All the World's Your Stage Shakespeare for Today: Discover the World of Shakespeare through 8 of his Most Famous Plays

Dr Farah Karim-Cooper is the eighth director of the Folger Shakespeare Library in Washington DC, USA. The Folger opened in 1932 as a home to the monumental collection of Shakespeare’s works and materials from the early modern world amassed by founders Henry and Emily Folger. Today, Dr Karim-Cooper leads a staff of around 150 who continue to grow and care for the collection, provide opportunities for research and scholarship, programme the Folger’s Elizabethan-style theatre, offer training and classes for educators and students, and operate museum galleries and a café. As the Folger approaches its second century, Dr Karim-Cooper is positioning the organization as an international leader for practical applications of Shakespeare and the humanities in civic life.
Prior to joining the Folger, Dr Karim-Cooper was Professor of Shakespeare Studies, King’s College London, and Director of Education (Higher Education & Research) at Shakespeare’s Globe, where she worked for 20 years. While at the Globe, she led the architectural enquiries into early modern theatres as Chair of the former Architecture Research Group, overseeing the research into the design and construction of the Sam Wanamaker Playhouse. She was a co-project leader with the CEO and AD on the playhouse construction.
Dr Karim-Cooper served as President of the Shakespeare Association of America 2021–2022 after serving 5 years on the Board of Trustees. She is the recipient of the British Shakespeare Association Fellowship Award 2023 for her contribution to Shakespeare Studies and Inclusivity. She held an Oxford Humanities Cultural Programme Fellowship and was Visiting Fellow of Exeter College Oxford from 2022–2023.