Join Us In Oxford For
. . .
- Lively interactive sessions with award-winning
American and British faculty
- Shakespeare in performance at London’s Globe
Theatre and a visit to Burghley House,
one of the finest examples of Elizabethan architecture
- Pleasant private accommodation in a charming
college in the heart of Oxford
Enter The Fascinating World
Of England's Queen Elizabeth I
At age 25, Elizabeth, daughter of Henry VIII and Anne Boleyn, ascended
to the throne of England. Elizabeth I was heir not only to her father’s
strength, will, pride, and passion for splendor and her mother’s vanity
and magnetism, but also to a weak, divided nation that seemed likely
to become the next possession of the growing empire of Spain.
During her long reign (1558-1603), Elizabeth I, the unmarried “Virgin Queen,”
presided over a series of extraordinary political, social, artistic, and
religious transformations that made a strengthened and enriched England
the envy of Europe and the ruler of the seas. A powerful image of
female authority, regal magnificence, and national pride, “Gloriana,” as
Elizabeth was called, put a distinctively personal stamp on the collective
life of an era of great national achievement.
Join
us at Trinity College, in the heart of Oxford, for lectures, tours, and
lively discussions exploring the fascinating life of Elizabeth I and the
great flowering of literature, art, and exploration that was the Elizabethan
Age. Return to
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During A Program Designed for Instruction and
Delight, You Will:
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Study the golden age of English literature that gave
the world William Shakespeare, Ben Jonson, Christopher Marlowe, and Edmund
Spencer.
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Enjoy living in a beautiful Oxford college, dining
at The Anchor -
a 17th century Thames-side pub (It was from this pub that Samuel Pepys
witnessed the awesome destruction of the Great Fire of London in 1666),
attending a concert by renowned pianist Jack
Gibbons in the Holywell Music Room, Europe’s oldest purpose-built concert
hall, and more . . . Return
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WHO SHOULD ATTEND?
You, if you are seeking intellectual stimulation in an informal, collegial
environment and are interested in English history, literature, theater,
and architecture. This program is perfect for those who would like
to develop a broader understanding of the extraordinary political, social,
cultural, and religious transformations of the Elizabethan Age and how
they unfolded.
Past participants have represented a wide range of experiences, ages, and
educational backgrounds. Join us and discover that, as one past participant
wrote, "spending a week with
an extraordinary faculty in a beautiful Oxford
college studying a stimulating topic is a transcendent experience, and
downright fun." Return
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PROGRAM FEATURES
The week is a lively mix of activities. There are interactive
sessions led by experts, small group discussions with faculty, guided walking
tours of Oxford and Trinity College, a trip to London and the Globe Theatre
and to Burghley House in Lincolnshire, and a concert by renowned pianist
Jack
Gibbons in Oxford's beautiful Holywell Music Room. You will dine
"in Hall" at Trinity College for most meals, with the college silver in
use for the closing dinner as a highlight. There is free time in
the schedule to allow you to relax in the gardens and courtyards of Trinity
College and to explore the many attractions of Oxford. Participants
often comment on how much they enjoy feeling like residents, not tourists,
during their week in Oxford.
One of the most common, and heartfelt, recommendations from past participants
is that you arrive a day or two before the program. This will give
you a chance to settle in and begin to explore and enjoy the many attractions
of Oxford and the surrounding countryside (Blenheim Palace, London, Stratford-upon-Avon,
and much more is within easy reach) before the program starts. If
you would like to arrive early, extra nights of lodging at Trinity College
will be available at an attractive rate. This year preprogram lodging
will be available at Trinity College on Friday, August 18 (from 4:00 pm)
and/or Saturday, August 19. Return
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Before the program begins, you will be sent an Oxford guidebook along
with useful and comprehensive information to make it very easy for you
to get to and enjoy Oxford.
Dress for the week is casual. You will want to bring comfortable
walking shoes and a sweater or jacket for cool evenings. Check
the Oxford weather.
•
• •
The program begins with check in from 10:00
am – 12:00 noon on Sunday, August 20,
and concludes Saturday morning, August 26.
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THE PROGRAM FACULTY INCLUDES
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George
Garrett: poet, novelist, essayist, and recently retired Professor
of Creative Writing in the U.Va. Department of English Language & Literature.
George’s trilogy of novels set in Elizabethan England – “Death of the Fox,”
“The Succession,” and “Entered from the Sun” – has been called among the
most imaginative historical recreations in modern literature.
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J. Paul Hunter: Barbara E. and Richard J.
Franke Professor in the Humanities, Professor of English, and Director
of the Franke Institute for the Humanities at the University of Chicago;
he is also Senior Advisor in the Humanities at the Andrew Mellon Foundation
and general editor of the Bedford Cultural Editions. Return
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Nina Levick: Slovenian-born, Nina has lived
for many years in England. She completed her BA and MA in French
and the History of Art at London University. She is currently a freelance
translator, and a lecturer with the National Gallery, London. She
also teaches for the Open University and for Oxford University Department
for Continuing Education. She has led many art tours throughout Europe.
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David Skinner: Co-director of The Cardinall's
Musick, one of Britain's foremost early music ensembles. Active as
a music editor, producer, and academic, David has also sung with a number
of specialist early-music ensembles, and has produced a number of award-winning
recordings. He has prepared performing editions for The Tallis Scholars
and The Sixteen. He has published widely on music and musicians of
late-medieval England. He is currently a Postdoctoral Research Fellow
of the British Academy at Christ Church, and a Lecturer in Music at New
College, Oxford. Return to top
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Emma Smith: Fellow of Hertford College, and
Lecturer in English at the University of Oxford. Her research focuses on
drama of the Elizabethan and Jacobean periods, and she has published an
edition of Thomas Kyd’s “The Spanish Tragedy” and articles on Marlowe,
Jonson, and Shakespeare. She has recently completed a history of Shakespeare’s
“Henry V” in the theatre from 1599-1999 (forthcoming from Cambridge University
Press), and is currently working on a three-volume guide to criticism of
Shakespeare’s tragedies, comedies and histories.
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Vincent
Strudwick: Honorary Canon of Christ Church, Staff Tutor in the
University of Oxford Department for Continuing Education, and Fellow of
Kellogg College. He has lectured extensively on England in the 16th
century, and has published essays on different aspects of the Reformations
in Tudor England. He recently contributed to “The New Dictionary
of National Biography.” Return
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Henry
Taylor: Professor of Literature and co-director of the MFA Creative
Writing program at American University. Henry’s third collection
of poetry, “The Flying Charge,” received the 1986 Pulitzer Prize in Poetry.
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Adrian Tinniswood: An architectural historian,
Adrian has worked for Britain's leading heritage organization, the National
Trust, as an author, editor and consultant for 15 years. His most recent
books include "The Arts & Crafts House" and "The Polite Tourist : Four
Centuries of Country House Visiting". Return
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PROGRAM DIRECTORS
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University of
Virginia: Thomas
S. Dowd, Senior Director of Program Development, School of Continuing
and Professional Studies, Center for University Programs
THE SETTING - TRINITY COLLEGE
Your home for the week is Trinity
College, the most central of Oxford's colleges, where you will
live, study, and dine. Founded in 1555, Trinity is noted for the
excellence of its architecture, gardens, and food and its pleasant
atmosphere for living and learning. Among Trinity's "old boys" (women
were first admitted in 1979) are Lord Baltimore, the Prime Ministers William
Pitt and Lord North, John Henry Cardinal Newman, and Lord Kenneth Clark.
While "up at Oxford" both faculty and participants live "in college." Each
person has a private single bedroom with a refrigerator and a sink with
hot and cold taps. Many feature an attached sitting room.
Bathrooms are shared. There are a limited number of double occupancy
rooms. During your stay, the College beer cellar, squash court, and
laundry facilities are available for your use. Return
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Take
an interactive photographic tour of Trinity College - Virtual
Trinity
OXFORD, ENGLAND - CITY
OF DREAMING SPIRES
Oxford, home to England's oldest University and smallest cathedral, is
located on the north bank of the River Thames, fifty-six miles northwest
of London. Frequent bus connections to Heathrow and Gatwick airports
and extensive bus and train connections to London make it very easy to
travel to and from Oxford. Return
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WHAT PAST
PARTICIPANTS HAVE SAID ABOUT THE
U.Va. SEMINARS AT OXFORD, ENGLAND
(I'm happy to say that this is just
a small sampling of such comments.)
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"How often do you have the opportunity to
actually experience firsthand such profound beauty interwoven with hundreds
of years of British history, with intellectual stimulation, fun companions,
and outstanding food thrown in for good measure?"
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“The program is intellectually stimulating,
well programmed, and reasonably priced with lots of personal attention,
good food, and high quality attendees.”
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"Some vacations offer a chance to bask in
the sun. The U.Va. Oxford program offers the opportunity to bask
in the glow of history, the sunshine of ideas, and the radiance of superior
minds focused on intriguing questions and provocative answers. An
extraordinary experience."
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"Absolute enlightenment! Fascinating
tours, stimulating lectures, interesting people, and a wonderful college
make an unbeatable combination. I know that I will be returning for
future programs here at Trinity."
To be added to our mailing
list please send your mailing address to
travelandlearn@virginia.edu
or call us at 800-346-3882 or 1-434-982-5252.
