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Jane Austen Society of North America 2008 Annual General Meeting, Chicago, Illinois "Jane Austen's Legacy: Life, Love, & Laughter" |
| Welcome | Hotel | Local Attractions | Plenary Speakers | Special Events |
| Opening Panel | Mysteries and Music |
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Mysteries and Music
Friday Evening - An Evening of Mysteries and Characters
Friday evening, three intriguing Janeites will engage in a conversation about how mysteries can lead to the analysis of characters in Austen on the one hand, and how Austen and her characters can lead to mysteries on the other.
Participants are:
Greater Chicago Region's own Steve Martin, after a lifetime of reading classic mystery fiction became interested in Austen and noticed similarities of structure and characterization. When he can spare time from business and family pursuits he gives fascinating presentations on his emerging analysis of the connections. He has a work in progress to explain all. Carrie Bebris and Stephanie are known to many JASNA members as the authors of engaging mystery novels which employ Austen or her characters in the capacity of sleuths.
In this Friday evening special event, Steve will sketch his system of analysis of Austen characters, the mystery writers will respond, and the whole should make for a delightful and edifying conversation.
We are fortunate to have engaged Austen reader and columnist for the Chicago Sun-Times, Jennifer S. Hunter, to server as moderator for the event.
 Stephanie Barron |
 Carrie Bebris |
 Steve Martin |
Sunday Brunch - Of Composing,
Collaborating and Creaking Doors:
A Conversation about Austen-inspired Musical Theater
(with some singing and speaking as well)
Of all the forms of artistic and critical expression that have been inspired by Jane Austen over the last 200 years, musical theater has been among the least frequent to appear. Those who attended the 2002 AGM in Toronto will recall that some musical numbers from a forthcoming light opera version of Pride and Prejudice were performed at the final plenary session. These preliminary versions of some of the songs from the score were the result of a unique musical/theatrical collaboration which is ongoing.
The fully staged operetta, Pride and Prejudice, with book, lyrics, and music by Lindsay Warren Baker and Amanda Jacobs was given its world premier performances by the Ohio Light Opera Festival in July and August of 2006. According to the program notes, while the names are given in the traditional writer/composer order, both members of this team contributed to all three elements of the musical theater worked performed in Ohio.
JASNA members, Ms Baker and Ms Jacobs will be our very special guests at the final general session on Sunday October 5th. They will be engaged in conversation about their journey with Jane Austen and the creative process which has emerged from that journey. That journey continues. As of this writing, a production company has been formed and Baker and Jacobs are revising the work into a form appropriate for the Broadway stage. By the time we gather in Chicago, some of us may have had the opportunity to see Broadway performances or be planning our trips to New York to see it.
Ms Baker and Ms Jacobs will be interviewed by Arlene Crewdson. Arlene Crewdson founded Pegasus Players in 1978 and has directed numerous
productions for the theater. She has taught classic theater on PBS station Channel 11 in Chicago and published A Study to Classic Theatre. The Chicago
Tribune has twice named Arlene one of the twenty Chicagoans who annually are singled out for having made memorable contributions to the arts.
We are planning to interpolate scenes and songs from this work between sections of their conversation. Milwaukee left us in epistolary mode. Tucson left us debating. Vancouver will no doubt leave us pondering. We hope that Chicago will leave us all singing.
Arlene Crewdson |
 Amanda Jacobs Photo by Ali Vatansever |
 Lindsay Baker Photo by Ali Vatansever |
