"To be fond of dancing was a certain step towards falling in love."
September 19, 2015
Dear Jane,
I dare say that you will not believe the fantastic week that I have had unless I give you a thoroughly precise account of it. (Do not let yourself become too excited for I have not yet fallen love with a modern day Mr. Darcy, but it is still exciting news!) I hardly know where to begin! (How often is it that I start a letter with so much glee? I must endeavor to have a happier tone in my letters if this such an uncommon occurrence.)
...
The three dots above indicate a lapse in time in which instead of writing, I walked to the local washer woman (or rather, the laundromat) and dropped off (or rather, did myself) my clothes to be cleaned. This is my least favorite errand to complete as I am now very weary and have no desire to do anything else for the remainder of the day. That being said, I shall do my best to continue this correspondence. Where was I?
Oh yes...my adventures. I shall go day by day so that I can be sure that I do not leave a single detail out. (Be prepared for a rather long account of my week, Jane.)
Monday:
In truth, I fear this was a bad day to start with for my adventures did not actually start until Tuesday though I did have a lovely day at home. (Of course, I should have been working or at an audition but alas I was not employed with either.)
Tuesday:
I did in fact, go to an audition and for the first time during this "audition season," received a callback. This is very good news for an actor (although I do not believe I shall get the part, it was a welcome turn of events nevertheless). Oddly enough I was asked to come back and sing AFTER being forced to participate in a dance audition (whereras it is usually the reverse order of this: sing first, dance after if one is fortunate). This is truly extraordinary news, for anyone who knows me, knows that learning fast-paced choreography is not my greatest skill...especially under pressure. However, I adopted the motto, "fake it till you make it" and did my utmost to look as if I knew what I was doing.
After my day auditioning (which engaged me from 10:00 in the morning until 4:30 in the afternoon), I struggled with what to do next as I was feeling extremely fatigued yet still wanted to go to an English Country Dance class that I had read about. Luckily, I found the necessary conviction and journeyed to Union Station where I would bide my time until the dance class began later in the evening. (I shall give more details of this English Dance Class in due course for that is the truly exciting part of my tale.)
Before finding my way to the dance lesson and after dining at Au Bon Pain (which is not quite as illustrious as it sounds), I went on an excursion to find a very unique book warehouse nearby (that is said to hold roughly eighteen miles of books) called, Strand. Well, before I came across Strand, I came upon a smaller store called Alabaster Bookshop. It was here that I found five splendid books for only two dollars each. Two of the books were particulary special as they had to do with you, Jane! One is a novel called Cassandra and Jane and the other is more of a reference book called Speaking of Jane Austen. As you can imagine, I was extremely pleased with my finds.
After lingering at Alabaster Bookshop I realized that I was quickly running out of time. Luckily, "the Strand" (as many admirers of the store call it) was just around the corner and I had a few moments to peruse their book selection. This was quite a formidable task as there were literally thousands of books, but I made a vow to return to "the Strand" in order to afford it some proper attention.
With a heavy knapsack and a nervous (yet excited) heart I finally made my way to my dance lesson (via a CVS in order to withdraw some cash for I had none about my person). I had no expectations as to what it would be like; all I knew was that it would take place in a church on W. 13th street.
Finally, I arrived at Church of the Village and my adventure began. (Although I spent some time wandering the church as I was rather lost and there were various meetings going on at the same time.) Eventually I came upon the particpants in the meeting room below, paid my fiftenn dollar entrance fee and found a seat in order to await instruction. Soon after my arrival, a kind lady introduced herself to me and asked how I had come to learn about their group. I told her that I was an admirer of Jane Austen and simply googled, "Jane Austen in New York City" and their institution came up. She said that she was very excited to have me and informed me that I was to participate in the beginner's workshop before joining the group for the main dances.
After my short introduction in the beginner's workshop with an intstructor and two other students we were brought back to the main meeting room (the basement gym of the church) and began to dance in earnest. There was a live musical ensemble which consisted of three exceedingly talented musicians who call themselves "The Flying Romanos." One musician played the pianoforte, another the violin and the last, a flute. Additionally, there was a caller who recited instructions for each dance. What a thrilling experience! I danced just as you or Elizabeth Bennet would have from seven o'clock until ten o'clock and it was simply wonderful. I was never without a partner and was often praised for how quickly I was learning each dance. (Although I admit that there was a jig that I just could not grasp no matter how hard I tried.) I confess these dances were quite different from the dance I learned earlier at my audition.
These dances were quite complicated but perfectly elegant and everyone was so very friendly and warm. It was as though I could see Darcy and Lizzy before my very eyes (although how they could have maintained conversation whilst trying to remember the difficult patterns of each dance is beyond me).
Wednesday-Thursday:
I worked at the sample sale warehouse...not quite an adventure, but money was made...huzzah!
Friday:
Another day spent looking for jobs and auditions. However, at night I went to a dear friend's musical concert and had rather too much wine...or maybe it was just enough as a lively evening of song and laughter was had by all!
On the saturday before this week even began, I found myself at a wine tasting and fashion show that were part of New York Fashion Week with my dear sister Regina. Naturally it was an adventure in and of itself, Jane. It was quite the event and we had a grand time to be sure. I had rather a lot of wine that evening as well...
Thank you, once again for taking the time to read my tiresome letters, Jane; it is always a comfort to know that I can share my tales with you!
Yours Faithfully,
Amanda
Dear Jane,
I dare say that you will not believe the fantastic week that I have had unless I give you a thoroughly precise account of it. (Do not let yourself become too excited for I have not yet fallen love with a modern day Mr. Darcy, but it is still exciting news!) I hardly know where to begin! (How often is it that I start a letter with so much glee? I must endeavor to have a happier tone in my letters if this such an uncommon occurrence.)
...
The three dots above indicate a lapse in time in which instead of writing, I walked to the local washer woman (or rather, the laundromat) and dropped off (or rather, did myself) my clothes to be cleaned. This is my least favorite errand to complete as I am now very weary and have no desire to do anything else for the remainder of the day. That being said, I shall do my best to continue this correspondence. Where was I?
Oh yes...my adventures. I shall go day by day so that I can be sure that I do not leave a single detail out. (Be prepared for a rather long account of my week, Jane.)
Monday:
In truth, I fear this was a bad day to start with for my adventures did not actually start until Tuesday though I did have a lovely day at home. (Of course, I should have been working or at an audition but alas I was not employed with either.)
Tuesday:
I did in fact, go to an audition and for the first time during this "audition season," received a callback. This is very good news for an actor (although I do not believe I shall get the part, it was a welcome turn of events nevertheless). Oddly enough I was asked to come back and sing AFTER being forced to participate in a dance audition (whereras it is usually the reverse order of this: sing first, dance after if one is fortunate). This is truly extraordinary news, for anyone who knows me, knows that learning fast-paced choreography is not my greatest skill...especially under pressure. However, I adopted the motto, "fake it till you make it" and did my utmost to look as if I knew what I was doing.
After my day auditioning (which engaged me from 10:00 in the morning until 4:30 in the afternoon), I struggled with what to do next as I was feeling extremely fatigued yet still wanted to go to an English Country Dance class that I had read about. Luckily, I found the necessary conviction and journeyed to Union Station where I would bide my time until the dance class began later in the evening. (I shall give more details of this English Dance Class in due course for that is the truly exciting part of my tale.)
Before finding my way to the dance lesson and after dining at Au Bon Pain (which is not quite as illustrious as it sounds), I went on an excursion to find a very unique book warehouse nearby (that is said to hold roughly eighteen miles of books) called, Strand. Well, before I came across Strand, I came upon a smaller store called Alabaster Bookshop. It was here that I found five splendid books for only two dollars each. Two of the books were particulary special as they had to do with you, Jane! One is a novel called Cassandra and Jane and the other is more of a reference book called Speaking of Jane Austen. As you can imagine, I was extremely pleased with my finds. After lingering at Alabaster Bookshop I realized that I was quickly running out of time. Luckily, "the Strand" (as many admirers of the store call it) was just around the corner and I had a few moments to peruse their book selection. This was quite a formidable task as there were literally thousands of books, but I made a vow to return to "the Strand" in order to afford it some proper attention.
With a heavy knapsack and a nervous (yet excited) heart I finally made my way to my dance lesson (via a CVS in order to withdraw some cash for I had none about my person). I had no expectations as to what it would be like; all I knew was that it would take place in a church on W. 13th street.Finally, I arrived at Church of the Village and my adventure began. (Although I spent some time wandering the church as I was rather lost and there were various meetings going on at the same time.) Eventually I came upon the particpants in the meeting room below, paid my fiftenn dollar entrance fee and found a seat in order to await instruction. Soon after my arrival, a kind lady introduced herself to me and asked how I had come to learn about their group. I told her that I was an admirer of Jane Austen and simply googled, "Jane Austen in New York City" and their institution came up. She said that she was very excited to have me and informed me that I was to participate in the beginner's workshop before joining the group for the main dances.
After my short introduction in the beginner's workshop with an intstructor and two other students we were brought back to the main meeting room (the basement gym of the church) and began to dance in earnest. There was a live musical ensemble which consisted of three exceedingly talented musicians who call themselves "The Flying Romanos." One musician played the pianoforte, another the violin and the last, a flute. Additionally, there was a caller who recited instructions for each dance. What a thrilling experience! I danced just as you or Elizabeth Bennet would have from seven o'clock until ten o'clock and it was simply wonderful. I was never without a partner and was often praised for how quickly I was learning each dance. (Although I admit that there was a jig that I just could not grasp no matter how hard I tried.) I confess these dances were quite different from the dance I learned earlier at my audition.
These dances were quite complicated but perfectly elegant and everyone was so very friendly and warm. It was as though I could see Darcy and Lizzy before my very eyes (although how they could have maintained conversation whilst trying to remember the difficult patterns of each dance is beyond me).
Oh, if only MY mother had brought me to town each spring for the benefit of the masters, I would have been dancing these dances for ages! Nevertheless, I was delighted and strongly urge all Janeites in New York City to visit cdny.org should they wish to partake in a true regency-style, English country dance. It was as close as a young lady in modern times could hope to get to the ball at Netherfield Park! Needless to say, I cannot wait to return. CDNY is certainly a step towards falling in love with English Country dances!
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The dances of the evening!
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I worked at the sample sale warehouse...not quite an adventure, but money was made...huzzah!
Friday:
Another day spent looking for jobs and auditions. However, at night I went to a dear friend's musical concert and had rather too much wine...or maybe it was just enough as a lively evening of song and laughter was had by all!
On the saturday before this week even began, I found myself at a wine tasting and fashion show that were part of New York Fashion Week with my dear sister Regina. Naturally it was an adventure in and of itself, Jane. It was quite the event and we had a grand time to be sure. I had rather a lot of wine that evening as well...
Thank you, once again for taking the time to read my tiresome letters, Jane; it is always a comfort to know that I can share my tales with you!
Yours Faithfully,
Amanda
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