William Shakespeare (1564-1616) (Playwright of The Tempest, Hamlet, Macbeth, and Romeo and Juliet) was honored by his friends John Heminges and Henry Condell seven years after his death with the creation of what is arguably the most influential work of written art. This year (2023), we commemorate the 400th anniversary of the printing of the First Folio – the collection of 36 of Shakespeare’s plays, which includes 18 plays not printed before 1623. It starts with his final solo effort: The Tempest. Not included in the Ff are plays that Shakespeare collaborated on with other writers: Pericles, The Two Noble Kinsmen, Edward III, and his lost plays Cardenio and Love’s Labor’s Won. Between 750-1,000 copies were printed in this first edition, and today perhaps 235 of those remain. There would be three more Folios published in the 17th Century. The Ff, however, for actors, is the closest we get to what the writer wanted on stage, how the words should be spoken, and what was thematic for him. The Folio was expensive and large, a purchase perhaps of prestige. But if it were not for this practical collection, one-half of Shakespeare’s plays would have been lost (as they had not been printed in quarto form – a smaller, less-expensive production). This year marks, then, the 400th celebration of humanity’s discovery of Twelfth Night, The Comedy of Errors, Julius Caesar, As You Like It, The Taming of the Shrew, All’s Well That Ends Well, The Winter’s Tale, Coriolanus, Antony and Cleopatra, and many others. Our ever-lasting appreciation to Messrs. Heminges and Condell, who helped ensure the Man would indeed be “for all time.”
