and humidity are held constant. Yet 18 of these irreplaceable books will go traveling, with one coming to Annapolis November 1 to December 4.
Chosen from above, By inspiration of celestial grace
In Annapolis and 51 more cities, the visiting books will be secured in special glass boxes that create a preservative environment.
Over 100 colleges, museums, theater centers and public libraries applied to be part of a tour De Simone calls “the first in its kind.” Only 50 were selected, one for each of the 50 states plus Washington, D.C., and Puerto Rico.
In Annapolis, that’s St. John’s College’s Mitchell Gallery, with Annapolis Shakespeare Company co-sponsoring. “We are a member of the Shakespeare Theater Association,” explained Sally Boyett, artistic director of Annapolis Shakespeare Company. “All exhibitors must partner with a member. I brought the idea to St. John’s last year.”
St. John’s College library director Catherine Dixon encouraged the college to pursue the partnership. “We are honored to have been selected as one of the institutions to help share this extraordinary part of the world’s cultural heritage from the Folger Shakespeare Library’s collection,” Dixon said.
On display, each book will be open to a page of Hamlet, further illustrated by panels describing different printed versions of Hamlet plus the play’s impact in the classroom and American literature.
“Shakespeare was a master of writing about human existence. We hope the audience will see his relevance to their own lives.”
To bring Shakespeare’s insight to our times, Annapolis Shakespeare Company adapts some of the timeless classics. “We adapt to modern settings so people can connect to modern characters,” Boyett said. “We are creating a relevancy, or bridge, between the classic work and modern people.”
Annapolis Shakespeare Company is deciding what plays will accompany the First Folio’s visit. Boyett also promises an exciting opening ceremony.
The First Folio’s visit is opportunity to make “Annapolis a destination” for classical theater, Boyett said.
If you can’t catch the folio during its time in Annapolis, one will be on display in Washington, D.C., at Gallaudet University.
Can one desire too much of a good thing?
Not all First Folios are alike.
“They were all printed at the same time,” De Simone explained, “but there were changes made as the text was going through the press,” because each copy had to be printed individually.
The collectors who gave their name to the Folger Library acquired such a large collection exactly because, De Simone said, “every copy has a distinctive characteristic.
“They thought they could best understand the world of Shakespeare as it was published and how he was perceived over time by acquiring numerous copies. So you could see from the earliest period, the same book, the same text with different annotations or bindings. So you can get a broader sense of Shakespeare’s impact over time.”
Six folios will be sent out at once, each to be on exhibit for about four weeks. When those folios return, another six will be sent out. They cannot all be sent out at once because, De Simone said, “We have to monitor the condition.”
For the Folger, the nationwide tour is a great expansion of reach.
The tour “represents an opportunity for the Folger Shakespeare Library to be able to gain its reputation as a national and international institution dedicated to Shakespeare, the Elizabethan era and the Renaissance,” De Simone said.
The Shakespeare and His First Folio exhibition is funded by a National Endowment for the Humanities grant.