JSU's Department of English Alumni Nesletter,
Postscripts:
Review of Faculty Scholar Lecture
by Susan Methvin
This article appeared in JSU's Department of English Alumni Newsletter, Volume II, Number 1 (July 1995) and is posted with permisssion.
Faculty Scholar Lecture:
Joanne GatesFebruary 23, 1995. It had been a busy semester and, as always, there was way too much to do; but I was headed back to Jacksonville for another lecture, another night away from the comforts of home. Nevertheless, I drove into the parking lot of the Houston Cole library knowing full well that this particular lecture would be enlightening. Joanne Gates' lectures always are.
I had already heard her speak on Robins, and I was curious about what else she might have to say. This was the Faculty Scholar Lecture, and Gates had entitled it: "Elizabeth Robins: A Life in Letters." It would, of course, be based on her book, Elizabeth Robins, 1862-1952: Actress, Novelist, Feminist, which was published by the University of Alabama Press in 1994 and won the Elizabeth Agee Prize. But instead of a simple overview of the playwright's life, the lecture consisted of letters written by Gates to a woman who had obviously become something like a friend.
I have never been so mesmerized by a presentation. Behind the microphone, Gates became the inspired colleague of the dead actress and writer as she speculated in letters about the possibilities of televised segments of Robins' life; reminisced about time spent in Robins' former home in England; revealed little known correspondences with Robins' friend, the poet John Masefield; and speculated about Robins' many relationships with those who cared for her deeply.
Never during the hour-long presentation did my attention waver; and by the end, when Gates presented a series of slides, which included pictures of each of Robins' homes and finally photographs of the houng and the aging Elizabeth, most of us were so engaged that, and I am surprised by this, many of us were brushing away tears. At the risk of sounding even more sentimental, I have to say that I was deeply moved and highly impressed not only with Gates' scholarly research, but with the way she had connected her own life with Robins' and brought the author into the present for those of us lucky enough to be in the audience.
If you have not read Gates' book, I recommend it.
Alabama Press Listing of JEG's biography of Elizabeth Robins--Order information from University of Alabama Press.
The Elizabeth Robins Web -- Robins Texts at JSU
by Joanne E. Gates
From the Elizabeth Robins Collection at NYU: List of Photographs
CLICK HERE to see the photograph of Elizabeth Robins (on left) on her way to Alaska in 1900.
Modern Drama by Women
leads you to information on this recently published anthology which includes Votes for Women (1907) by Elizabeth Robins.
The play is edited by Joanne E. Gates from the promptbook text.
Anthology editor: Katherine E. Kelly
Page editor: Joanne E. Gates at jgates@jsucc.jsu.edu
Last update: Check your browser's "view page info" or "file properties"
Department of English Home Page
Jacksonville State University Home Page