Elegant story

Souvenirs as gifts

October 2, 2014

A souvenir is an object a person acquires for the memories the owner associates with it. A souvenir can be any object that can be collected or purchased and transported home by the traveler as a memento of a visit.

While there is no set minimum or maximum cost that one is required to adhere to when purchasing a souvenir, etiquette would suggest to keep it within a monetary amount that the receiver would not feel uncomfortable with when presented the souvenir.

The object itself may have intrinsic value, or simply be a symbol of past experience. Without the owner’s input, the symbolic meaning is invisible and cannot be articulated.

The tourism industry designates tourism souvenirs as commemorative merchandise associated with a location, often including geographic information and usually produced in a manner that promotes souvenir collecting.

Performance history


The earliest recorded performance of the play was recorded by Simon Forman, the Elizabethan “figure caster” or astrologer, who noted in his journal on 11 May 1611 that he saw The Winter’s Tale at the Globe playhouse. The play was then performed in front of King James at Court on 5 November 1611.

In 2009, four separate productions were staged:

  1. Sam Mendes inaugurated his transatlantic “Bridge Project” directing The Winter’s Tale with a cast featuring Simon Russell Beale (Leontes), Rebecca Hall (Hermione)
  2. The Royal Shakespeare Company
  3. Theatre Delicatessen also staged productions of The Winter’s Tale in 2009. The play is in the repertory of the Stratford Festival of Canada and was seen at the New York Shakespeare Festival, Central Park, in 2010.
  4. The Hudson Shakespeare Company of New Jersey presented a production as part of their annual Shakespeare in the Parks series. The action was set in central Europe during the early 1900s era of the Austro-Hungarian Empire but with a decidedly diverse cast.

An “orthodox” BBC production was televised in 1981. It was produced by Jonathan Miller, directed by Jane Howell and starred Robert Stephens as Polixenes and Jeremy Kemp as Leontes.

In 2013 the RSC staged a new production directed by Lucy Bailey, starring Jo Stone-Fewings as Leontes and Tara Fitzgerald as Hermione.