The "Promise of Spring"

Spring has come to New York State--although we're obviously cheating a little with this photo, given that many of us still have snow on the ground! (This glorious vine was photographed last Memorial Day weekend at the Cloisters in New York City.)

Nevertheless, the "promise of spring" is before us in many ways. First, this phrase is the title of a new English Country Dance CD by Charlene Thomson (who, with the late Suzanna Spiese, performed so beautifully for us at our first RiverRead Books meeting in Binghamton). Charlene's original compositions in the ECD tradition make delightful listening--and one of them, "Lisa's Maggot," is dedicated to our own Co-Coordinator Lisa Brown! (Lisa reminds us that a "maggot" in this context is a fanciful or whimsical dance.) The "Promise of Spring" CD can be ordered at this link.

Furthermore, we have a busy schedule of Austen-related events to look forward to in Upstate this spring and early summer. The "Events" column at right gives a complete listing, but here are some of the highlights:

• The Rochester Jane Austen Ball--always a wonderful occasion for dancers and gallery spectators alike--will be held as usual at a country club in the Rochester area on Sunday, May 5, at 2 pm. (The club's regulations forbid disclosing the name of the venue except to registered attendees, but think leaves and acorns.) A raffle/silent auction and a tea will also be among the activities. There is an admission charge for dancers, and a half-price admission for spectators. Go here for a downloadable registration form. 
• The JASNA Syracuse May Day meeting will be Saturday, May 11, at 2 pm, at RiverRead Books in Binghamton.  Our topic will be "Pride and Prejudice: Free for All." It's our last meeting on P&P in its 200th-anniversary year, so what angles would you like to explore? Bring your ideas to share!
• The traditional end-of-season "Box Hill" event in the Syracuse Region this year will be a presentation at the Colgate Bookstore (co-sponsored by the Bookstore, the JABC-CNY, and JASNA Syracuse) on Saturday, June 8, by Dr. Jack Wang. With his brother Holman, Jack is the co-author of the new Cozy Classics series of board books for toddlers--and your Regional Coordinator guarantees that to see these books is to be utterly charmed by them. Jack will discuss how he and Holman have adapted Pride and Prejudice and other classics for very young readers, and (appropriately for a "Box Hill" event) will give us a sneak preview of the forthcoming Cozy Classics Emma! 
• Finally, JASNA Rochester will be assisting the Genesee Country Village in Mumford with the "Jane Austen" portion of its "War of 1812 and Jane Austen Weekend" on Saturday and Sunday, June 22-23. With Redcoats on parade and a "Netherfield Ball" in store, Lydia Bennet would go distracted--and there will be a mini-marathon reading of Pride and Prejudice and other JA-related presentations as well. Details about the Ball, and preliminary details about the rest of the weekend, are available here.