If adventures will not befall a young lady in her own village, she must seek them abroad….  

 [Jane Austen, Northanger Abbey]

The holidays and Jane Austen’s birthday! – lots going on – so I offer you a sampling of what’s happening in the New England area [to include New York and New Jersey!], starting with JASNA-Vermont’s very own Annual Birthday Tea next Sunday:

6 December 2009: 2-5 pm

Annual Jane Austen Birthday Tea!

Prof. Philip Baruth * (University of Vermont)
“Badly Done Indeed: In Which Austen’s Mr. Knightley is Revealed to be a Whimsical and Emotional Teen Basket-Case”

Featuring ~

Place: Champlain College, Hauke Family Campus Center (375 Maple St.), Burlington 
$15./ person / $5. / student
Please register by sending in the JASNA December 2009 dec tea reserve form or leave a comment below

JASNA December 2009 flyer– please let your friends know / post this in your place of work or anywhere else to encourage attendance!

Philip Baruth

* Philip Baruth is a Professor of English at the University of Vermont specializing in eighteenth-century British literature.  He is also a novelist and an award-winning commentator for Vermont Public Radio.  His most recent novel, The Brothers Boswell (Soho, 2009), is a literary thriller set in eighteenth-century London.  It follows James Boswell and Samuel Johnson as they are stalked about the city by Boswell’s jealous and mad younger brother, John.  And just recently, Philip stopped writing commentary in order to run for the State Senate from Chittenden County.  His campaign website is Baruth2010.com; his blog is Vermont Daily Briefing.

**We are honored to have Rebecca Kauffman join us for this year’s Tea! She is currently principal harpist for the Harrisburg Symphony Orchestra, Harrisburg, PA, a position she has held for 29 years. She is also the second harpist with the Reading Symphony Orchestra, Reading, PA, and the former principal harpist with the Lancaster and York Symphony Orchestras, both in Pennsylvania. Rebecca has appeared as the featured soloist on numerous occasions with the Harrisburg and York Symphonies, the Millersville University-Community Orchestra, the Hershey Symphony, the Cayuga Chamber Orchestra in Ithaca, NY, and the Lancaster Chamber Ensemble. She has also performed with the Baltimore Symphony Orchestra, Delaware Symphony Orchestra, Kennett Square Orchestra, Vermont Symphony Orchestra and the Binghamton NY Philharmonic. She has appeared in concert with a wide variety of concert artists.   For more information, please visit her website at RebeccaKauffman.com

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Coming in January to Hyde Park, Vermont:

Jane Austen Weekends
The Governor’s House in Hyde Park
100 Main Street
Hyde Park, Vermont 

Friday – Sunday, January 8 – 10, 2010 
Pride and Prejudice
Friday evening talk: The Naive Art of Georgiana Darcy
with Kelly McDonald

Friday – Sunday, January 29 – 31, 2010
Sense and Sensibility
Friday evening talk: Making Sense of the Regency World
with Suzanne Boden & Deb Barnum

Visit the wesbite for more information at One Hundred Main.com

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Now for goings-on everywhere else:

MASSACHUSETTS:

Jane Austen Society of North America- Massachusetts Region
Sunday, Dec. 13th, 3 p.m. – 5 p.m.
Wheelock College, Brookline Campus
43 Hawes Street, Brookline, Mass.

 Celebrating Jane Austen’s Birthday 
Join us as we celebrate the birthday of “our Jane”!
We will enjoy light refreshments, including a birthday toast, and entertainment by the JASNA Massachusetts Players.  

Cost is $20 per person ($15 for JASNA Massachusetts members*). Please R.S.V.P. by Tuesday, December 8th  

Wheelock College’s Brookline campus is easily accessible. By subway, take the Green “C” line to Hawes Street or Green “D” line to Longwood. See reverse for driving directions. Additional driving and subway info: http://www.wheelock.edu/about/abodirections_brookline.asp

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Gore Place, in Waltham, MA, announces its Annual Holiday Tea and Tour with a special theme The Art of Romance in the Austen Era on Dec. 4, 5, 11, 12 and 19. Seatings are at 1 and 3pm. Admission is $40/pp tour included. For details, please visit their website at:   GorePlace.org

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NEW YORK:  JASNA-New York Metropolitan Region 

[Please note that this event is sold out – to be put on a waiting list, please go to their website at JASNANY.org for information]

Birthday Regional Meeting Saturday December 5, 2009  2:00 p.m.
At the Midtown Executive Club
40 West 45th Street, NYC 

Dr. Cheryl Kinney will explore the treatment of women’s illnesses in Regency England, including childbirth, infectious disease, and venereal disease.  We will learn who provided health care in the early 1800s in England and the treatments available.  Dr. Kinney will also discuss sickness and health in Austen’s novels.

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JASNA-NY is fortunate to have The Morgan Library & Museum right in their midst! 

The JASNA-NY Metro Region has a number of special events coming up in conjunction with the Jane Austen exhibit at the Morgan. The Region has been working with the Morgan education department to develop some of these programs (see below for details). [In case you have been living in a bubble for the past few months, visit the Morgan Library & Museum website for information on this exhibit!] 

In addition, JASNA-NY is co-sponsoring two events: A preview of the new Masterpiece Classic’s Emma and a panel discussion “From Gothic to Graphic”  [see below]

All programs will be held at The Morgan Library & Museum
225 Madison Avenue at 36th Street, NYC 

For tickets to the public programs: visit http://www.themorgan.org  for online ticketing.

And if you are unable to trek to NYC, you can see portions of the exhibit online here!

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At the Morgan:  A Woman’s Wit:  Jane Austen’s Life & Legacy
November 6, 2009 – March 14, 2010

Public Programs: you must register with The Morgan directly

Gallery Talks: 

Friday, February 26, 7 pm
A Woman’s Wit: Jane Austen’s Life and Legacy
Clara Drummond, Assistant Curator, Literary and Historical Manuscripts, The Morgan Library & Museum 

Lectures and Discussions:

 1.  A preview of MASTERPIECE Classic’s Emma with Rebecca Eaton

January 20, 2010 [Wednesday]  6:30 PM* 

Join MASTERPIECE executive producer Rebecca Eaton for a sneak preview of scenes from the new four-hour adaptation of Jane Austen’s Emma, starring Romola Garai, Jonny Lee Miller, and Michael Gambon. Emma will be broadcast on three Sundays beginning January 24, 2010 on PBS/Thirteen (www.pbs.org/masterpiece). This event is cosponsored by the Jane Austen Society of North America, New York (JASNA-NY). 

Tickets: Tickets are free. For advance reservations call 212.685.0008, ext. 560, or email tickets@themorgan.org.

2.  From Gothic to Graphic: Adapting Jane Austen Novels

January 26, 2010 [Tuesday] 6:30 PM* 

Jane Austen’s works continue to inspire new generations of writers working in popular literary genres. In a lively presentation, authors of recently published books discuss their unique twist on Austen with Juliette Wells, Manhattanville College. Participants include Ben Winters and Jason Rekulak (Sense and Sensibility and Sea Monsters), Jane Rubino and Caitlen Rubino-Bradway (Lady Vernon and Her Daughter), and Nancy Butler (Pride and Prejudice graphic novel).  This program is cosponsored by the Jane Austen Society of North America, New York ( JASNA-NY).

Tickets: $15 for Non-Members; $10 for Morgan and JASNA-NY Members

 *The exhibition A Woman’s Wit: Jane Austen’s Life and Legacy will be open at 5:30 pm especially for program attendees.

 3.  Reading Jane Austen, with Patrice Hannon 

Wednesday, January 27, 3-4:30 pm: Pride and Prejudice
Wednesday, February 10, 3-4:30 pm: Emma
Wednesday, February 24, 3-4:30 pm: Persuasion 

Patrice Hannon, author of Dear Jane Austen: A Heroine’s Guide to Life and Love and 101 Things You Didn’t Know About Jane Austen, leads a reading group on three of Austen’s most beloved novels. The group will closely examine the texts of Pride and Prejudice, Emma, and Persuasion, paying particular attention to matters of style.  Sessions will take place in the historic family rooms of the nineteenth-century Morgan House. The group will be reading from the Penguin Classics edition of the novels. Light refreshments will be provided. Advance tickets are recommended as space is limited.  Patrice is also a JASNA-NY member. 

Tickets (3 sessions): $45 for Non-Members; $35 for Members

Films: 

1.  Jane Austen on Screen:

To coincide with the exhibition A Woman’s Wit: Jane Austen’s Life and Legacy, the Morgan is screening two acclaimed cinematic adaptations of Austen’s literary masterpieces. 

Sunday, January 24, 2 pm  Pride and Prejudice  
(1940, 118 minutes)
Director: Robert Z. Leonard
All the wit and wisdom of Jane Austen’s popular comedy of manners is vibrantly brought to life in this classic film adaptation starring Greer Garson as the spirited Elizabeth Bennet and Laurence Olivier as the arrogant and dashing Mr. Darcy.

 Friday, February 12, 7 pm  Sense and Sensibility
(1995, 135 minutes)
Director: Ang Lee
Emma Thompson received an Academy Award for the screenplay of Ang Lee’s feature adaptation of Jane Austen’s novel about two sisters-pragmatic, ironic, Elinor (Thompson) and passionate, willful Marianne (Kate Winslet)-and their struggle to find romantic happiness in a society obsessed with financial and social stature.  Hugh Grant (Edward Ferrars), Alan Rickman (Col. Christopher Brandon), and Greg Wise (John Willoughby) round out the superb cast. 

Films are free with museum admission. Tickets are available at the Admission Desk on the day of the screening. Advance reservations for Morgan Members only: 212.685.0008, ext. 560, or tickets@themorgan.org.

 Music and Dance: 

Friday, March 12, 7-8:30 pm   Dancing with Darcy

To celebrate the final weekend of A Woman’s Wit: Jane Austen’s Life and Legacy travel back to Regency England for an evening of period music and dancing in the Morgan’s elegant Gilbert Court. Join Beverly Francis and Country Dance * New York for an English country dance demonstration, audience participation, and live music.  Free.

Family Programs: 

1.  Sunday, December 6, 2-5 pm   Winter Family Day Celebration
Join us for our annual family day celebrating the exhibitions A Woman’s Wit: Jane Austen’s Life and Legacyand Charles Dickens’s Christmas Carol. Travel back to the days of the English Regency with art workshops that will bring Jane Austen’s fashion sense to life. Then move on to Victorian London to meet Charles Dickens and his famous characters through the original play Goblins, Ghosts, and Geezers: The Making of Scrooge*, improvisational skits, and other activities.  Marianna Loosemore will be reading “My Beautiful Cassandra” while Nili and Jerry will be talking to children about life in J.A.’s time.

For a complete schedule, visit http://www.themorgan.org. All events are included with admission to the Morgan.

*There will be two performances of Goblins, Ghosts, and Geezers: The Making of Scrooge at 2:30 pm and 4 pm. Tickets will be distributed on a first-come, first-served basis on the day of the program.

 2.  Saturday, February 6, 2-4 pm  Paper Dolls at the Ball: Jane’s Fashion for Kids 

To coincide with A Woman’s Wit: Jane Austen’s Life and Legacy educator Deborah Lutz leads a workshop that begins with a short tour of the exhibition that features a series of humoristic prints illustrating the extravagances of fashionable ladies and gentlemen of Austen’s time. Children will design evening costumes for women or men using paper doll templates, a wide variety of quality decorative papers, and colorful trimmings. Appropriate for ages 6-12. 

Tickets: Adults: $6 for Non-Members; $4 for Members; children: $2

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And finally, also note that the Morgan currently has the following noteworthy exhibits that will be closing in early January:  

1.  William Blake’s World: “A New Heaven Is Begun”
September 11, 2009, through January 3, 2010
Drawn from the Morgan’s extensive holdings of works by William Blake (1757–1827), this exhibition is the museum’s first more than twenty years devoted to the breadth of his literary accomplishments and artistic influence.  See online exhibition

 2.  Rococo and Revolution: Eighteenth-Century French Drawings
October 2, 2009, through January 3, 2010
Rococo and Revolution: Eighteenth-Century French Drawings features more than eighty exceptional drawings almost exclusively from the Morgan’s renowned holdings. Artists represented in the exhibition include Antoine Watteau, Jacques-Louis David, François Boucher, and Jean-Honoré Fragonard, among others.  See selected images from the exhibition  

3.  Charles Dickens’s A Christmas Carol
November 20, 2009, through January 10, 2010
Dickens’s original manuscript of A Christmas Carol, on view in Mr. Morgan’s Library, serves as the centerpiece of the Morgan’s holiday programs. 

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CONNECTICUT:   there are a few interesting exhibits at the Yale Center for British Art in New Haven of interest to fans of Jane Austen: [see the Center’s website for more information] 

Mrs. Delany and her Circle
24 SEPTEMBER, 2009 — 3 JANUARY, 2010  

This exhibition will explore the life, world and work of Mary Delany, née Mary Granville (1700 – 1788). Though best known for her almost one thousand botanical “paper mosaics” now housed in the British Museum, which she began at the age of 72, Mrs. Delany used her craft activities to cement bonds of friendship and negotiate complex, interlinked social networks throughout a long life passed in artistic, aristocratic, and court circles in Georgian England and Ireland. 

Through landscape drawings, paper cuts and collages, textiles, and manuscript materials, the exhibition will show the range and variety of Mrs. Delany’s art. Among her most extraordinary efforts was a court dress embroidered with a cascade of naturalistic flowers, which united her interests in floriculture and fashion. Parts of this dress have recently been rediscovered and will form the center of a reconstruction of Mrs. Delany’s world. Her art work will be shown in the context of natural history, which informed and underpinned her productions. Shells, corals, botanical drawings, and publications related to the collections of the 2nd Duchess of Portland, with whom Mrs. Delany lived and worked alongside, will also form part of the exhibition, allowing viewers to reattach the vital threads connecting female accomplishment and the pursuit of science in the eighteenth century. 

Mrs. Delany and Her Circle has been co-organized by the Yale Center for British Art and Sir John Soane’s Museum. It will be accompanied by a major publication that will serve as an exhibition catalogue, and will contain essays addressing many aspects of Mrs. Delany’s life, craftwork, and letters in the wider context of eighteenth-century culture.  [The Center is the only U.S. venue for this exhibition.]

Horace Walpole’s Strawberry Hill
15 OCTOBER, 2009 — 3 JANUARY, 2010  

Horace Walpole (1717 – 1797) was the youngest son of Robert Walpole, first earl of Orford and prime minister under both George I and George II. Horace’s birthright placed him at the center of society and politics, and of literary, aesthetic, and intellectual circles. His brilliant letters and other writings have made him the best-known commentator on social, political, and cultural life in eighteenth-century England. In his own day, he was most famous for his personal collections, which were displayed at Strawberry Hill, his pioneering Gothic-revival house on the banks of the Thames at Twickenham, outside London, and through which he constructed narratives of English art and history. 

This groundbreaking exhibition seeks to evoke the breadth and importance of Walpole’s collections at Strawberry Hill by reassembling an astonishing variety of his objects, including rare books and manuscripts, antiquities, paintings, prints and drawings, furniture, ceramics, arms and armor, and curiosities. These will be drawn from international public and private collections as well as those of the Center and Yale’s Lewis Walpole Library in Farmington, Connecticut. 

Horace Walpole’s Strawberry Hill has been organized by the Center, The Lewis Walpole Library, and the Victoria and Albert Museum. The exhibition will be accompanied by a fully illustrated catalogue with contributions by an array of distinguished international scholars.   [The Center is the only U.S. venue. The exhibition has been generously supported by the Samuel H. Kress Foundation and the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation. ]

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NEW JERSEY:  JASNA-Central NJ Chapter 

Please join JASNA Central New Jersey for a birthday toast to Jane Austen at the Cranbury Inn, 21 South Main Street, Cranbury, New Jersey on Saturday, December 5, 2009 from 11:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m.  Celebrate Austen’s 234th birthday, plan and discuss the year’s upcoming programs, and share our love of all things Austen. Should you be so inclined, please feel free to bring a short reading selection of your choice to get us all in the spirit.  [ See their website for more information.] 

[For events in your area, visit the JASNA.org website for other regional news] 

Happy adventures one and all!

[Posted by Deb]