Drew University Co-Hosts Shakespeare’s First Folio

Madison, N.J. – Drew University and The Shakespeare Theatre of New Jersey are celebrating the October arrival of Shakespeare’s First Folio at Drew with a mixture of plays, music, talks, workshops and exhibits

The main attraction is the book itself—a 1623 collection of Shakespeare’s seminal plays that will be displayed in Mead Hall. The rare book, on tour from the Folger Shakespeare Library, features 30 plays, including 18 that previously hadn’t been published. The tour is national and Drew is the sole exhibitor in New Jersey.

Folger selected Drew as a host based on its nexus with The Shakespeare Theatre—whose playhouse is on campus—its wealth of courses about Shakespeare and the quality of its theatre program, which Princeton Review ranks as seventh best in the United States.

Public viewing of the book begins Oct. 6 and ends Oct. 30, with weekday hours (Tuesday to Friday) of 4-8 p.m. and weekend hours of noon to 8 p .m. In between, Drew and the Theatre will put on nearly 20 related events, the details of which can be found at drew.edu/firstfolio. Here are some highlights:

Plays

The Shakespeare Theatre is performing Richard III, while Drew students are tackling Hamlet—with performances of each for school groups during the day. Richard III runs from Oct. 5 to Nov. 6, and Hamlet, from Oct. 19 to Oct. 29.

Talks

Shakespeare scholars are speaking about the Bard and the history of First Folio, including Yale University’s David Scott Kastan and three professors from Drew: Frank Occhiogrosso, Jonathan Rose and Kimberly Rhodes. The lectures begin Oct. 5 and end Oct. 29.

Music and Dance

Ensemble Chaconne of Boston will perform music from Shakespeare’s plays on Oct. 5 and Drew students will perform dances inspired by Shakespeare on Oct. 22. In addition, students and professors will deliver Shakespearian sonnets in song, dance and spoken verse at Short Stories in Madison on Oct. 15.

Exhibits

Drew created three exhibits that will be displayed throughout the month at the Drew Library, the school’s United Methodist Archives and History Center and the F.M. Kirby Shakespeare Theatre.

Workshops

The Shakespeare Theatre is offering four different workshops—for actors, teachers, families and young children—between Oct. 7 and Oct. 22.

In addition, Drew is offering tours for larger groups, such as students from schools. Tour information is available via hryan@drew.edu. So, October will indeed be all things Shakespeare on campus.

The First Folio exhibition was produced in association with the American Library Association and Cincinnati Museum Center and is funded by a major grant from the National Endowment for the Humanities: Exploring the Human Endeavor and the support of Google.org, Lord Browne of Madingley, Vinton and Sigrid Cerf, the British Council, Stuart and Mimi Rose, Albert and Shirley Small and other donors.

About Drew University

Drew University, a Phi Beta Kappa liberal arts university, includes the College of Liberal Arts, the Drew Theological School and the Caspersen School of Graduate Studies. Drew is located on a beautiful, wooded, 186-acre campus in Madison, New Jersey, a thriving small town close to New York City. It has a total enrollment of more than 2,000 students and has 145 full-time faculty members, 94% of whom hold the terminal degree in their field. The Theological and Caspersen Schools offer MA and PhD degrees and the College confers BA degrees in 30 disciplines.

Drew is dedicated to exceptional faculty mentorship, a commitment to connecting the campus with the community and a focus on experiential learning. Particularly noteworthy opportunities for undergraduates include the Charles A. Dana Research Institute for Scientists Emeriti (RISE), home of 2015 Nobel Prize Winner for Medicine and Drew Fellow William Campbell, the Drew Summer Science Institute, the Center for Civic Engagement, as well as the Wall Street Semester, Semester at the United Nations, Semester on Contemporary Art and Semester on Communications and Media in New York City and several international semester programs. The University also houses the Center for Civic Engagement, the Drew Summer Science Institute, the Center for Religion, Culture & Conflict, the Center for Holocaust/Genocide Study and The Shakespeare Theatre of New Jersey, an independent professional theater, as well as the United Methodist Archives and History Center and one of the country’s leading concentrations of materials on Willa Cather.

About The Shakespeare Theatre of New Jersey

The acclaimed Shakespeare Theatre of New Jersey is an independent, professional theatre company located on the Drew University campus. One of the leading Shakespeare theatres in the nation, serving 100,000 adults and children annually, it is New Jersey’s only professional theatre company dedicated solely to Shakespeare’s canon and other world classics. Through its distinguished productions and education programs, the company strives to illuminate the universal and lasting relevance of the classics for contemporary audiences.