In episode 69 we spotlight the PBS Masterpiece series WOLF HALL: THE MIRROR AND THE LIGHT with a behind-the-scenes visit to the Folger Shakespeare Library exhibition, “How to Be a Power Player: Tudor Edition” with the curator Dr. Heather Wolfe Curator of Manuscripts for the Folger (in Washington, DC), which holds the world’s largest Shakespeare collection. 

WOLF HALL: THE MIRROR AND THE LIGHT traces the final four years of Thomas Cromwell’s life, completing his journey from self-made man to the most feared, influential figure of his time as a principal advisory to England's King Henry VIII. The series is based on the final novel by Hilary Mantel in the Thomas Cromwell trilogy.

As an added bonus, Heather Wolfe shared documents from the Folger collection for the real-life Thomas Cromwell, Henry the VIII, and Henry's 4th wife, Anne of Cleves,. Go to the podcast website (for Ep. 69) to see images of these artifacts and for more information about the Foger Shakespeare Library's exhibit "How to Be a Power Player: Tudor Edition" on display through July 2025.

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TIMESTAMPS

0:19 - A Visit to the Folger Shakespeare Library (Washington, DC)

0:56 - Folger “How to Be a Power Player: Tudor Style” exhibit

2:02 - “Wolf Hall: The Mirror and the Light” overview and cast

3:18-  Heather Wolfe, Curator of Manuscripts at Folger Shakespeare Library

3:30 - Roles and Responsibilities of Curator of Manuscripts

4:22 - Paleography, the study of handwriting

5:14 - Inspiration behind “How To Be A Power Player: Tudor Style” and relevance to 2025

6:48 - Tudor power players' relationships, skills, and power dynamics

7:38 - Tudor "playbooks" from Machiavelli and Castiglione 

12:19 - Power dressing, fashion policing, and personal branding in Tudor times

15:13 - Hospitality power plays: napkin folding and meat carving

22:48 - Break

23:32 - Thomas Cromwell, Henry VIII, and Anne of Cleves artifacts and letters

29:57 - Class status and social mobility in Tudor Times

32:36 - Women's power and influence in the Tudor court

36:09 - Visitor takeaways from “How to Be A Power Playe: Tudor Edition”r exhibit

38:21 - Folger Shakespeare Library resources

38:50 - How to watch “Wolf Hall: The Mirror and the Light” on PBS “Masterpiece”

41:04 - Disclaimer

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