26 March 2017
The event is over.
Comedies, Histories and Tragedies: Public Talk
Sunday, 26 March 2017
11:00am – 12:00pm
Level 16, The Pod
National Library Building
Admission is free.
The first edition of William Shakespeare’s collected plays was published in 1623. This is commonly known as the First Folio and is one of the most iconic and valuable books in the world. In “Comedies, Histories and Tragedies”, Richard Ovenden, Bodley’s Librarian, will be joined by Professor Rhodri Lewis from the University of Oxford to explain why the First Folio matters. They will discuss the history of the Bodleian Library’s two copies of the First Folio and, using Hamlet as a guide, explain how the Folio helps us understand Shakespearean drama.
Speakers
Richard Ovenden is Bodley’s Librarian, the senior Executive Officer for the Bodleian Libraries at the University of Oxford. He is also a Professorial Fellow of Balliol College, Oxford, and writes and researches in the history of the book and the history of photography. He has previously worked at the House of Lords, the National Library of Scotland and the University of Edinburgh. He serves on the Board of the Consortium of European Research Libraries and was elected to the American Philosophical Society in 2015.
Rhodri Lewis is Professor of English Literature and Director of Ertegun House at the University of Oxford. He is the author of many books and articles on literary and intellectual history from 1500 to 1800, including Hamlet and the Vision of Darkness, which will be published by Princeton University Press later this year.