Proposals for critical papers on any topic concerning Woolf’s work are welcome. A specific panel theme may be chosen, depending on the proposals received. Please note that this panel may be virtual.
How to submit
Please submit by email a cover page with name, email address, mailing address, phone number, professional affiliation, and title of paper, and a second anonymous page containing a 250-word paper proposal, with title, to Emily M. Hinnov, ehinnov@ccsnh.edu, by Monday, Aug. 26.
At this time in history, with Kamala Harris poised to get the Democratic nomination for president of the United States to become the first woman of color at the top of the presidential ticket, no topic could be more timely and more pertinent than Woolf and Politics. And that is exactly what Literature Cambridge is offering for its Virginia Woolf Season 2024-25, which runs Sept. 14 through June 14, 2025.
The upcoming season of lectures and seminars on the major works of Virginia Woolf includes 10 sessions, each with a live online lecture and seminar via Zoom. They cover five of her novels and both of her polemics. All sessions are offered from 6-8 p.m. British time.
Each lecture will be recorded live and will be available to participants after the live event for up to 48 hours. The recordings are available only to people who have booked the session. The seminars are not recorded.
Dates and topics for Woolf and Politics
Saturday, Sept. 14, 2024. Karina Jakubowicz on The Politics of Conquest in The Voyage Out (1915)
Saturday, Oct. 12 2024. Alison Hennegan on The Politics of Flush (1933)
Saturday, Nov. 23, 2024. Mark Hussey on Politics in Mrs Dalloway (1925)
Saturday, Dec. 7, 2024. Ellie Mitchell on Woolf’s War Diary
Saturday, Jan. 11, 2025. Danell Jones on A Room of One’s Own (1929) and Black Britain
Saturday, Feb. 8, 2025. Natasha Periyan on Education in The Years (1936)
Saturday, March 8, 2025. Trudi Tate on Mrs Dalloway (1925) and the Vote
Saturday, April 12, 2025. Varsha Panjwani on The Politics of Orlando (1928)
Saturday, May 10, 2025. Angela Harris on The Politics of Jacob’s Room (1922).
Saturday, June 14, 2025. Claire Davison on Body Politics and Clothing in Three Guineas (1938)
Cost and deadlines
You can book all 10 sessions for the price of nine if you book by Saturday, Sept. 14, at 4 p.m. British Summer Time (just before the first lecture).
The Virginia Woolf Society of Great Britain offers many member benefits. One of them is a reading group for those who want to talk about the works of Virginia Woolf and some of her Bloomsbury friends and contemporaries.
Discussions, which take place either online or face to face, allow members to find connections, influences and similarities among the works read. Members discuss their experiences of reading the work, whether it’s their first or hundredth time, as well as what themes or motifs they notice and what they liked best or least and why.
Night and Day up next
Night and Day (1919) is the next Woolf work up for discussion. Date: Friday, August 30, 2024 Time: 5 p.m. BST or noon EST. Where: online
How to join the society
Email membershipvwsgb@gmail.com to join the society, or onlinevwsgb@gmail.com for further information and queries about the reading group.
NKP Theatre Company’s production of a 60-minute abridged adaptation of Eileen Atkins’ play Vita & Virginia will be on stage for one more performance this summer, this one in Cambridge in August.
Students in this summer’s Literature Cambridge course on Virginia Woolf and Childhood will view it for free, but some tickets are available to the general public.
About the play
Title of event: Vita and Virginia (abridged by NKP Theatre Company). 60 minutes. No interval. Brief description: Virginia Woolf meets fellow author Vita Sackville-West in London in the 1920s. They embark on a 20-year relationship that inspires one of Virginia’s most famous novels, Orlando. Abridged by the cast from the original play by Eileen Atkins, Vita and Virginia consists entirely of words spoken or written by Vita Sackville-West and Virginia Woolf during their 20-year friendship. The production deftly brings to life the real letters and diaries of the two women, revealing deep friendship, wit and passion between the literary genius and the aristocratic yet middle-brow poet.
Credits: Vita Sackville-West: Emma Francis; Virginia Woolf: Ruth Cattell; directed and produced by Richard Delahaye.
Cambridge performance details
Date: Tuesday 6 August Time: 7:30 p.m. Location: Robinson College Chapel, Cambridge CB3 9AN Ticket Price and how to book:Free to members of the Literature Cambridge “Woolf and Childhood: summer course. A few tickets at £15 are for sale to those not attending the summer course. Book here.
What the reviews say
“A beautifully sensitive portrayal of a remarkable love story” – Claire Nicholson, chair of the Virginia Woolf Society of Great Britain
“An astonishing piece of theatre” – FRINGE REVIEW
“Emma Francis and Ruth Cattell smash it!” – EDINBURGH REVIEWS
“A wondrous exploration of the epistolary side of their near-romance”. -BROADWAY WORLD
Background
Four performances of the play were held February through April. An earlier performance was held in November at the Midlands Arts Centre in Birmingham.
In the Brighton tradition, it joins buses named after other remarkable residents, including Virginia Woolf and Vanessa Bell.
Members of the Virginia Woolf Society of Great Britain get ready to hop aboard the Leonard Woolf bus in Brighton. Photo by Marielle O’Neill.
“It was with great pleasure that members of the VWSGB celebrated the newly-named Leonard Woolf bus in Brighton yesterday, ” said Claire Nicholson, society chair, the day after the group’s bus ride.
“Congratulations to Marielle O’Neill who led the campaign to have a bus dedicated to Leonard, which now joins its partner, the Virginia Woolf bus. If you visit Brighton, perhaps you might catch one of them!”
Thanks go out
The society thanks Maria Caulfield MP, Cllr Paul Mellor and the Board of Deputies of British Jews for their valuable support and to Brighton and Hove Bus Company for honouring Leonard Woolf. Thanks also go to Suren Paul, Chair of the Leonard Woolf Society, and Claire Nicholson for their encouragement.
“Leonard Woolf’s influence on politics from international relations with the League of Nations to local community activism in Brighton is significant,” O’Neill pointed out.
The cover of Issue No. 72 – January 2023 of the Virginia Woolf Bulletin features the Brighton & Hove Virginia Woolf bus.
“His pioneering publishing work with the Hogarth Press is also to be admired. I’m delighted to see the Leonard Woolf bus, which seems a suitable way of honouring Leonard given his commitment to community service and environmental sustainability.”
About the buses and routes
The bus is one of the brand new accessible Coaster buses that have two wheelchair bays, dementia friendly flooring and seating, audio and visual next-stop announcements and an onboard loop system.
The bus number is changeable but is most likely to be doing either 12/12A/12X or 14/14C routes. These buses all serve Sealife Centre, Old Steine, North Street and Brighton Station.
Members of the Virginia Woolf Society of Great Britain raise a glass to the new Leonard Woolf bus in Brighton. Photo by Marielle O’Neill, second from right.
