The Roman Theatre at Orange.
As the Treasurer reports elsewhere, we experienced a not inconsiderable deficit this year, mainly from expenditure on prospecting the year's coach trip and a fall in subscriptions. We now have 54 paying members, all at the full £5. (59 last year.) Our attendances fell again despite our best efforts, including a publicity leaflet, and no adverse weather conditions.
In the Autumn we opened in late October with a lecture at Keele by Cressida Ryan (Oxford) on Greek Tragedy & Opera. (Friends of Keele & Hellenic Society joint meeting.) This was followed by a reading of Seneca's Troades at our Chairman's house, and a lecture on Pliny and Other Letter Writers at Keele, by Ruth Morello (Manchester).
We resumed in March with a play reading of Euripides' Troiades again at our Chairman's house. Allan Sommerstein then lectured on Friendly Gods in Comedy & Tragedy at Wolstanton RC Primary School, as a lead in to our reading of Aristophanes' Frogs. In May, Julia Hillner (Sheffield) was the speaker at Clayton Hall Business & Language College for our Roman Society talk on Imperial Women & late Antique Rome.
We are grateful to both schools, Keele SCR and the Friends of Keele for free use of the rooms for these meetings.
Our annual coach trip, in May, was as usual open to other bodies and was to Hadrian's Wall. The original plan to go to Chesters proved on prior investigation to be too far, so we visited Birdoswald and Carvoran. We are grateful as ever to Andy Fear for leading us round both sites.
The Latin and Greek reading groups have continued to run approximately monthly throughout the year, independently of the core programme.
Texts will be available, but please bring the Emily Wilson translation, if you are able.
The Roman Theatre at Orange.
Copies will be available, but please bring the Penguin Classics edition, if you are able.
Copies will be available, but please bring the Penguin Classics edition, if you are able.
As usual we will depart by coach from Keele, about 8.30 a.m., returning late the same evening and visiting Birdoswald Roman Fort and a section of the Wall itself, led by Dr Andy Fear. There is a charge for this event.
Birdoswald (Banna) from the air.
Birdoswald Fort
Final details of coach costs will be given with confirmed bookings, but these are now expected to be about £30, exclusive of evening meal, and depending on final costs of group entry. Further details will appear on this site before the trip. The booking form may be downloaded here.
Last year's programme and Annual Report
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