Department of English

• Sunday, April 23, 2023 - 2:00pm to 4:00pm

Kislak Center on the 6th floor of Van Pelt Library

2023 is the 400th anniversary of the publication, in 1623, of William Shakespeare’s Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies, better known as the First Folio. April 23 is Shakespeare’s birthday (by legend, at least, since we know only that Shakespeare was baptized on April 26, 1564), and also the day of his death in 1616.

To mark these occasions, Penn students from The Theatre Arts Program’s Acting Shakespeare class, taught by Jennifer Joan Thompson, will perform excerpts from Romeo and Juliet, Hamlet, and Twelfth Night. Additional performances will feature winners of the Penn English Department's sonnet contest. 

The first four Folios and other materials from the Horace Howard Furness Shakespeare Library will be on display in the historic Lea Library. Birthday cake for all will complete the celebration!

Note: Non-Penn attendees should register in advance: https://www.library.upenn.edu/event/first-folio-day