Long Live the Queen Folger Shakespeare Library Hosting ëCelebrating Elizabeth Ií Series by Gary Tischler By the time Elizabeth Tudor, the Virgin Queen of England, drew her last rasping breath, she had for some time already lost the power of speech. She was 68 years old and probably felt much older than that. She left behind no famous last words, other than to say, ìI am not wellî when she fell illóand more importantly, she left no heir, thus making sure that the throne of England would go to the son of her rival in life, Mary, Queen of Scots. Queen Elizabeth I died on March 24, 1603, having reigned for nearly 45 years as the last of the Tudors. She left behind an age: the Elizabethan age. So vivid was her memory, her originality, the drama of her life and times, that hardly a year passes without some book, essay or movie to remind us of her enduring legacy. People in our times, as in previous times, feel a sense of kinship with her that, in a way, they do not share with Englandís current Queen Elizabeth. So itís no surprise that the Folger Shakespeare Library is hosting a series of events titled ìCelebrating Elizabeth I.î This year after all marks the 400th anniversary of her death, reminding us once again of the fascination and hypnotic pull that Elizabeth Tudor still holds. She is a modern person in spirit, temperament and memory, much like her own beloved contemporary, William Shakespeare. The early highlight of the Folger celebrationówhich runs from March 21 to Aug. 2óis a lavish production of Maxwell Andersonís classic play ìElizabeth the Queen,î (March 22 to May 4) starring Michael Learned, a veteran stage actress from her days at the American Conservatory Theater in San Francisco and beloved for her recurring role as Olivia Walton on ìThe Waltons,î for which she won three best actress Emmys. The Folger has the worldís largest collections of items and artifacts about the Tudors and Elizabeth outside of Great Britain, and these objects will form the core of the exhibition ìElizabeth I: Then and Now,î which runs the course of the celebration. In addition, a smaller traveling exhibition is running at Union Station from March 27 to April 13. Also on tap is a music performance by the Folger Consort called ìShakespeare and Elizabethî from May 9 to 11, a day of family fun on March 22 called ìCelebrate the Queen,î a demonstration of ìElizabethan Swordplayî on May 31, ìShakespeare and the Queenî on June 7, and an event centering on ìElizabeth and Her Courtî on June 14. Anderson, a passionate, poetic and extremely popular playwright of the 1930s, provided a portrait of Elizabeth in love with an ambitious young manówith disastrous results. The play was the basis of ìElizabeth and Essex,î a film that proved to be a royal battle between a thoroughly intimidated Errol Flynn playing opposite Bette Davis as Elizabeth. Legend has it that Davis, none too happy about playing opposite a mere movie star as opposed to an actual actor, decked Flynn during the filming of one scene, and that Flynn expressed dismay at having to kiss Davis. In fact, there have been a number of movies focusing on Elizabethís travails. Just recently, the remarkable Cate Blanchett portrayed the young queen-to-be in ìElizabeth,î a stirring, complex film that traced the transformation of a young, passionate, volatile princess into the symbol of England. And Dame Judi Dench won an Oscar for her brief but spirited portrayal of an older, theater-loving queen in ìShakespeare in Love.î Before her, Glenda Jackson starred in a BBC series about the Virgin Queen, playing opposite Vanessa Redgrave in ìMary, Queen of Scots,î a film that imagined a meeting between the two rivals that never occurred. The first movie queen, if you will, was actually Sarah Bernhardt all the way back during the silent film era. Elizabethís whole life was drama. She was the daughter of Anne Boleyn, for whom Henry VIII ruptured Englandís ties with Rome and the Catholic Church when he divorced his Spanish wife. Later, Elizabethís mother was beheaded for not providing a son, while Elizabeth, for all of her youth, became a master at the art of survival, always in danger from the rival aristocratic families vying to be the power behind the throne. Triumph over the throne she did, however, because in the end there was no one else left to take it. Still, as time went on she became ambivalent about her role. ìTo be a king and wear a crown is a thing more pleasant to them that see it, than it is pleasant to them that bear it,î she once wrote. Nevertheless, Elizabeth made sure that her people saw her. She ruled artfully, with power, deviousness, intelligence, spirit and panache. She may have been the most effective ruler of her timesóno small feat given that there were popes, a holy Roman emperor, rival French kings and Philip of Spain, who made one ill-fated attempt to invade England with the Spanish Armada. Elizabeth had, by all accounts, a taste for bawdy humor. She loved the theater and supported Shakespeare. If she was unlucky in loveóher often youthful swains betrayed her with their political ambitionsóshe still had the love of her people to sustain her. Hers was an England that was restless, growing, adventurous, spirited, energetic and exuberantóa reflection of the times and of her personality. Elizabeth managed to share the stage of the world while dominating it, and sheís apparently still doing it. Gary Tischler is a contributing writer for The Washington Diplomat.