The Folger Shakespeare Library opens after four years of renovation. The long wait pays off beautifully.
The Folger holds the most Shakespeare First Folios in the world.
“Wisely and slow; they stumble that run fast.” Those words from William Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet could also describe the $80.5 million renovation of the Folger Shakespeare Theater. It took four years, but the payoff is nothing short of magnificent. Philadelphia-based architectural firm KieranTimberlake (kiernantimberlake.com) led the renovation of Folger (the firm also designed the U.S. Embassy in London), including the bright new public wing, Adams Pavilion, boasting 12,000 square feet. Another unexpected addition: stunning gardens, complete with lavender and rosemary, created by renowned landscape architectural firm OLIN (theolinstudio.com).
“This renovation expresses our faith in the ongoing importance of Shakespeare, the arts and the humanities to our civic life,” says Michael Witmore, Folger’s director. “These enhancements to our building and grounds guarantee that generations of DC residents and visitors will engage with our collections and programs in new and profound ways.”
There are countless activies for families.
Folger owns 82 First Folios of Shakespeare, the largest collection in the world. For the first time, the public can engage with these tomes in displays that feel like a robust wine cellar with interactive learning tools for all ages. Engagement, especially for children, takes a front seat as they can create a Shakespearean scene, set type for printing, play detective with a First Folio and draw scenes from the bard’s work.
It’s not all Shakespeare here. The extraordinary inaugural exhibit, Imprints in Time, showcases the first editions of The Great Gatsby, Huckleberry Finn and The Lord of the Rings, among many other rare and classic books.
The new exhibition space is bright and interactive.
Once as dark as an old British pub, the Great Hall now radiates natural light with high ceilings, massive windows, Elizabethan paneling and two seals revealing the unity of England and America. Celebrations of the renovation continue this fall, with Romeo and Juliet (Oct. 1-Nov. 10) and a new cafe, where no one will eat Henry IV out of house and home. 201 E Capitol St. SE,202.544.4600,folger.edu
Photography by: ALAN KARCHMER; LLOYD WOLF
