The Folger Shakespeare Library is one of the respected institutions that is located on Capital Hill in Washington, DC. This renowned establishment houses the world’s largest and most impressive collection of Shakespeare materials. It also has a major collection of various Renaissance materials in the form of books, manuscripts and pieces of art. The library is oriented to serve academic institutions, researchers, families and theatergoers. This amazing leader in rare material conservation and great works preservation believes in more than storing away great materials. Much of the collection at Folger is available for guests to read and access. This is frequently an important stop for guests staying in one of DCs luxury accommodations.
In addition to their collection of great works and lab that is focused on progressive conservation efforts, the Folger Library also features a lecture series, theatre and exhibit space. This season’s theatre production includes Much Ado About Nothing, which was performed in October and November of last year and Hamlet, which will be performed from late April through early June of this year. Currently the library’s theatre is about to open a production of Orestes, A Tragic Romp. This show will run from January 27 through March 7th.
Each season the theatre performs three plays, which generally run in a schedule similar to that of this season. The intention of the theatre is to present great works, and many of them are Shakespeare’s plays, in a way that will create a strong connection to a contemporary audience. This is a strong aspect of the field of dramaturgy, which is essential to quality contemporary productions of great works from the theatrical cannon. In addition to great classic works, the theatre also produces world premier productions. One of these original productions included the first performances of Lynn Redgrave’s one woman show that would move on to become the Tony Award nominated Shakespeare for My Father. Many of the world’s great actors have performed at the Folger Theatre and it also hosts productions from other companies.
Posted January 25th, 2010. Add a comment
The Chinese influence in Singapore is indeed very visible, and it’s not surprising, since the majority of the citizens of this island city state are of Chinese descent. It’s an unusual and vibrant place, and there is a pretty spectacular cultural scene here generally. There is an amazing visual arts community, with plenty of galleries all over the city, and some very splendid artists doing traditional as well as ground-breaking work. In the field of performance and installation art, there is a lot of really exciting work these days, and it’s a place that the world needs to be paying attention to. In music, it’s equally exciting, and there are many fascinating artists doing interesting experiments with all forms of music, from electronic to pop. There are always plenty of artists from other parts of the world making stops here, because the audiences are very receptive, and also very educated, about the work that they’re seeing and hearing.
Chinese culture can probably be most easily accessed through the food. It’s not at all difficult to find an excellent Chinese restaurant, because of the proximity, the local population, as well as the unique conditions that make Singapore such an amazing place for eating out. Dinner is a serious business here, and restaurants are designed for delightful social experiences. The food is very fresh, because of Singapore’s access to ingredients from all over the world, as well as the ready supply of fresh seafood. This is an excellent place to taste some of the best in Chinese cooking, from traditional dishes to the very stylized. One often gets the sense that the chefs are enjoying the meals as much as the people sitting at the tables.
If you want to look further into Chinese culture, there is a lot to see, and it’s fairly complicated, so there’s a few lifetimes of study ahead. But to get a glimpse, look into the work of Wong Yoon Wah. He was born in Malaysia, and educated in the U.S., and worked as a professor and critic at NUS, and has taught Chinese studies, as well as other humanities and arts courses. He is also a very accomplished poet himself, and has written many books of both poetry, prose, and an impressive list of academic texts. Among these is Post-Colonial Chinese Literature in Singapore and Malaysia, and it’s a wonderful collection of essays that provides a fantastic introduction to this endlessly interesting topic.
Posted December 28th, 2009. Add a comment