The evening of Valentines Day saw the Orangery at full capacity for Wayne Drew’s Chamber play, A Gift of Love , performed by Geraldine Watts as Jane Austen and Richard Holliss as her great grand nephew Edward Lefroy. It was a delightful evening’s entertainment; at times amusing but at other times profoundly moving. Both Jane Austen and Edward Lefroy suffered from blighted relationships with the person they loved. Their meditations on their lives and how they engaged each other and other literary figures in a civilised after life, created a memorable 75 minutes. Geraldine Watts looked like Jane Austen and her words seemed wholly authentic, while Richard Hollis epitomised the serious Victorian cleric imbued with ideas of muscular Christianity which led to a confrontation with his Bishop.
The play itself was full of wit and wisdom and was written especially for the current Exhibition, Fans in the Age of Jane Austen, by Wayne Drew, a long-standing supporter of the Museum.
We hope that this evening will mark the start of monthly events at the Orangery.
