The University of Central Arkansas and Arkansas Shakespeare Theatre have been selected as hosts for First Folio! The Book that Gave Us Shakespeare, a national traveling exhibition of the Shakespeare First Folio, one of the world’s most treasured books.
The First Folio Exhibition will run June 7-July 12, 2016 in the Baum Gallery on the UCA campus.
The exhibition will open at 12:30 p.m. on Tuesday, June 7, after a ribbon-cutting ceremony at noon in front of the Baum Gallery. Noted Shakespeare scholar Roslyn Knutson will present a talk at 3 p.m. in the Baum Gallery. A cocktail reception will be held at 6 p.m. in the ballroom of McCastlain Hall at UCA to celebrate the opening of the month-long exhibit.
UCA is planning numerous programs for the First Folio exhibition. All First Folio events are free and open to the public. More information about these events can be found at arkshakes.com.
The Folger Shakespeare Library, in partnership with the Cincinnati Museum Center and American Library Association, is touring a First Folio of Shakespeare in 2016 to all 50 states, the District of Columbia and Puerto Rico.
“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, and we are very excited that the day is almost here when the public can view this rare and historical artifact,” Mary Ruth Marotte, executive director of Arkansas Shakespeare Theatre, said. “For most people, this will be a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to come within inches of one of the most influential books in history.”
The Folger Shakespeare Library holds 82 copies of the First Folio, which is more than a third of the 233 known copies in the world today. It is believed that 750 copies were originally printed. The Shakespeare First Folio is one of the most valuable printed books in the world. A First Folio sold for $6.2 million in 2001 and another for $5.2 million in 2006. It originally sold for one British pound (20 shillings) — about $200 today.
Many of Shakespeare’s plays, which he wrote to be performed, were not published during his lifetime. The First Folio is the first collected edition of Shakespeare’s plays. It was published in 1623, seven years after Shakespeare’s death. Two of his fellow actors compiled 36 of his plays, hoping to preserve them for future generations. Without it, the world would not have 18 of Shakespeare’s plays, including Macbeth, Julius Caesar, Twelfth Night, The Tempest, Antony and Cleopatra, The Comedy of Errors and As You Like It. All 18 appeared for the first time in print in the First Folio.
When the First Folio arrives in Conway, its pages will be opened to the most quoted line from Shakespeare and one of the most quoted lines in the world, “to be or not to be” from Hamlet. Accompanying the rare book will be a multi-panel exhibition exploring the significance of Shakespeare, then and now, with additional digital content and interactive activities.
First Folio! The Book that Gave Us Shakespeare has been made possible in part by a major grant from the National Endowment for the Humanities: Exploring the human endeavor, and by the generous support of Google and Vinton and Sigrid Cerf. Sponsorship opportunities for this major exhibition and the Folger’s other Wonder of Will programs commemorating the 400th anniversary of Shakespeare’s death are available. Learn more at www.folger.edu.
Arkansas Shakespeare Theatre will celebrate its 10th anniversary season in conjunction with the First Folio Exhibition. A Midsummer Night’s Dream opens June 10 on the lawn in front of McAlister Hall, just a short walk from the Baum Gallery where the First Folio will be displayed. Arkansas Shakespeare’s 10th season will also feature Romeo and Juliet, West Side Story and an adaptation of Twelfth Night for families. All of the productions besides Midsummer will be held in Reynolds Performance Hall on the UCA campus. More information about the Arkansas Shakespeare Theatre and First Folio events can be found at arkshakes.com
