In connection with the exhibit "First Folio! The Book That Gave Us Shakespeare" at the University of Oregon's Jordan Schnitzer Museum of Art, the Downtown Eugene Public Library will host four free events:
On Saturday, January 16, 3:00 p.m., Lara Bovilsky will give a talk "Celebrating Shakespeare’s First Folio." She will discuss the history of remembering Shakespeare, exploring the radically changing assessments of Shakespeare’s gifts and contributions to the world from his friends’ conflicting descriptions to modern perspectives. An Associate Professor of English at the University of Oregon, Bovilsky led the successful application process to bring this display to Eugene.
Enjoy "Singing Shakespeare," a concert on Thursday, January 28, 6:00 p.m. University of Oregon School of Music vocalists directed of Laura Wayte will perform a variety of examples of The Bard's words set to music over the past 400 years by composers from Byrd to Bernstein.
On First Friday, February 5, 6:00 p.m., Shakespeare himself will host an instrumental concert, "The Food of Love - Shakespeare’s Music." The Oregon Bach Collegium will perform pieces inspired by Shakespeare, featuring works written and performed during his lifetime and in since. The concert will be emceed by Shakespeare, played by Geoff Ridden, who will explain the music and its use in his plays. Musicians will be Wyatt True (violin), Marc Vanscheeuwijck (cello), and Margret Gries (harpsichord). The Downtown Library stays open until 8:00 p.m. on the First Friday of each month.
Director and actor Judith “Sparky” Roberts will lead a presentation titled "Naked Shakespeare" on Saturday, February 6, 3:00 p.m. She will talk about the art of artifice in Shakespeare’s plays, with illustrative performances by professional actors Joe Cronin, Dylan Skye Kennedy, Richard Leebrick, Marcee Long, and Patrick Torelle. Discover how Shakespeare entices the audience to revel in "the momentary trick.” Explore how he lays bare the illusions of theatre while using lures both obvious and subtle to engage the audience's collusion, unleashing their "imaginary forces."
These events at Eugene Public Library are hosted in connection with the Jordan Schnitzer Museum of Art’s exhibition of “First Folio! The Book that Gave Us Shakespeare.” The book known as the First Folio was published in 1623, just seven years after the writer’s death, and is the only source of 18 of his 38 plays including “The Tempest,” “Macbeth,” “Twelfth Night,” and “As You Like It.” In 2016, the 400th anniversary of Shakespeare’s death, original First Folios will tour for display in every state in the nation plus Washington, D.C. and Puerto Rico.
The University of Oregon’s Jordan Schnitzer Museum of Art in Eugene was chosen as the single Oregon site. Between January 6 and February 7, visitors to the museum will be able to see the exhibit with free admission, as well as participate in related events on campus and in the community.
The national tour “First Folio! The Book that Gave Us Shakespeare” is a traveling exhibition from the Folger Shakespeare Library, in partnership with the Cincinnati Museum Center and the American Library Association.
For more information about the exhibit, including a complete events calendar: jsma.uoregon.edu/Shakespeare. For more information about First Folio events at Eugene Public Library, call 541-682-5450.