Category: Jane Austen Societies

Jane Austen · Jane Austen Popular Culture · Jane Austen Societies · JASNA · Regency England · Social Life & Customs

Summering with Jane Austen II ~ Jane Austen Summer Camp in Connecticut

BookLady Deb3 Comments

In need of a summer Regency Ball or a quiet Tea or how about a whole weekend listening to various talks about Jane Austen and her Times? – well the summer of 2012 has much on offer!  A previous post outlined the summer program at the University of North Carolina.

JASNA-CT summercamp-logo

Today I write about the Jane Austen Summer Camp offered by the JASNA-Connecticut Region, July 26-28, 2013 (and see below for options to participate in some of the events if you cannot give up a whole weekend to Jane):

The historic Inn at Middletown, in Middletown, CT—built in 1810—is the setting for a weekend of learning about and practicing the activities that made up Jane Austen’s daily routine, and that of her contemporaries. During the weekend of July 26 – 28, 2013, you’ll experience balls, parties, and promenades in Regency style, and write letters with a quill and ink, as Jane would have written her daily letters and her novels. Ladies and gentlemen will learn how to draw silhouettes of family and friends, to dress their hair in true Regency fashion, and to sew pretty and useful accessories. Plus, we’ll visit the Middlesex County Historical Society in its headquarters, the General Mansfield House. Period dress is encouraged and appreciated, but not required.

Inn_at_Middletown-WP

Inn at Middletown [image: Wikipedia]

 Throughout the weekend, Jane Austen scholars and experts on Regency life will speak on various topics, and local dance expert Susan de Guardiola will teach an English contra dance workshop Saturday evening and will call the dances at the ball that night. Join fellow Austen fans for a weekend of fun and “Random Acts of Regency Naughtiness” (the retreat’s theme), whether it’s dancing more than two dances with the same partner, enjoying one of the beverages created in honor of Austen’s 6 heroes, or besting everyone else in Friday night’s “Who Wants to Be a Duchess?” game.
[from the flyer: http://www.jasnact.org/summercamp.pdf]

Dancers0001

Dance image from Vintage Dancers.org

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 A quick outline of the weekend:

1. Lectures on Austen’s cultural impact from Yale Professor Dr. Mark Schenker:

* “Sensibility and Sense: How the 18th Century Meets the 19th in Jane Austen’s Novels” (Friday night)

* “The Richness of ‘Ordinary Life’ in Jane Austen’s Novels” (Sunday)

2.  Hands-on workshops that will let you personally experience Jane Austen’s world

  • Regency Silhouettes
  • Reticules & Wallet making
  • Regency Hairstyles
  • Penmanship

1857reticule

Reticule: capacious hold-all blog

3.  Friday night reception, all meals Saturday including breakfast, lunch, tea, and dinner, and Sunday brunch. 

4.  Saturday night Dance Workshop followed by a Regency Dinner & Ball 

5.  Sunday morning costume promenade and excursion to the Middlesex County Historical Society house and gardens 

6.  Regency Naughtiness! Play our ‘Who Wants to be a Duchess game?” Friday night or stay for our optional Ice Cream Sundays event and an Austen movie

artifacts mansfield house

 Artifacts at the General Mansfield House – from their website

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Can’t devote a whole weekend to Jane? – then beginning June 1, tickets will be available for Saturday’s events (rather than the complete weekend) until spaces are sold out. Ball-only tickets will be $30; tickets for the ball + dinner + afternoon dance lesson will be $70; and the Saturday-only tickets (breakfast not included) will be $165.

DAY PASSES REGISTRATION FEES

  • Saturday pass 9:30 a.m. to midnight (includes valet parking, workshops, lunch, tea, dance workshop, dinner, Regency food lecture, Regency ball): $165.
  • Saturday BALL PLUS pass 5:45 p.m. to midnight (includes valet parking, dance workshop, dinner, Regency food lecture, Regency ball): $70.
  • Saturday BALL ONLY pass 9 p.m. to midnight (includes valet parking, Regency ball, dessert) – Cash bar available. $30.
  • Sunday pass 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. (includes visit to Middlesex County historical society, brunch, keynote lecture, Sunday ice cream social and Austen movie): $65.

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dance-JASNA-CTblog[from the JASNA-CT Summer Camp Blog]

For more information on the weekend and how to register: 

c2013 Jane Austen in Vermont
Austen Literary History & Criticism · Great Britain - History · Jane Austen · Jane Austen Societies · JASNA · JASNA-Vermont events · Regency England · Social Life & Customs

Please Join Us! ~ JASNA-Vermont Meeting – June 2, 2013 ~ Trickle-Down Economics in Pride and Prejudice, with Sheryl Craig

BookLady Deb4 Comments

ja silhouetteYou are Cordially Invited to JASNA-Vermont’s June Meeting 

 “Trickle-Down Economics in Pride and Prejudice;
Or, Why ‘Mr. Darcy Improves upon Acquaintance’!”

 with Sheryl Craig* 

Sheryl Craig
Sheryl Craig

What Jane Austen’s first readers did not need to be told was that a man named Fitzwilliam Darcy had to be a moderate Whig, one who supported Tory Prime Minister William Pitt’s tax and Poor Law reform proposals, and that Darcy’s home county, Derbyshire, paid high wages, provided generous welfare benefits, and funded the best system of poor houses in England.  Thus, Darcy, and moderate Whigs like him, were worthy of both Elizabeth Bennet’s and the reader’s esteem and served as role models to be emulated throughout Georgian Britain and, as it turns out, throughout time.   

*****

Sunday, 2 June 2013, 2 – 4 p.m. 

 Champlain College, Hauke Conference Center,
375 Maple St Burlington VT  

~Free & open to the Public~
~Light refreshments served~ 

For more information:   JASNAVermont [at] gmail [dot] com
Please visit our blog at: http://JaneAustenInVermont.wordpress.com


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* Sheryl Craig has published articles in Jane Austen’s Regency World, Persuasions, Persuasions On-Line, and The Explicator.  She has also written film reviews for the Jane Austen Centre in Bath.  Sheryl was JASNA’s International Visitor in 2008, is the editor of JASNA News, and was JASNA’s Traveling Lecturer for the Central region in 2012.   She has a Ph.D. in Nineteenth-century British literature from the University of Kansas, has taught at the University of Central Missouri for over twenty years, and is a life member of JASNA.

 800px-Microcosm_of_London_Plate_096_-_Workhouse,_St_James's_Parish

Workhouse at St. James’s Parish – from The Microcosm of London, 1810, [wikipedia commons]

c2013, Jane Austen in Vermont
Austen Literary History & Criticism · Author Interviews · Book reviews · Collecting Jane Austen · Jane Austen · Jane Austen Popular Culture · Jane Austen Societies · Regency England

Susannah Fullerton on Celebrating Pride and Prejudice ~ Guest Post and Book Giveaway

BookLady Deb26 Comments

Gentle Readers All: Please see below to enter into the Giveaway for a copy of Susannah Fullerton’s Celebrating Pride and Prejudice.

book cover - celebrating P&P- fullerton

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Today I welcome Susannah Fullerton, president of JASA, author of numerous articles on Jane Austen, a leader of literary tours , and author of  Jane Austen and Crime  (2006),  A Dance with Jane Austen (2012), and most recently the author of Celebrating Pride and Prejudice: 200 Years of Jane Austen’s Masterpiece [Happily Ever After in the UK].

Susannah shares with us a few thoughts on the her new work and the joys of discovering and re-discovering Austen’s most popular novel – and out just in time as we all celebrate the 200th bicentenary of Pride and Prejudice this year, all beginning on January 28th. I highly recommend this book, a must-have for your Austen Library, a perfect companion to the novel, and a lovely work in its own right.

And now Susannah:

______________________

I was about 11 years old when my mother first read me Pride and Prejudice. We were away on a family holiday in Christchurch, New Zealand, and the only thing I remember of the visit there was lying at the end of a double bed while my Mum read aloud. It was not all joy – I did get very frustrated when she stopped to laugh. I was too young to appreciate the irony of the novel and just wanted to know what would happen to Elizabeth and Darcy. Now of course I know exactly why my mother laughed. In spite of my mother’s ‘interruptions’, I loved the story, and soon went back to read it by myself.

pandp_darcy_robertball

Mr Darcy,  by Robert Ball. Pride and Prejudice (Doubleday 1945)
[image from Austenprose.com]

So for just over 40 years Pride and Prejudice has been a vital part of my life. That first reading has been followed by countless others. Sometimes I have just picked up the book and it has fallen open in just the right place (any place is the right place) and I’ve read of the Meryton Ball, or one of Darcy’s proposals, or a scene with Mr Collins making a fool of himself. Even a ‘one page reading’ has always left me feeling better. Again and again I have picked it up and started with that brilliant opening sentence (to which I devote a whole chapter in my book!) and gone through to the end, knowing exactly what would happen but loving it more every single time.

And I have read ‘P & P’ in other ways – I adore unabridged audio versions, I’ve read it as a comic book, I’ve read it on my Kindle, and of course I’ve seen film versions and loved them too. Elizabeth and Darcy are my dear friends and while I would not want to actually meet Mr Collins, I always delight in his company within the pages of Jane Austen’s great novel.

It has been said that you never read the same book twice! Every re-reading is a different experience – you know what is going to happen within the plot and so you look out for other things. And with ‘P & P’ there are always other things – some slight nuance you missed last time you read it, a different inflection by an audio book reader can make you react to a sentence you know well in a different way, and you pick up on the tiny details of setting or character that you failed to notice last time. And the other thing that means you are not reading exactly the same novel, is that you yourself have changed. You have grown older and wiser, experienced things in your own life that have slightly altered you from the person you were on the first reading. I groaned over Mrs Bennet when I first met her – she was so vulgar and embarrassing and I pitied Elizabeth for having to put up with her. But now I’m a mother myself, with children who are forming romantic partnerships, and I have so much more sympathy for Mrs Bennet. And as a wife, I can understand her frustration when Mr Bennet goes off to the library and shuts the door, leaving the worries of 5 unmarried daughters totally up to her. Reading Pride and Prejudice changes your life, but your life also changes each re-reading of Pride and Prejudice.

mrs bennet

With such a deep love of this novel, you can imagine what a joy it was for me to sit down and write a book about its incredible 200 years. I could not think of a nicer way to celebrate this important literary anniversary. For months I was immersed in its pages, learning even more about the book and its characters as I worked on my own book. I was so fascinated by the translations of it – how very quickly it was translated into another language and what a mess was made of that first translation, and what huge challenges it gives a translator (do you think Mr and Mrs Bennet should say ‘vous’ or ‘tu’ to each other in a French translation  – I’d love to hear your opinion?). I especially loved writing my chapter on Elizabeth, trying to analyse what it is that makes her so charming and lovable, while not making her a ‘goody-goody’ in whom we can’t believe. I had lots of fun with my chapter on all the merchandise inspired by this novel – don’t you just love the idea of a BBQ apron that announces ‘Let’s BBQ Wickham!’ And I was fascinated by the responses to ‘P & P’ over 200 years from famous people. A.A. Milne quite rightly judged people by their reactions to this book, while Robert Louis Stevenson wanted to go down on his knees and worship Elizabeth Bennet whenever she opened her mouth.

My book is very gorgeously illustrated and has pictures that may be unfamiliar to many. It is available in two editions – the American edition is Celebrating Pride and Prejudice: 200 Years of Jane Austen’s Masterpiece and the UK edition is Happily Ever After: Celebrating Jane Austen’s Pride and Prejudice. I do hope my book gives pleasure to those of you who read it, and also teaches you new things about this much-loved novel.

book cover - happily ever after uk

HAPPY PRIDE AND PREJUDICE ANNIVERSARY YEAR!

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About the Author:

susannah fullertonSusannah Fullerton is President of JASA, and author of Jane Austen – Antipodean Views, Jane Austen and Crime, A Dance with Jane Austen, and her latest Celebrating Pride and Prejudice: 200 Years of Jane Austen’s Masterpiece – note that the UK title of this work is Happily Ever After: Celebrating Jane Austen’s Pride and Prejudice (Frances Lincoln, 2012).

 

 

Celebrating Pride and Prejudice
Voyageur Press, January 1, 2013
ISBN-10: 0760344361; ISBN-13: 978-0760344361
$25.99

Contents: (I have abbreviated the title to P&P)

  • ‘My Own Darling Child’- The Writing of P&P
  • ‘A Very Superior Work’ – Reactions to P&P
  • ‘A Truth Universally Acknowledged’ – The Famous First Sentence
  • ‘Bright and Sparkling’ – The Style of P&P
  • ‘As Charming a Creature’ – The Heroine, Elizabeth Bennet
  • ‘Mr Darcy … is the Man!’ – The Hero, Fitzwilliam Darcy
  • ‘The Female Line’ – Her Relations
  • ‘The Same Noble Line’ – His Relations
  • ‘Delighting in the Ridiculous’ – Other Characters
  • P&P Goes Overseas – The Translations
  • ‘Pictures of Perfection’ – Illustrating and Covering P&P
  • Did They Live Happily Ever After? – Sequels and Adaptations
  • Bonnets and Bosoms – Film and Theatrical Versions
  • Mugs and Skateboards – Selling P&P
  • ‘Behold Me Immortal’ – P&P Now and in the Future
  • Bibliography and Index

_____________________________________

Please enter into the drawing for a copy of Celebrating Pride and Prejudice by commenting below: either by asking Susannah a question or telling us of your first experience in reading Pride and Prejudice [or like Susannah, perhaps being read to?].  Deadline is Tuesday January 29, 2013 11:59 pm; winner will be announced on Wednesday January 30th.  Worldwide eligibility. Good luck all, and thank you to the publisher for donating the book for the giveaway [please note that I happily purchased my own copy].

c2013, Jane Austen in Vermont
Author Interviews · Book reviews · Jane Austen · Jane Austen Popular Culture · Jane Austen Sequels · Jane Austen Societies · JASNA · Regency England

Guest Post and Giveaway ~ Syrie James on The Missing Manuscript of Jane Austen

BookLady Deb18 Comments

The Missing Manuscript of Jane Austen by Syrie JamesSyrie James has been touring the blog world since the launch of her latest book The Missing Manuscript of Jane Austen on December 31, 2012 – she started at Austenprose and has hit most of the Austen-related blogs out there (see below), each with a different guest post about her writing, research, travels, and love of Jane Austen.  So I am thrilled to welcome Syrie here today to Jane Austen in Vermont, where she gives us a little history of her association with JASNA. [See below for giveaway instructions!]

I first met Syrie at the AGM in Fort Worth [along with her very own Mr. Darcy!], an honor for me as I had dearly loved The Memoirs of Jane Austen – I thought she captured very well the life and voice of Austen and her time.  In The Missing Manuscript of Jane Austen, she takes us again into this Austen world, offering up the most intriguing tale and what we all wish for: a missing manuscript, missing letters, missing anything from our favorite illusive author.  And in Missing Manuscript, we have two books for the price of one – a delightful tale within a tale that gives us a lost Austen novel titled The Stanhopes, based in part on Austen’s own “Plan of a Novel” *, and the contemporary tale of the young woman who discovers the letter that leads her to the manuscript.

I loved this book! – Syrie has given us a story that would make Jane Austen proud and a fine taste of what such a real find might offer us (with of course the caveat that no one is really like Jane Austen…)  [An Interesting Aside: I have been reading Trollope’s Barchester Towers, wherein we have a story of a vicar who is suffering from the loss of his parish, as well as a family named the Stanhopes!  I asked Syrie if she had any of this in her mind when she was writing – she said she has never read any Trollope and had no idea! Another example of the “collective unconscious” at work in mysterious ways! – and I struggling to keep my Stanhopes straight!]  So I highly recommend this book – a perfect winter read to curl up with – you will find endearing characters, sly allusions to Austen’s life and works that make this a bit of a treasure hunt, two love stories (who can resist!), and storytelling at its best.

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Syrie, I have been badgering you and Diana (Birchall) to come to visit us in person in Vermont, to perform any and all of your now famous plays – “The Austen Assizes” in Brooklyn was a great romp filled with Austen’s baddies, and by all accounts your performance of Diana’s play You are Passionate, Jane was a rousing hit [links to a few bits of both on youtube are below].  We look forward to another such performance in Montreal for the Mansfield Park AGM 2014,  where you will finally be close enough to Vermont for me to entice you to stop in! – In the meantime, this blog visit shall have to do…

So please welcome Syrie as she discusses how important the Jane Austen Society of North America [JASNA:  www.jasna.org] is to her and how it has helped her writing career.

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JASNA header

JASNA has become such an important part of my life. Interestingly, I hadn’t even heard of the organization until The Lost Memoirs of Jane Austen came out. Following a suggestion from my readers, I checked it out and discovered that a spring meeting of JASNA-SW (my local Southwest chapter) was being held at the UCLA faculty club, which isn’t far from where I live. I signed up to go, having no idea what to expect. I arrived at the luncheon not knowing a soul—and to my surprise and delight found I was surrounded by remarkable, like-minded people from all different professions, all bound together by their love of literature in general and Jane Austen’s works in particular. Many of them had already read my novel. Talk about finding “my people”! The agenda was packed with interesting speakers and included an activity that to me was to die for: an excursion to the UCLA research library where we were allowed to view a first edition of Pride and Prejudice. I was hooked for life.

I attended my first JASNA AGM (Annual General Meeting) that fall in Chicago. An AGM is truly Jane Austen Heaven, with an emporium selling Austen-related goodies, and four days of sessions, speakers, special interest activities, dance lessons, and entertainment all related in some way to the Regency era or Austen’s books, culminating with a Regency Ball where everyone dresses in period attire. Since then, my husband and I have attended nearly every AGM (we plan our vacation schedules around wherever the next conference happens to be). Some attendees dress in period attire, and since I like to sew and love costumes, it’s a treat to have an excuse to don a Regency gown and bonnet!

syrie-and-bill-james-at-the-regency-ball-jasna-ft-worth-2011-x-350

 Syrie and Bill James in full regalia
2011 Fort Worth AGM cLaurel Ann Nattress

The organization has been a tremendous help to my writing. I learn so much at the breakout sessions, both at the AGMs and local chapter meetings. Just as one example, at the AGM in Fort Worth in 2011, there was a session on transportation in the Regency era. I learned about the types of carriages used, how the system of changing horses worked throughout England, and how long such trips might take—all of which enhanced my own research and was valuable when I wrote the traveling scenes in The Missing Manuscript of Jane Austen. 

JASNA has also been a wonderful boon to my career. My local chapter is very supportive of my work, inviting me to do readings from my books (attendance at the meetings ranges from 65-160 people) and arranging for me to sign books at their booth at the annual L.A. Times Festival of Books. I’ve made so many friends through JASNA—many of whom live in far flung states and in England, Canada, and Australia—who I look forward to seeing once a year at the AGM.

I was the keynote speaker for a JASNA Boise Idaho’s Jane Austen tea, which made for a delightful wintry trip and forged lifelong friendships. The book launch and signing for Jane Austen Made Me Do It, an anthology edited by Laurel Ann Nattress to which I contributed an Austen-themed short story, was held at the 2011 AGM (and was great fun). At the meeting in Brooklyn last October, fellow author Diana Birchall and I co-wrote and presented a comedic play “The Austen Assizes” which was voted the #1 breakout session of the entire conference. (Highlights reel here). The committee hosting the Montreal AGM in 2014 recently commissioned us to write an original play for the plenary audience, and we couldn’t be more delighted. Diana and I have performed her comedic two-woman play “You Are Passionate, Jane” (where Jane Austen and Charlotte Brontë meet in heaven) for two JASNA chapters (highlights video here)—fulfilling my dream to play Jane Austen on stage!

As you can see, I can’t stop talking (or writing) about JASNA! For anyone who enjoys Austen’s works, I highly recommend that you join!

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Syrie JamesAuthorPhoto2011 - Credit William JamesSyrie James is the bestselling author of eight critically acclaimed novels, including The Missing Manuscript of Jane Austen, The Lost Memoirs of Jane Austen, The Secret Diaries of Charlotte Brontë, Dracula My Love, Nocturne, Forbidden, and The Harrison Duet: Songbird and Propositions. Her books have been translated into eighteen foreign languages. In addition to her work as a novelist, she is a screenwriter, a member of the Writers Guild of America, and a life member of the Jane Austen Society of North America. She lives with her family in Los Angeles, California. Connect with her on her website, Facebook, and Twitter.

You can follow Syrie’s Blog tour here: 

Gala Online Launch Party at austenprose.com!

My Jane Austen Book Club: Syrie James Discusses Why Jane Austen Captures Her Writing Imagination

Austen Authors: Syrie James celebrates The Missing Manuscript of Jane Austen -–book launch and giveaway!

Historical-Fiction.com: Syrie James on Her Writing and Travels

RT Book Reviews: Syrie James Channels Jane Austen

Fresh Fiction: Syrie James | The challenges of the writing process

Risky Regencies: How Did You Research The Missing Manuscript of Jane Austen?

Austenesque Reviews

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Information on joining JASNA is at their website: http://jasna.org/membership/index.html  – like Syrie, you may discover there is a regional group close to you – there are over 70 regions in the US and Canada – the lists for each are here:

For the manuscript of “Plan of a Novel” – visit Jane Austen’s Fiction Manuscripts

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Giveaway of The Missing Manuscript of Jane Austen! please either ask Syrie a question or comment on your favorite Syrie James book (and why) to be entered into the random drawing for a copy of The Missing Manuscript – worldwide eligibility.  Deadline: Monday January 21, 2013 11:59 pm – winner will be announced on Tuesday January 22nd.

Thank you all, and Thank You Syrie for posting here today!

Books · Great Britain - History · Jane Austen · Jane Austen Circle · Jane Austen Societies · Travel

All I Want for Christmas? ~ Anything Jane Austen Please! Day 2: Take a Literary Tour with Susannah Fullerton, President of the Jane Austen Society of Australia

BookLady Deb6 Comments

I cannot think of a gift I would want more than this! [do hope my caro sposo is paying close attention!]– I had the pleasure of meeting Susannah Fullerton at the JASNA AGM in Brooklyn – she goes above and beyond as the President of the Jane Austen Society of Australia (JASA), has just published A Dance with Jane Austen [she wrote a guest post here], and she has a new book coming out in early 2013 Celebrating Pride and Prejudice (titled Happily Ever After in the UK)

Continue reading “All I Want for Christmas? ~ Anything Jane Austen Please! Day 2: Take a Literary Tour with Susannah Fullerton, President of the Jane Austen Society of Australia” →

Books · Collecting Jane Austen · Jane Austen · Jane Austen Sequels · Jane Austen Societies · JASNA · JASNA-Vermont events · Schedule of Events

JASNA-Vermont ~ Annual Jane Austen Birthday Tea! ~ Dec 2, 2012, with Sandy Lerner!

BookLady Deb3 Comments

  Please Join us if you can!    

You are Cordially Invited to JASNA-Vermont’s December Meeting 

~ The Annual Jane Austen Birthday Tea! ~

  Sandy Lerner* 

“Writing Second Impressions” 

*****

~ Traditional English Afternoon Tea ~
~ and Playing Word Games with Jane Austen! ~ 

Sunday, 2 December 2012, 2 – 5 p.m. Champlain College, Hauke Conference Center,
375 Maple St Burlington VT  

$25. / JASNA members and pre-registrants;
$30. at the door; $5. / student

Pre-registration is required!  ~ Please do so by 23 Nov 2012!

~ the form: Dec Tea 2012 Reservation form
~ Regency Period or Afternoon Tea finery (hats!) encouraged! ~ 

For more information:   JASNAVermont [at] gmail [dot] .com
Please visit our blog at: http://JaneAustenInVermont.wordpress.com

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*Sandy Lerner, co-founder of Cisco Systems, founder of Urban Decay Cosmetics,  founder of the Ayrshire Farm in Virginia, and, most dear to us, is also the founder and moving force behind the Chawton House Library. She is now Chairman of Trustees, Chawton House Library and the Centre for the Study of Early English Women’s Writing, a place for research and camaraderie for scholars from all over the world. What better place than the former home of Jane Austen’s brother Edward Austen-Knight to study Austen and her literary antecedents and contemporaries!

Lerner’s book Second Impressions, written under the nom de plume of Ava Farmer, is set 10 years after the action in Pride and Prejudice, and explores the changes to the Darcy family’s lives, to Europe post-Napoleon, and to life in late Regency England, all as homage to Jane Austen, written in her “stile”, and with a fascinating yet credible plot. So let’s step into Lerner’s world to discover such things as: What do Darcy and Elizabeth do all day at Pemberley? Is Lady Catherine a welcome and constant visitor? Are the Wickhams reformed?  And what becomes of England’s most eligible female Georgiana Darcy? And Anne de Bourgh? And dare we ask about Mr. and Mrs. Collins?!

Second Impressions will be available for purchase and signing, all proceeds to benefit Chawton House Library.

During the Tea we shall engage in Playing Word Games with Jane Austen, a most suitable and refined entertainment for a wintry afternoon!

*****

Sandy Lerner, c2012 Pal Hansen

Links for further reading:

c2012, Jane Austen in Vermont
Austen Literary History & Criticism · Book reviews · Books · Collecting Jane Austen · Jane Austen · Jane Austen Societies · JASNA · Literature · Regency England

The JASNA 2012 AGM in Brooklyn ~ Part I: My Jane Austen Book Stash

BookLady Deb3 Comments

I have not gone missing, though it may seem that indeed I have fallen off the planet – not quite so dramatic though it does almost feel like that – we have sold our house and amidst the joys of house packing, packing up my book business – all gone to storage as we do not have a place to call home – concerns about my son’s surgery, a September 23rd JASNA-Vermont event of grandiose proportions [three speakers, a fabulous afternoon!], and then off to the JASNA AGM in Brooklyn – a lovely respite into the late 18th century from which I am still fighting re-entry!  I was hoping to post about the AGM right away and fear I am slowly forgetting about all the fabulous events of Jane Austen Land in Brooklyn – but I shall start today with a booklist of new purchases – the Emporium filled with goodies as usual – and though the lack of a home and the memory of packing all those books forced me into more conservative behavior at the book stalls, I confess that book buying is my only true vice and I could not completely resist, so here are the latest additions to my Jane Austen library:!

Maggie Lane. Understanding Austen: Key Concepts in the Six Novels. London: Robert Hale, 2012.  ISBN: 978-0-7090-9078-6

Lane has written a number of Austen-related texts and this book will be a most welcome addition to my collection of her other works. Her essays in Jane Austen’s Regency World magazine are always insightful, often just focusing on a single term and how Austen employs it [for example in the Mar / April 2011 issue, she takes on Austen’s concept of “home”] – in this book, Lane delineates Austen’s 18th century language, clarifying for the reader the meanings of such words as “elegance” and “openness” to “candour” and “gentility” and “mind” and “spirit” – a lively entry into Austen’s world that adds to our understanding and appreciation of what she was really saying to her readers…

Devoney Looser. British Women Writers and the Writing of History, 1670-1820.  Baltimore: Johns Hopkins UP, 2000. ISBN: 0-8018-6448-8

Ashamed to say I do not have this in my collection – so happy to remedy that with this discussion of Lady Hutchinson, Lady Mary Wortley Montagu, Charlotte Lennox, Catharine Macaulay, Hester Lynch Piozzi, and Jane Austen and their historically-informed writings… perfect winter reading…

James Fordyce. Sermons to Young Women. Introduction by Susan Allen Ford. Chawton: Chawton House Press, 2012.
ISBN: 978-1-907254-07-9

One of the best-selling conduct books of Jane Austen’s day, Fordyce’s Sermons to Young Women we mostly know as the reading material of the odious Mr. Collins, the words of which Lydia Bennet patently ignored… This is a paperback facsimile of the 10th edition from the Chawton House Library collection, and necessary reading material if one is to understand the world that Jane Austen was writing in – we might laugh at some of the directives for female behavior now and think we indeed have “come a long way baby” – but read it we must to truly “get” Austen… purchase supports the Chawton House Library, and as Susan Allen Ford, JASNA’s intrepid Persuasions editor, has written the introduction, one should just add this to their shelves without further ado…

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Janine Barchas. Matters of Fact in Jane Austen: History, Location, and Celebrity. Baltimore: Johns Hopkins UP, 2012.  ISBN: 978-1-4214-0640-4

“Janine Barchas makes the bold assertion that Jane Austen’s novels allude to actual high-profile politicians and contemporary celebrities as well as to famous historical figures and landed estates…the first scholar to conduct extensive research into the names and locations in Austen’s fiction by taking full advantage of the explosion of archival materials now available online.” [from the jacket]

I had the pleasure of introducing Professor Barchas at her AGM presentation on “Jane Austen Between the Covers: A Brief History of Book Cover Art.” She took us through the last 200 years of marketing Jane Austen through the physical aspect of the book, a long-term project she is working on to create a visual bibliography of Austen’s works.  Barchas has given a number of breakout sessions at the past AGMs, always incorporating the graphic and visual aspects of Austen’s world and tying them to her fiction.  I am most anxious to read her newest work, and can heartily recommend it…

Claudia L. Johnson. Jane Austen’s Cults and Cultures.  Chicago: U Chicago P, 2012.  ISBN: 978-0-226-40203-1

Also another must-have for your Austen collection… Johnson “shows us how Jane Austen became ‘Jane Austen,’ an exalted yet seemingly ordinary figure… [by passing] through the four critical phases of Austen’s reception: the Victorian era, the First and Second World Wars, and the establishment of the Austen House and Museum in 1949…” [from the jacket]

Elizabeth Aldrich. From the Ballroom to Hell: Grace and Folly in Nineteenth-Century Dance.  Evanston: Northwester UP, 1991.  ISBN: 0-8101-0913-1

This book went into a second printing in 2000, so very happy to pick it up. It offers up “a collection of over 100 little-known excerpts from dance, etiquette, beauty , and fashion manuals from roughly 1800-1890, to include step-by-step instructions for performing the various dances, as well as musical scores, costume patterns,  and the proper way to hold one’s posture, fork, gloves, and fan…”

Hazel Jones and Maggie Lane. Celebrating Pride and Prejudice: 200 Years of Jane Austen’s Darling Child.  Bath: Lansdown Media, 2012.  ISBN: 978-0-9573570-0-6

A compact, illustration-filled tribute to P&P, as Jones and Lane “investigate the reasons for its popularity and describe the extraordinary history, reception and afterlife of the phenomenon that is Pride and Prejudice.” [from the back cover].  I was fortunate enough to be purchasing this from publisher Tim Bullamore just as Maggie Lane was at the Jane Austen’s Regency World magazine table – so having it signed by both authors is an additional treat! – and Colin Firth graces the cover, so who could resist!

Sarah Emsley, ed. Jane Austen and the North Atlantic: Essays from the 2005 Jane Austen Society Conference in Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada.  Jane Austen Society, 2006. ISBN: 0-9538174-7-4

I had wanted to go to this conference but was alas! unable to, so happy to pick up this collection of four essays – have meant to since 2006 when it was first published…

The Jane Austen Companion to Love. Naperville: Sourcebooks, 2009.  ISBN:  978-1-4022-4016-4

This was a lovely gift from Sourcebooks in our AGM bag of goodies…. Filled with quotes from the novels and illustrations by the two Brock brothers – a perfect bedside book…and gift for your favorite Austen-loving friend.

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Several books highlighted at the AGM I already have, so shall give them a mention here as well:

Ava Farmer, a.k.a. Sandy Lerner. Second Impressions.  Chawton House Press, 2011. ISBN: 978-1-61364-750-9

Ms. Lerner was at the AGM as a plenary speaker – her talk “Money Now and Then: Has Anything Changed?” – was an interesting analysis of whether Jane Austen was knowledgeable about the issue of money in her novels – will write more about this in another post – but want to mention her book here – she will be coming to Vermont in December to speak at our annual birthday Tea! – and her book will be available for sale, all profits to support Chawton House Library. You can visit the book’s website here: http://www.secondimpressions.us/

Susannah Fullerton. A Dance with Jane Austen: How a Novelist and her Characters went to the Ball.  London: Frances Lincoln, 2012.  ISBN:  978-0-7112-3245-7

A delight to meet and chat with Susannah, the president of JASA, and author also of Jane Austen and Crime, one of my favorite books on Austen.  Here Susannah takes on the Regency ballroom, filled with beautiful contemporary illustrations, and everything you wanted to know about Dance!

Juliette Wells. Everybody’s Jane: Austen in the Popular Imagination.  New York: Continuum, 2011.  ISBN:  9781441145543

Nearly done with this one – and another must-have for your Austen library: “An investigation of Jane Austen’s popular significance today – why Austen matters to readers, how they make use of her novels, what they gain from visiting places associated with her, and why they create works of fiction and nonfiction inspired by her novels and life.” [from the back cover]

William Deresiewicz. A Jane Austen Education: How Six Novels Taught Me About Love, Friendship, and the Things That Really Matter.  New York: Penguin, 2011.

Deresiewicz spoke the evening of the Ball on “Becoming a Hero: Being a Man in Austen’s World” – his book is a delightful journey through the six novels and how his reading of them made him a better man…

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Used Books? – my real downfall, but I only bought two items from the used bookseller Traveler’s Tales, where I usually drop a bit more blunt – I didn’t get to the booth until a few days after the Emporium opened and most items of interest were already gone… but I did find this:

John Gloag. Georgian Grace: A Social History of Design from 1600 to 1830. London: Spring Books, 1967, c1956. – a must have for anyone interested in the architecture and decorative arts of the period – who can resist a book with chapters such as “‘A Dish of Tea’” and “Pray be seated” and “‘The toilet stands dispay’d’” and the like!

And this, a Rowlandson print – you must visit the Jane Austen’s World blog where Vic [my delightful roommate!] shares her purchase of FOUR of these Rowlandson prints!

Here is my one and only: “The Harvest Home” by Thomas Rowlandson (1821)

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…and last but not least, my favorite annual purchase at the AGMs is the Wisconsin Region’s “A Year with Jane Austen” Calender, this for 2013 a celebration of Pride and Prejudice: you can order your own copy here: http://www.jasna.org/merchandise/calendar-2013.html [I purchased a number to sell at our JASNA-Vermont Austen Boutique…]

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More to come about the AGM so stay tuned!

c2012 Jane Austen in Vermont
Domestic Arts · Fashion & Costume · Jane Austen · Jane Austen Popular Culture · Jane Austen Societies · JASNA · Regency England · Social Life & Customs

Another First-Timer’s Take on the Louisville Jane Austen Festival!

BookLady Deb6 Comments

Dear Gentle Readers: I had the pleasure of meeting Tess Quinn last year at one of the Jane Austen Weekends at the Governor’s House in Hyde Park Vermont.  Tess then told me she had published her first short story in the compilation Road to Pemberley (Ulysses Press, 2011), which lay at home, unread, and obviously waiting for this sort of impetus! – Titled “A Good Vintage Whine”,  I read it as soon as I got home and found it to be one of the more inventive of all of such stories that I have ever read… I still recall is very vividly, surely a tribute to its effect!

Tess has offered to write on her first-time visit to the Jane Austen Festival, to follow up Melody’s previous account – so here you can again visit vicariously with words and more pictures, the entire weekend – and this time we get to go to the Ball! And I do think we need to put next year’s adventure on our calendars right now! – and certainly all meet for Tea…

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The Louisville group

JANE AUSTEN FESTIVAL – LOUISVILLE, KY 21-22 JULY 2012

After hearing lovely things for the last few years about the Jane Austen Festival sponsored by the Louisville region of JASNA, I finally attended this event, the 5th Annual. Everything I had heard was not hype – this was a most delightful way to pass the weekend. The ladies and gentlemen of the Louisville chapter are commended for doing it right! Everything organized well, high quality entertainments of every variety – and fashion everywhere you looked!

Flirting on the porch
The Market
The Parlour

I attended with three fellow New York friends and we began the morning on Saturday with a stroll through the various shops of the market. (I was sorry we did not arrive soon enough for the fencing demonstration, which sadly was not repeated again during the festival, though most events were.) I was sorely tempted by many of the fashionable fabrics, bonnets, period games and trinkets – but managed to limit myself only to the purchase of some teas. Shortly afterwards, I headed off to blend my own with Julia of Bingley Teas, one of the session events available. Made a wonderfully aromatic (and quite tasty as I have since discovered) blend with black tea, roses and calendula, cranberry and apricot…and a few other additions. I am now ready to hit the markets confidently to find my own ingredients and develop my own signature blend! Following this session, I rejoined my friends for our scheduled tea time.

Tea Table

What a lovely tea it was! And how impressed was I to discover that all the china being put into service was the collection of one lady!—Bonnie Wise, the Regional Coordinator for Louisville and spearhead of this event. Truly amazing, and very gracious of her to trust us with her precious china. Our table tried several tea blends (all from the Bingley Tea line) but I must confess my favorite was “Marianne’s Passion” – it was delicious served hot, with a fruity under-taste; and even better when I later sampled it in iced tea form.

Tea-Time!

Well sated with sandwiches, scones and desserts (I agree with Melody, the lavender cake was delicious) we headed off to watch Mr Darcy undress. What better entertainment for ladies on a lazy summer afternoon! And judging by the crowd under the tent-top, I wasn’t alone in that opinion. Along the way to it we admired (and photographed) scores of wonderful Regency attire; of course, stopping to chat with ladies and gents alike about the construction of them (being a novice at making my own, I was most interested.) Brian Cushing (aka Mr Darcy) had an engaging presentation style as he peeled off his layers and his anecdotes were both humorous and instructive. A long collective chuckle rippled through the audience as he began to pull his shirt-tail out from his breeches to show us a typical shirt of the period… and it kept coming and coming. In the end it reached past his knees… as he asserted that this was one of the shorter ones of the day!

Darcy in shirtails

Now employing my fan assiduously (I shall not admit whether from the summer heat or seeing Mr Darcy’s shirt-tails! Such a fluttering came all over me!) we ventured to find a bit of shade and to capture in print our own fashions in the ‘grove’ –

Ladies of Fashion in the Grove

and then back to the presentation tent for a lecture on Sickness and Health as depicted in Austen’s novels. It was a fascinating look at various characters and their ailments and a perspective you don’t often encounter – that Mr Woodhouse, despite his annoying solicitousness of everyone’s health, was actually seldom wrong. The whole of it illustrated wondrously Jane Austen’s own extensive understanding of illness and treatments and human nature, of course. Dr. Cheryl Kinney assembled a wonderful slide show of characters, treatments, film clips and anecdotes to support her lecture. It was so well done, I determined not to miss the second lecture she would offer on Sunday. After this one, I approached Dr. Kinney to ask her opinion of the ailment of Anne DeBourgh, as it had not been raised in this presentation. And, as a P&P fanfic author who often considers it when writing, I was thrilled to learn that Dr. Kinney has an entire session on Anne DeBourgh’s ailments planned for the 2013 AGM in Minneapolis. Count me in! I will come armed with interest and questions!
Shortly after this presentation, my group retired to our B&B (a most wonderful find) to rest before readying ourselves for the ball that evening.

The Ball!

I was amazed when we arrived for the dance at the attendance and the fact that nearly the entire company was in period attire. And what fashions there were to witness – each gown finer than the last! Although the acoustics in the hall were not perfect, we had a grand time, dancing almost every dance, and laughter abounded as we made sport (of ourselves and our neighbours, of course) at trying to learn the dance steps. Shame on us for not attending the afternoon practice session. The refreshments during the interval were extensive, and I was most amazed at the competence and administration once again of the Louisville organizers – replenishments were quick and smooth – truly well executed.


We slept very well after our busy day, and got a bit of a late start on Sunday; but arrived in time for a Bare Knuckle boxing demonstration. I, of course, averted my eyes from bare-chested as well as bare knuckled combatants.

Bare-Knuckle Boxing

Following this, I enjoyed a demonstration of side-saddle riding from Ms Deborah Glidden and her assistants. The older gentleman (Bill Glidden) turned out to have spent a long career in Hollywood; he was Doug McClure’s riding double in The Virginian among other things. A few of us in the audience were of an age to recall that TV series very well.

While my friends attended tea again, I instead toured the inside of the house that Melody has already described so nicely. And in addition to the house and furnishings themselves, I truly enjoyed the fashions on display there – all part of Gayle Simmons’s collection and complete with accessories of every sort. Every room held a few ensembles, either on models or lovingly spread out on beds awaiting some young lady to prepare for a ball. Very impressive in all. Each room was manned by a volunteer to provide visitors with a short history, and the master bedroom in particular had a pair of girls who explained that they were in their parents’ room looking for a ribbon their younger brother had impishly hid from them, a particular one the older girl wanted to wear for her coming out. They stayed ‘in character’ throughout and were a delight.

Gayle Simmons Collection

There was also a lovely lady demonstrating bobbin lace making in the house. Oh, the patience required – I don’t think I’ll tackle that, but I will certainly appreciate it more when I encounter the finished item.
More fashion was to come as I attended Betsy Bashore’s fashion show in the large tent. Her creations are magnificent and all taken from either extent garments or pattern books of the era, ranging from mid-1790’s to about 1820. I learned a great deal in addition to just admiring the look – of bonnet veils, and cartridge pleats, and apron dresses and the like. And the fabrics – many of them from saris – were exquisite. It inspired me to continue with my own novice efforts. (My own gown that day included an overdress that I’d made from a $5 thrift shop tablecloth – hey! It worked!)

Tess’s day-dress

I loved all the gowns – the details in them amazing – but my favorites were this brown and cranberry silk ensemble from 1796 (coincidentally, the period I write); and this tissue-silk in a red stripe that was cut on the bias so that the striping was diagonally oriented. They both had the most delicious flow and drape when the young ladies walked. I could just imagine that taking a turn about the room in one of these would turn Caroline Bingley green with envy (as well as capture the admiring eye of Mr Darcy.)

Dr. Kinney’s lecture on Sunday was to do with Jane Austen’s illness, but encompassed so much more besides. It looked at Charles Hayden (whom JA described as something between a man and an angel) as well as Dr Matthew Baillie, a prominent physician in London. One of these two was likely the doctor that Jane Austen consulted about her failing health. The presentation also included ailments and cures of the day, a fascinating look at arsenic (if you wore green or painted your rooms with green paint you exposed yourself to the poisonous stuff), more wonderful slides and film clips as well as a hilarious video look at why we love Austen set to the tune of Connie Stevens’s “Sixteen Reasons.” Overall, another session that was entertaining, informative and engaging. (Yep, definitely looking forward next year to that session on Anne DeBourgh!)
I witnessed a duel between two gentlemen. I learned that the purportedly injured party always shot first – in this case he wounded his opponent in the shoulder. But what a small victory it turned out to be when his opponent, shooting second, killed him in return!

The Duel!

I finished the afternoon at another of the special sessions, joining a group of ladies young and old to paint a fan. After a short historical talk on fans and seeing examples of extant designs, we were off to design our own. I must admit to admiring many of those around me as they took shape (and young ladies too of about fifteen, so accomplished for their age); but my own drawing and water color talents left something to be desired. What fun it was, though – and I have just ordered some blank fans so that I can practice and eventually make one worthy of appearing at a ball. After all, we all know that no excellence in [drawing] is to be acquired, without constant practice.

Nature Drawing
Laying out clothes
Fashion Show

Despite dreadful hot days that kept us in a continual state of inelegance, this Festival was not to be missed! Picture perfect in setting, it was well attended by only the most fashionable of society; had much to offer in entertainments; and was very nicely done indeed! The 6th Annual Jane Austen Festival in Louisville is already on my calendar for next summer. Hmmm, I’d better start sewing if I’m to show well…

The gentlemen have spied some ladies…

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About the Author: Tess Quinn (a nom de plume) read Pride and Prejudice years ago at the age of thirteen, and has been hooked on Jane Austen – and Mr Darcy, unsurprisingly – ever since. She has read all the novels multiple times and doesn’t plan to stop any time soon. Some time ago she was introduced to Austen-based fan fiction and, unsatisfied with some of the depictions and approaches, took up her own pen to try to carry on beloved characters in a manner consistent with Miss Austen’s originals. In 2011, her first short story was published in an anthology called A Road to Pemberley. With that encouraging milestone she is hoping shortly to publish another anthology, all her own stories, tentatively titled Pride Revisited. She has two completed P&P based novels (awaiting final edits and a willing publisher); and is nearing completion on her own darling child, a retelling of P&P from Georgiana Darcy’s perspective.

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Thank you Tess for sharing your weekend with us – I think of you and Melody passing each other various times throughout the weekend, and now connected in cyberspace! – we must all meet up next year for that cup of tea!  I wish you the best with your Pride and Prejudice writings, and look forward one day soon I hope to interviewing you about your first published novel here!

[Text and images courtesy of Tess Quinn]

c2012 Jane Austen in Vermont
Fashion & Costume · Great Britain - History · Jane Austen · Jane Austen Popular Culture · Jane Austen Societies · JASNA · Regency England · Social Life & Customs

The Jane Austen Festival in Louisville ~ A First-Time Attendee Shares Her Tale!

BookLady Deb17 Comments

Hello Dear Readers:  a guest post today from Melody, a young woman on her first adventure at the Jane Austen Festival in Louisville, Kentucky last weekend – she has shared her thoughts and several pictures of the her time there, so enjoy – and perhaps plan to go next year – she highly recommends it!

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The Louisville, Kentucky fifth annual Jane Austen Festival was held at Locust Grove. I wasn’t aware of the history behind this historical house. The home belonged to Maj. William and Lucy Clark Croghan. When George Rogers Clark was injured, Lucy invited her brother to stay at Locust Grove. So who is George? He was the older brother of William Clark, (who was part of the Lewis and Clark expedition), he founded Louisville, and quite a few other notable things important to the nation.

This is the North facing side of Locust Grove. It has a nice size porch.
The south side, which I would think
visitors would enter wasn’t as grand imo.

One of the notable items in the house that stands out is the fact the descendants painted over a regency era portrait. Apparently they felt the red dress was gaudy and a black dress was painted on. This was found out in the restoration and they put back to the original regal red regency dress.

The portrait that was painted over

  Another fascinating fact was the entertaining parlor was on the second floor, where today, upstairs is reserved for family and entertaining is done on the main floor or possibly even the basement for those who have one.

 The entertaining parlor on the second floor 

Now for the Jane Austenites that want to hear about the festival. There were a great many visitors dressed in period reproductions that were all amazing! There was even a Regency style fashion show. The clothes were delicious and went in order according to the years they were popular. The speaker gave information on the clothes and where to find the patterns. Who knew men carried fans? The women carried cute reticules, wore pretty hats or had dainty parasols, and of course wore gloves, either long or short. The men were dashing in their finery as well.

 This lovely lady is a member of JASNA
with loads of information.
She was also in the fashion show.

 

Tailored/fitted clothing for a man 

(something that was mentioned during the fashion show was women
didn’t seem to be as concerned with gaping or perfect fits as we are today)

A man’s banyan

 I loved the detail in this purple dress. (same lady as above]

Now don’t think for a moment that this is an event purely for women. NO! There was a Gentleman’s duel. I do not know what caused the men to find it necessary to shoot at each other, but the first man to fire was the man to die. It was over within a minute. The gentleman remaining had been injured in the shoulder and was quite irked with the doctor for spending so much time with the dead man saying, “stop spending so much time with the dead man and tend to my wound!” (the duel the next day lasted longer than a minute).

Gentleman’s duel

There was also a bare knuckle boxing match that women obviously would not have attended. Or at least not women of any gentility. The ring leader gave the history of the gambling of the sport and the numerous exchange of money as the odds would change throughout. When he removed a pad of paper from his pants he wrote names and odds of the betting men. The winner of the boxing match had won a substantial amount of money.

There were fencing lessons and a demonstration on riding side saddle. It was very important what horse a gentleman rode. It reminded me of the status of the type of car one drives. There were special pay classes for how to paint a fan, and two discussions. On Saturday evening there was a ball, but since my companion is just 9 we forego that event.

Side saddle demonstration 

If you made reservations ahead of time there was afternoon tea. I recommend the lavender cake for dessert. It was deliciously moist and not overly powerful in taste.

Dr. Cheryl Kinney discussed Jane Austen’s illness and Jane’s opinion of illness and her characters’ woes. Who knew that green dresses were toxic?! It wasn’t just the clothing, but wall paper and paint as well. Green was very fashionable at that time too. Dr. Kinney asked how many people were wearing green at the event; there were quite a few! (of course they didn’t need to worry about the copper arsenic).

The final event on Sunday was “Dressing Mr. Darcy.” However, it was in reverse and he ended in a state that could make a grown woman blush. There was quite a bit of fanning happening in the audience.

Dressing Mr. Darcy

Finally, what made the event so special were the people. Everyone was so nice and the vendors were helpful. One young lady took the time to show my son a Spanish pistol’s workings with the full knowledge we were not going to buy. She even showed him how to salute with a rifle British style and American style.

One of the vendors made marbled papers that were amazing. After each one people would ooh and ahh. Of course everyone is unique. I was able to speak to the vendor on the last day and he showed me an antique book someone had given him with the marbling technique on the outside, inside, and on the edges of the pages. But the coloring was more indicative to the Victorian era, (darker, not as pretty as the Regency era).

The children gathered together and had their own fun in the meadow playing sword fights and just plain running around. I asked my son what his favorite parts were and after thinking about it he replied, “playing with the kids and the vendors.”  I was surprised. What kid enjoys shopping?

If you ever get the chance to attend a Jane Austen festival, I highly recommend it.


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About the Author ~ Melody writes:

Jane Austen came into my life, because I love history; the manners, fashion, and lifestyle. I also happen to be a book enthusiast and I like that Jane Austen tells things to the reader that makes the reader think. You must read between the lines, she doesn’t just come out and molly coddle the reader. Truth be told, I’d never been to a Jane Austen festival. I didn’t even know they took place. My son and I decided to give it a go, only because they offered so many fun “guy” events. I would not have gone otherwise. We are both happy for the adventure. We may make a tradition of it. Perhaps in period reproductions next time.

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Thank you Melody for sharing with us your observations of the Festival – maybe I will see you there next year myself!

Further Reading: from the Locust Grove website

  • You can see a performance of the bare-knuckled boxing here.
  • Bite from the Past blog on the Festival here.
 c2012 Jane Austen in Vermont
Fashion & Costume · Great Britain - History · Jane Austen · Jane Austen Popular Culture · Jane Austen Societies · JASNA · Regency England · Social Life & Customs

This Weekend – The 5th Jane Austen Festival in Louisville, Kentucky!

BookLady Deb7 Comments

Well, another year and yet again I am not attending The Annual Jane Austen Festival in Louisville, Kentucky that begins tomorrow; so I thought I would share the schedule so you all can be as depressed as I over what we shall be missing… you can watch this video to get into the spirit of things:

 

 The 5th  ANNUAL JANE AUSTEN FESTIVAL

JULY 21 & 22, 2012-10 a.m. – 4:30 p.m. each day

Historic Locust Grove-561 Blankenbaker Lane, Louisville, KY 40207

Sponsored by: Jane Austen Society of North America, Greater Louisville

$10 admission each day

For more detailed information, please visit http://www.jasnalouisville.com/

or www.locustgrove.org

Locust Grove, a circa 1790 Georgian home and farm is just
six miles from downtown Louisville, KY.

Each day of the festival you can:

  •  Enjoy a Four-Course Afternoon Tea (several sittings each day),
  • Shop in the Regency Emporium inside and in the Shoppes of Meryton outside
    (fabric, patterns, bonnets, pre-made dresses, chemisettes, men’s waistcoats, trousers &
    tail coats, tea sets, tea, jewelry, antiquarian books, shawls, silhouette cuttings,
    miniatures painted & lots more!)
  • See a Regency Style Show,
  • Watch a bobbin lace making demonstration inside the historic home and
  • See Regency fashions on mannequins in each room of the second floor of the house.
  • The last tea of the day on Sunday is reserved as a special Children’s Tea with a menu to appeal to children.
    Perks include goodies such as a cup and saucer to take home.

Outside, under the tent hear interesting talks such as

* A Dangerous Indulgence:
Jane Austen’s Illness and Her Doctors – this reviews possible causes of Jane Austen’s death,
her letters, the doctors that cared for her, and how updates in genetic mapping may
help us determine what caused her death. Also

*Austen-itis:
Sickness and Health in the Novels of Jane Austen –
reviews characters in the novels that suffer from illness (real and imagined).

*A one-woman theatrical performance about Fanny Kemble called,
Shame the Devil : An Audience with Fanny Kemble
will be performed under the Big Top Tent. Fanny Kemble
was a member of the famous English Kemble-Siddons acting dynasty
who married an American and moved to the American South.
She became active in the early anti-slavery movement.

*New this year, will be the Earl of Sandwich Tea Shop located near the Shoppes of
Meryton and the Big Top Tent with simple libations such as –
sandwiches, scones, cookies and drinks.

Meanwhile out on the Village Green you can expect to see:

*Side-Saddle Demonstration

*A Duel Between Gentlemen

*Tutorial on Fencing

*A Bare Knuckle Boxing Demonstration

Roving musician Jack Salt will entertain as will
Commonstock Entertainment with
shadow stories and their Potato Wagon of Wonders!

Workshops will involve learning about Tea
(Tea, Anyway you Steep it! and Play with your Leaves),
offered by Bingley’s Teas,

and How to Paint a Fan taught by Jenni Miller.

The Grand Ball will take place on Saturday evening at Spalding University in downtown
Louisville. The ball room is reminiscent of a Georgian Assembly Room. A practice
session will be held in the afternoon.

Admission is $10 each day which admits you to the Emporium, Shoppes, most
everything under the Big Top Tent and tours of the 1790 Georgian home (usually $8).

The Afternoon Tea is $20 per person, the workshops are $25 each, the theatrical
performance is $10 and the Grand Ball is $20 per person.

Advance reservations are highly recommended and begin on-line June 1st at

http://www.jasnalouisville.com

For those traveling from out-of-town, please contact Regional Coordinator Bonny Wise
 for a list of recommended B&Bs and hotels.

Answers to frequently asked questions: You do not have to be a member of the Jane
Austen Society of North America to attend the festival. Regency attire is not required,

but is admired!

2012 Festival T-shirts are available – shirt_order_form.pdf

Thank you for your interest and we look forward to seeing you!

[image from Princeton Tiger Magazine,
wherein you will find an essay on “Modern Applications of Dueling”]]

[Text from Bonnie Wise, JASNA-Louisville Regional Coordinator]

c2012