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An English Garden
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DC/Folger Theatre/An English Garden

An English Garden

Folger Theatre · Capitol Hill

RunningMay 8 – May 10
Art Formmusic
Who It's Good For

If you're drawn to early music but find traditional concerts static, this literary-musical hybrid offers genuine novelty. It's ideal for anyone curious about how Elizabethans actually experienced their gardens—neither a botanical lecture nor a music recital, but something more textured. Skip it if you prefer straightforward narrative or need a concert that prioritizes virtuosic display.

The Folger Consort transports you into the cultivated world of Renaissance England, where horticulture and music were intertwined pleasures of the educated classes. This intimate Capitol Hill program weaves together period songs and instrumental works with literary snapshots—poems, garden descriptions, and practical advice from Elizabethan-era writers. Rather than a conventional concert, it's a thematic journey that uses sound and text to evoke how gardens functioned as spaces of both aesthetic refinement and philosophical contemplation. The Folger's rare-book holdings provide the intellectual scaffolding here, making this as much a curator's meditation on a specific historical moment as it is a musical performance.

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Folger Theatre is in Capitol Hill. The nearest Metro station is Union Station (Red Line), located about a 10-minute walk away. The Blue and Silver Lines also serve Union Station, making it accessible from multiple directions across the city.
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Last updated April 5, 2026 · Summaries written by Theaterloop editors with AI assistance

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