A Reminder and an Update

First, the reminder:  The joint JASNA Syracuse/JABC-CNY "Box Hill" picnic will be this coming Saturday, June 9, at 12 noon, at the home of A. Marie Sprayberry in Syracuse.  See the May 13 post for details.

Second, the update:  It now looks reasonably certain that the summer Jane Austen Singing School for Young Ladies concert will take place on Sunday, July 22 (not Saturday, July 21, as tentatively announced earlier), at the First Presbyterian Church of Skaneateles at 3 pm.  Watch this space for further information.

New JASNA Region in NY State

JASNA Syracuse extends a warm welcome to New York State's newest JASNA region, the New York Capitol Region (which includes Albany, Saratoga Springs, and everything else in the 120XX-123XX and 128XX zipcodes).  The Capitol Region is getting off to a fast start with its first major event on June 30-July 1: a two-day Jane Austen Retreat at Wiawaka on Lake George.  Regional Coordinator Patricia A. Friesen says that attendees will make strawberry jam, embellish bonnets, watch a movie version of Emma, and discuss it the first day; on the second morning, there will be a picnic where everyone will wear their bonnets and eat the strawberry jam with scones.  If this sounds like an irresistible weekend, contact Pat at mcfriesen2[at]gmail.com (substitute the @ symbol for the [at], of course), or go to the Wiawaka website for more details.

Joint JASNA/JABC "Box Hill" Picnic in Syracuse, Sat., June 9

Now it can be told:  The joint JASNA Syracuse/Jane Austen Book Club-CNY “Box Hill” end-of-season event will be a potluck picnic, hat extravaganza, book swap, and Diamond Jubilee toast at the home of JASNA Regional Coordinator A. Marie Sprayberry in Syracuse, Saturday, June 9, at 12 noon! 

All members of JASNA Syracuse and those seriously interested in joining JASNA, as well as all members of the JABC, are welcome.  A few members of JASNA Rochester may make the trip as well, so let’s hope for a real Upstate Janeite convocation!

The picnic will be held outdoors if the weather permits, or indoors if it doesn’t.  And, in addition to the food and drink, we propose to enjoy various diversions.

First, in tribute to Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II’s Diamond Jubilee, please wear some form of appropriate headgear (QEII, of course, never leaves the palace without a hat!).  Check out the "Mad Hattery" website for inspiration, or wear your favorite Regency bonnet, or just put some fresh trim on an old chapeau (“I hope Mr. Bingley may like it, Lizzy”).  Gents, please do the best you can in corresponding masculine fashion.

And we’ll drink a loyal toast to the Queen as well.  A tour of Marie’s British royal commemoratives collection will be available for those who are interested.

Other entertainments will include a book swap:  Please bring a few titles (Austen-related or otherwise) that you are ready to part with and think other attendees would enjoy, and come prepared to take away a few.  VHS tapes and DVDs are welcome as well.

And JABC-CNY coordinator Heather Elia proposes a letter tile game along the lines of the one played in Emma.  Can you spell “Dixon” and “blunder”??

If you plan to attend the picnic (and only if; no need to respond if you can’t make it), please send an RSVP to Marie no later than June 2 at the email or phone number given for her under "Contact Us" in the right-hand column.  Directions to Marie’s home will then be provided.  (It’s on the east side of Syracuse, near Le Moyne College.)

Also, if you know definitely what you’re planning to bring as a dish to pass, please let Marie know (though if you don’t know yet, that’s OK).  Utensils and an assortment of nonalcoholic beverages will be available.  (Please indicate your choice of beverage in your RSVP.)

Hope to see you on June 9!

JASNA Syracuse Meeting in Binghamton, Saturday, May 12

JASNA Syracuse will hold its May Day meeting on Saturday, May 12, at RiverRead Books, 5 Court St., Binghamton, at 2 pm.  Our topic, as suggested by an attendee at the November meeting there, will be "Jane Austen's Villains."  Certainly JA created a memorable and varied gallery of "bad guys"--and certainly some of these "guys" were "gals," so we don't have to restrict the discussion to male characters by any means.  Who's your favorite villain (or villains--no need to pick just one, either) in the Austen canon?  Bring your choice(s) and some quotes to share!

Also, we've finally settled on Saturday, June 9, as the date for the joint JASNA Syracuse/Jane Austen Book Club-CNY "Box Hill" event.  (This is a bit earlier in June than the traditional Midsummer Day date of June 24, but it's the only date that suited all of the planners!)  Details about the event itself, and its location and time, will be announced ASAP.  In the meantime, we look forward to seeing you at RiverRead on May 12.

A Jane Austen Singing School Summer Session!

We were delighted to learn this week that Dr. Joanna Manring will be returning to Skaneateles in mid-June and is planning to conduct a summer session of the Jane Austen Singing School for Young Ladies (JASSYL).  Rehearsals may begin as early as the third week in June and continue into July, with a concert in mid- to late July (possibly Saturday, July 21), but the details are still being worked out.  Your JASNA Syracuse Coordinators will of course be assisting as needed, particularly Lisa Brown with the dance instruction.

Also, there are still openings for Young Ladies (ages 12-18) for both singing and dancing, and Young Gentlemen (ages 15-30) for dancing.  If you are a Young Lady or Gentleman in those age groups who is interested in participating--or know someone who is--please get in touch with Joanna at joannamsoprano[at]gmail.com (substitute the "at" symbol for the word when you email her, of course).

JASNA AGM Registration Begins May 2

It's just been announced that registration for this year's JASNA Annual General Meeting in New York City will begin May 2 (go to this link for full details). All members in good standing of JASNA at the national level are welcome to attend. But, take it from us, you must register as soon as possible if you plan to attend; this AGM will sell out quickly! Check out other pages on the NYC AGM site (you'll see the options at the top of the registration page) for full details about plenary and breakout speakers, special interest sessions, hotel/travel, tours, etc. (Full disclosure: C0-Coordinator Lisa Brown is presenting one of the special interest sessions, and Regional Coordinator A. Marie Sprayberry is one of the breakout speakers.)

Our next Syracuse Region meeting will be Saturday, May 12, at 2 pm, at RiverRead Books in Binghamton; our topic will be "Jane Austen's Villains." We'll be posting more details about this meeting, and our "Box Hill" gathering in late June, in due course.

Photos from the Regency Fashion Show

Your Regional Coordinator writes:

The Regency fashion show held on March 24 at the Colgate Bookstore was a great success, and JASNA Syracuse heartily thanks the Bookstore and the JABC-CNY for their co-sponsorship and generous assistance! Herewith, some photos from the show. While I greeted the large and enthusiastic audience...
...our dauntless Co-Coordinator and fashion expert, Lisa Brown, contemplated the task of assigning outfits to all of the models (and, in some cases, more than one outfit per model) in very limited time!
Although there were a few tense moments backstage...
...the models and their "ladies' maids" soon began to relax and enjoy themselves.
In the next several photos: (1) Mother-and-daughter models--Denise and her daughter Angel. (2) Shelley and Shannon (?). (3) To spare the ladies' blushes, Lisa discussed Regency unmentionables with the aid of a mannequin. (4) Several garments among Sandra Stevens' beautifully detailed doll clothes perfectly mirrored the mannequin's attire. (5) Some elegant headgear...and (6) Nadia's elegantly dressed hair.

Nor were the gentlemen neglected! Jason cheerfully modeled civilian attire...
...while Duane demonstrated the eternal attraction of an officer's red coat to his wife, Sami.
Lisa and all her models accepted a well-deserved round of applause at the end of the show.

And Sandra's daughter Mimi models more of Sandra's work--this exquisitely detailed full-size ensemble. In the final photo, JABC-CNY moderator and JASNA member Heather Elia joins Mimi.

In conclusion, we won't rest on our laurels: See the "Events" column at right for a full listing of Upstate JASNA and JABC-CNY events through mid-May. Plans are also under discussion for the end-of-season "Box Hill" event, to take place about Midsummer (June 24 or thereabouts).