Actors Brian Cox and Nicole Ansari examine one of Folger Shakespeare Library’s First Folios and discuss the story behind its creation.
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TRANSCRIPT
This is the title page that includes the wonderful portrait of Shakespeare.
And this is the inscription that says: This is a gift from Jaggard, 1623.
So there's, there's the handshake with the original printer right there.
That's Jaggard the printer.
Correct.
Folger is excited about it because he can trace back every step, if he owns it, from himself right to the printer.
For Brian and Nicole, seeing the Folio takes them back to the moment it was conceived.
Heminges and Condell we've got to be very grateful for.
Absolutely.
The actors did the work.
They actually said Somebody has got to do something in this man's name.
These, this stuff is going to be lost forever if we don't do it.
And they were hoping probably, as usually actors always are, hoping that somebody else will do it.
And then nobody was going to do it.
So they thought Well bugger.
We'll do it.
Ill do it.
Yeah.
This was a masterstroke on their part to do this.
And it also makes one very proud that it was the actors who did it and that they actually did it.
They actually took the care, and gave it the care and attention that he, his life deserved.
Yes.
