A JANE AUSTEN CHRISTMAS with Lise Rodgers

“Christmas goes out in fine style – with Twelfth Night. It is a finish worthy of the time. Christmas Day was the morning of the season; New Year’s Day the middle of it, or noon; Twelfth Night is the night, brilliant with innumerable planets of Twelfth- cakes.” Leigh Hunt (James Henry Leigh Hunt 1784-1859 poet and essayist)

From her family recollections of Twelfth night revels and playing games of “snap dragon” and “bullet pudding”, to observations of “Yuletide” from correspondents of the day – join us to discover Christmas as Jane Austen knew it. On arrival, enjoy a festive mince pie and sparkling wine from our partners, Chalmers Wine, in the ground floor rooms of our exhibition-house, Fairhall.

This special festive afternoon continues with a costumed lecture with Lise Rodgers in the Kent Room. Lise will share insights into Christmas traditions in the late 1700s and early 1800s.

Lise Rodgers is an accomplished Melbourne actress. Her career has spanned stage, screen and radio including productions with The Melbourne Theatre Company and Playbox, TV classics such as Prisoner and Neighbours and the 2017 remake of Picnic at Hanging Rock. As an award-winning narrator of audio books, Lise enjoys exploring language and has a particular love of Spoken Word performance. An interest in the world and characters of Jane Austen is the inspiration behind her series of Jane performances.

Your ticket includes a glass of Chalmers sparkling wine and a festive mince pie served on arrival in the ground floor rooms of Fairhall, and time after the lecture to browse our exclusive range of books, gifts, and homewares at TJC Emporium.

This event is presented on-site at The Johnston Collection. Please see your ticket for details. NOTE: Tickets for this event do not include access to the upper level of our exhibition-house, Fairhall. Guided tours of the current exhibition can be booked separately.

This event is supported by The Colin Holden Charitable Trust and Chalmers Wines.

Image (supplied): Lise Rodgers