Capital Classics

10/27/2026

"Lessons From a 19-Year-Old Richard III" — Here's an excerpt from a seasoned Shakespeare teacher’s new book, where he recounts his initial youthful stab at one the Bard’s great villains, and what he’s since learned about the role.

Click on the link in the comments to read this fun article.

10/22/2026

A new Washington DC exhibition examines how Toni Morrison, Maya Angelou and more used the Bard’s work to help tell their own stories.

Interesting read in The Guardian: "‘Shakespeare was a Black woman’: the playwright’s under-recognized connection to Black culture." See the link in the comments below.

10/20/2026

Did you miss the first talk — on AS YOU LIKE IT — of the 13th season of our Shakespeare Book Club earlier this month? Well, here's a video recording.

Our next talk — on Zoom and in person — will be Monday, November 2 on HENRY IV, PART 1 "Hal & Hotspur - Fun & Fire. Hope you can join the fun!

Discussions are held on the first Monday of each month from 6:30 to 7:45 p.m. and are held in-person at the Noah Webster Library and online through Zoom. They are free of charge and open to fans of all ages and experience levels.

10/15/2026

NEXT SHAKESPEARE BOOK CLUB TALK
- Monday, November 2: HENRY IV, PART 1 — "Hal & Hotspur - Fun & Fire"

The theme of the 2026-2027 Shakespeare Book Club — our 13th season with the West Hartford Public Library — is "TEENS MAKING SCENES — the Younger Generation in Shakespeare's Plays."

Focusing on the younger generation in several of Shakespeare's plays, we'll talk about the ways the younger generation acts, talks, feels, and especially, treats each other.

JOIN US IN PERSON OR ONLINE!

West Hartford Public Library and the Capital Classics Theatre Company team up to bring you the Shakespeare Book Club. Join Artistic Associate and Professor of Theatre Geoffrey Sheehan in discussions of Shakespeare’s great works of theatrical literature.

Discussions are held on the first Monday of each month from 6:30 to 7:45 p.m. and are held in-person at the Noah Webster Library and online through Zoom. They are free of charge and open to fans of all ages and experience levels.

10/13/2026

We haven't seen this at our Festival yet.

An actress on-stage during a performance of a A Midsummer Night's Dream at Shakespeare in the Park got engaged on stage and proceeded to run through the audience in excitement.

10/11/2026

Are you going to any of these this fall?

With fall’s arrival, we’re previewing new Shakespeare projects, from film to literature to opera and dance, including Verdi's "Macbeth" at the Metropolitan Opera and a Broadway run of "Much Ado About Nothing" starring Tom Hiddleston as Benedick and Hayley Atwell as Beatrice.

10/08/2026

FOLGER's PODCAST: If you were Hamlet’s lawyer, would you advise he plead not guilty by reason of insanity? Would you consider his accidental slaying of Polonius to be murder or manslaughter? These are the kinds of questions that University of Michigan Law professor Len Niehoff asks his students to consider. Take a listen!

Folger Shakespeare Library is the world's largest Shakespeare collection, the ultimate resource for exploring Shakespeare and his world. Shakespeare belongs to you. His world is vast. Come explore. Join us online, on the road, or in Washington, DC.

10/06/2026

Are you lily-livered? One of Shakespeare’s most appealing yet perhaps underpraised talents is his ability to readily coin insults that fit the moment and the mood, from romantic banter to all-out rage. Try this quiz about a few of the many memorable insults in Shakespeare’s plays.

Folger Shakespeare Library is the world's largest Shakespeare collection, the ultimate resource for exploring Shakespeare and his world. Shakespeare belongs to you. His world is vast. Come explore. Join us online, on the road, or in Washington, DC.

10/03/2026

Join us in person or through Zoom for the start of the 13th season of our Shakespeare Book Club THIS Monday, May 3 for a discussion of "The Tempest" — Love Island!

The theme of our 2026-2027 season with the West Hartford Public Library is "TEENS MAKING SCENES — the Younger Generation in Shakespeare's Plays." Focusing on the younger generation in several of Shakespeare's plays, we'll talk about the ways the younger generation acts, talks, feels, and especially, treats each other.

Discussions are held on the first Monday of each month from 6:30 to 7:45 p.m. and are held in-person at the Noah Webster Library and online through Zoom. They are free of charge and open to fans of all ages and experience levels. To join or for other inquiries, email [email protected] or [email protected]

For more info, visit capitalclassics.org/book-club.

10/02/2026

We gather together every fall to celebrate the hard work, enthusiasm, professionalism, and commitment of volunteers to our Greater Hartford Shakespeare Festival. Thank you ALL for making our audience members feel welcome!

And, as part of this annual Volunteer Celebration Picnic, we recognize some MVP volunteers with the coveted Titus Andronicus Meritorious Award for going above and beyond to make the 2026 Greater Hartford Shakespeare Festival such a huge success.

This year, we recognized...
- Reinhard Kage, M.D., Ph.D. for his unfailing dedication to and support of Capital Classics over the years, leading us through Covid and on the board of directors
- Kate DiBattista for her years of service and good spirits, doing whatever is needed at the Festival, Celebrate West Hartford, and Festival
- Jennifer Whalley for taking the lead on our Shakespeare Fun Night fundraising event and stocking our merch table with crowns, wands, and goodies
- Chris Whalley for jumping right in to support the Festival in the box office and taking exquisite Festival photographs

We also announced a new award this year, which was born out of the competitive (but fun) spirit of our volunteers to see who scanned the most tickets each night. This year's winner of the Peter Quince Ticket Scanner Award for greeting the most audience members over the course of the Festival went to Owen McNamara!

We could not provide such a welcoming audience experience without our dedicated volunteers. Thank you of your volunteers — and please be sure to message us if you would like to join this fun, hard-working family!