#VirtualJaneCon 2025

PROGRAM SCHEDULE
July 19-20, 2025

A note on time: All listed times are in UTC (Coordinated Universal Time). Convert to your time zone here.

Links below will default to the direct video or the presenter’s channel, so you might have to scroll to their uploads at the time of programming.

Saturday, July 19, 2025 At-A-Glance

12:00 am UTC – What’s Next for Caroline and Mary? – Sharmini Kumar, Kelly Gardiner, Kylie Mirmohamadi (read more)

1:00 am UTC – Anne Remembers All Too Well – Frances Duncan (read more)

12:30 pm UTC – Celebrating 20 Years of Pride and Prejudice 2005 by Making Lizzie’s Brown Coat | #VirtualJaneCon2025 – Kate Zarrella (read more)

3:00 pm UTC – Fashion Is Political: How the Age of Revolutions Influenced Fashion & Textiles in Jane Austen’s Lifetime – Ayana of The Vintage Guidebook and Tiffany Gayle of Stitchin’ Addiction (read more)

5:00 pm UTC – Jane Austen’s Shelves – Sydney Fargis (read more)

6:00 pm UTC – The Dancing Life of Jane Austen – Cassiane Mobley (read more)

8:00 pm UTC – Director Laura Piani Explains Why “Jane Austen Wrecked My Life” – Amanda-Rae Prescott (read more)

9:00 pm UTC – Is Darcy Demi? An Exploration of Sexuality – Kaurifish (read more)

Sunday, July 20, 2025 At-A-Glance

12:00 am UTC – Jane Austen Queer Fantasy Sportsball – Cassiane Mobley and Mary Hill (read more)

3:30 am UTC – All Things Austenland – Cassiane Mobley and Mary Hill (read more)

1:00 pm UTC – Merchandising Jane: The 21st C Consumerism of Jane Austen – Lisa Rabey (read more)

4:00 pm UTC – The Sublime & the Beautiful: Exploring Edmund Burke’s Aesthetic Theory in Emma (2020) – Tiffany Cruz (read more)

5:00 pm UTC – All the Single Men: What if the Bennet Sisters were the Bennet Brothers? – Erin Page and Margaret Beaufort (read more)

6:30 pm UTC – Handsome. Clever. Stitch.: Costuming an Austen Adaptation – Bianca Hernandez-Knight (read more)

10:00 pm UTC – A Tale of Two Emmas: 1996 – Briana Michelle Meyer (read more)

Saturday July 19, 2025 Program Descriptions

12:00 am UTC – What’s Next for Caroline and Mary? – Sharmini Kumar, Kelly Gardiner, Kylie Mirmohamadi

Caroline Bingley and Mary Bennet are overlooked by the other characters in Pride and Prejudice – even by our beloved Elizabeth Bennet and Mr Darcy. Fortunately for them, fans over the years have imagined full and fascinating lives for these women. Join us for a deep dive into some of the places these ‘minor’ characters have been taken.

Presenters:

Sharmini Kumar (she/her) is the founder and Artistic Director of 24 Carrot Productions and a producer of AustenCon, an annual Jane Austen celebration now in its seventh year. She has adapted ‘Persuasion’ and ‘Pride and Prejudice’ for the stage, ‘Emma’ for online performance during lockdown, and mostly recently co-wrote and directed the original musical adaptation of ‘Sense and Sensibility’. Sharmini has written, directed and produced many performance pieces and short films including ‘Shakespeare in Therapy’ and ‘The Regina Monologues’, as well as radio documentaries for the ABC. When she’s not writing and directing, she works as a doctor and teaches medicine. Her debut novel, ‘Miss Caroline Bingley, Private Detective’, is co-authored with Kelly Gardiner.

Kylie Mirmohamadi (she/her) is a writer and academic whose work and research spans domestic Australian landscapes, online fan fiction, and 19th-century English literature. She has a PhD in History and is currently an Adjunct Senior Research Fellow in English and Creative Writing at La Trobe University.
Kylie has published widely in the academic sector, most recently on the long afterlives of Jane Austen and the Brontë sisters.
Her first novel, ‘Diving, Falling’, was published by Scribe in 2024, and was listed as a best book of 2024 by Guardian Australia, The Saturday Paper, The Australian, InReview and Good Reading Magazine.

Kelly Gardiner (she/they) writes historical fiction for all ages. Her latest series is ‘The Firewatcher Chronicles’. Her other books include ‘Goddess; 1917: Australia’s Great War’, shortlisted for the NSW Premier’s Young People’s History Prize and the Asher Award; the Swashbuckler pirate trilogy; and a picture book, ‘Billabong Bill’s Bushfire Christmas’. Her young adult novels ‘Act of Faith’ and ‘The Sultan’s Eyes’ were both shortlisted for the NSW Premier’s Literary Awards, while ‘Act of Faith’ was shortlisted for the ASA’s Barbara Jefferis Award and Gold Inky. A former journalist and editor, Kelly taught writing at La Trobe University for many years and now writes full-time and runs writing masterclasses and retreats. Her most recent novel, ‘Miss Caroline Bingley, Private Detective’, is co-authored with Sharmini Kumar.

1:00 am UTC – Anne Remembers All Too Well – Frances Duncan

A comparison of the lyrics from Taylors Swift’s “All Too Well” (10 minute version) to Jane Austen’s “Persuasion.” In particular the line “I’ll get older but your lovers stay my age” has to be mentioned. The talk is short and sweet; only as long as the song.

Presenter:

Frances (she/they) writes Austen-inspired fiction, offers Austen-inspired Life Coaching, hosts The Amateur Austenite Podcast and founded the Jane Austen Society of Aotearoa New Zealand. (Obsessive, much?)

A newspaper article quoted Frances on Jane Austen saying she’s “a snarky b*tch and I love that about her.”

http://www.francesduncandoes.com
Instagram: @francesduncandoes

12:30 pm UTC – Celebrating 20 Years of Pride and Prejudice 2005 by Making Lizzie’s Brown Coat | #VirtualJaneCon2025 – Kate Zarrella

Do you love obstinate, headstrong girls, hems six inches deep in mud, and movie adaptations that lean heavily into the cottagecore aesthetic? If you do, this Virtual JaneCon video is for you! We will once again watch Pride & Prejudice 2005 (for research purposes naturally) and reconstruct the brown coat as seen in Lizzie’s trip to the Collins’ and proposal-geddon. We’ll stitch and discuss if it’s a coat, a pelisse, a long spencer, or a strategic creative decision of the costume designer. Come along on my personal quest to reconstruct Lizzie’s entire wardrobe one garment at a time!

Presenter: As the witty but unmarried, penniless country relation Kate is essentially an Austen heroine in the first half of the book. She’s a jack-of-all trades, and makes videos about history, sewing, and DIY. In her spare time, she photoshops her cat to look like Captain Wentworth and watches Pride & Prejudice (2005) ad infinitum. Kate lives in rural Western North Carolina where there is plenty of mud for all of her hems.

It’s been 250 years since the birth of Jane Austen, and all over the world, fans are not only re-reading her novels, but dressing in the fashion of her era to attend events inspired by her life. But what were the major political forces behind Regency fashion? How did world events affect people’s wardrobes? Join Tiffany and Ayana as we explore the political movements that also revolutionized the fashion of Austen’s lifetime.

Presenters:

Ayana (she/her) is a writer and social history enthusiast with a focus on historical fashion. While most of her interest centers around the 20th century, as a longtime Janeite, she especially enjoys studying clothing from the Regency period.
You can find Ayana everywhere on social media as @thevintageguidebook.

Tiffany (she/her) is the owner/operator of Stitchin’ Addiction, a small business that designs, makes, and sells 19th century women’s clothing that is inspired by literary heroines. With over 30 years of sewing experience, experience as an English teacher, and meticulous attention to historical fashion construction and style, each ensemble is the result of thorough research of a character’s class, characterization of the heroine, and reference to period fashion plates and photos of extant dresses. Tiffany can be found as Stitchin’ Addiction on YouTube, Instagram, Facebook, Etsy, and her website.

5:00 pm UTC – Jane Austen’s Shelves – Sydney Fargis

Jane Austen continues to resonate with the modern reader, her satirical wit and eloquent ability to depict the intricacies of relationships earning her a well deserved spot in the literary canon. It can be easy to perceive her as the authoress who first drew attention to the depths of the domestic sphere or the pioneer who initiated the movement of female writers determined to present their own analysis of the divide between genders and classes. But what of the women who were contemporaries of Austen? What about the women whose own works spoke to Austen and led to her development as a writer? Why is it that we return to the works of Austen on a routine basis but hardly ever pick up literature by Ann Radcliffe, Frances Burney, Maria Edgeworth or Charlotte Lennox?

This presentation aims to explore the significance of several female voices (specifically the writers listed above) who helped shape Austen into the brilliant author she became- the women whose books lined Jane Austen’s shelves.

Presenter: Sydney Fargis has been a devoted Janeite since the tender age of eleven when her father gifted her Austen’s works and she fell utterly in love with the characters Jane Austen crafted. Using Austen as a framework, Sydney specialized in both the marriage plot and postmodernist literature, going on to examine the presence of female bondage in Mansfield Park as a Masters student. For the past eleven years, she has dedicated her time to the profession of teaching literature in the hopes that her students will discover their very own Jane Austen- a writer who will spark an enduring passion in them for the art of the novel. Writing whenever she isn’t reading, you can find Sydney’s latest article in the summer issue of Oh Reader. Sydney lives with her amazingly supportive husband, their two dogs and one very bookish cat. Her pronouns are she/her and you can find her in the bookish corner of Instagram: @musingsofthewellread.

6:00 pm UTC – The Dancing Life of Jane Austen – Cassiane Mobley

How much do we know about Jane Austen’s dance life and dance habits? Looking at Jane’s letters, various dance trends of the day, and dance tunes found in the Austen family’s personal collection, we will try to provide plausible answers to the question What Would Jane Dance?

Presenter: Cassiane Mobley (they/them) is a teacher and dance historian who specializes in the Regency Era. They are also and advocate for neurodivergent accessibility and gender-inclusive dance spaces. Their latest project is Improper English, a queer-run, gender-neutral English Country Dance in the San Francisco Bay Area. They live in the Bay Area with their spouse, kiddo, and five cats.

8:00 pm UTC – Director Laura Piani Explains Why “Jane Austen Wrecked My Life” – Amanda-Rae Prescott

This interview is a deep dive into the Sony Classics film Jane Austen Wrecked My Life currently in theaters. Director Laura Piani discusses in this interview how Austen inspired her directing and writing, the filming process, and Jane Austen’s legacy today.

Presenter: Amanda-Rae Prescott (she/her) is a freelance pop culture journalist from New York City, specializing in reviewing, contextualizing, and tracking UK period dramas and UK television for American audiences. She has a Masters in Science from the Columbia University School of Journalism. Advocacy for expanded racial diversity on screen and behind the scenes of period dramas as well as more fan participation from viewers of diverse backgrounds is a key feature of her reporting. Her articles reviewing Bridgerton, Sanditon, and other Austen/Austen adjacent topics have previously appeared on Den Of Geek, GBH Drama Club, BBC History Extra, Fansplaining and several podcasts including . Online she can be found at http://amandaraeprescott.com/ and on BlueSky @amandaraeprescott.bsky.social

9:00 pm UTC – Is Darcy Demi? An Exploration of Sexuality – Kaurifish

We fans have speculated for years about what was simmering inside the mind of Mr. Darcy. As a person who identifies as demisexual, I feel a certain kinship with him and the particular selectivity of his attraction.
In this presentation I will explore what demisexuality is, my own experience of it and how it seems to bear on Darcy’s character and actions.

Presenter: Long obsessed with Jane Austen’s works, Kaurifish (she/her) has studied the Regency in loving detail. Having not only made pilgrimage to key Austen sites from London to Bath, she has also practiced Regency dance, both country and ballroom, made Regency clothing, read the literature of the period and attended a recreation of a Regency ball.
She began to write Pride & Prejudice variations in 2005, posting the one-shot precursor to what would become I Will Have You. She has since written three P&P variant novels and more than 60 short stories.
She lives with innumerable flowers, two cats and an ogre in the San Francisco East Bay.

Sunday July 20, 2025 Program Descriptions

12:00 am UTC – Jane Austen Queer Fantasy Sportsball – Cassiane Mobley and Mary Hill

Jane Austen, but make it queer(er)! Austen-obsessed and real life queers Cassiane and Mary will take you on a gay romp of Austen’s works exploring all of their gay and trans headcanons and hills they are prepared to die on. Which of your favorite Austen heroes or heroines are we convinced are trans? Which forbidden love story do we wish were explicit instead of implicit? You’ll have to watch to find out! Pairings will be rated on how realistic they are, how much Cassie and Mary wish they were canon, and how healthy the relationship would be (because those three are not mutually exclusive). We hope this will give you a daily dose of queer, and inspire folks to write more Bingley/Darcy fanfiction on Ao3. Posthaste.

Presenters:

Mary Hill (she/her) is an autistic queer nerd who credits the 2005 Pride and Prejudice for being her gateway drug into the world of Jane Austen. She is obsessed with retold stories and analyzing media adaptations and subsists on a diet of tea, fanfiction, dressing up fancy, and rewatching Austenland. She lives in the San Francisco Bay Area with her snake, cat, and a pile of period clothing projects that she intends on finishing “one day.”

Cassaine Mobley (they/them) is also a queer autistic nerd who credits the 1995 Pride and Prejudice as their gateway drug to the world of Jane Austen and their career as a dance historian and English Country Dance caller. They exist on a diet of tea, folk dancing, JRPGs, needlecrafts, historical costuming, and rewatching Austenland. They live in the San Francisco Bay Area with their spouse, kiddo, and 5 very silly cats.

3:30 am UTC – All Things Austenland – Cassiane Mobley and Mary Hill (read more)

Austenland is a 2013 romantic comedy about a Jane Hayes, a Jane Austen obsessed single woman who is unsatisfied with her Darcy-less life. Following her dream, she travels to England to visit Austenland, a Regency-era recreation resort where each participant is completely immersed in Austen’s world, including a guaranteed happy ending with one of the actors. Predictably, shenanigans ensue. This movie is one of Cassiane and Mary’s favorite movies ever, and they love extolling its many virtues to anyone who will stand still long enough. Which is what this panel is all about! They will be going into a deep dive about all things Austenland – the costume inspirations, the trove of easter eggs, and also go into how scarily accurate the movie portrays the world of historical reenactment. Over the years Cassiane and Mary have taken part in various historical re-enactment events of varying lengths and sizes, and they can state confidentially that someone involved in this movie has taken part in a reenactment event of some kind. So grab yourself a cuppa and let’s dive on in!

(We recommend that either you watch Austenland beforehand or make peace with the fact that spoilers will almost certainly be discussed.)

Presenters:

1:00 pm UTC – Merchandising Jane: The 21st C Consumerism of Jane Austen – Lisa Rabey

Did you know there is Jane Austen toothpaste, lip balm (I have it. It’s quite good), file folders, candles, cross-stitch kits, and so much more beyond the typical notebooks, notecards, and other materials typically found at Austen museums and events? There is, and that is just the tip of the iceberg of Austen paraphernalia.

Jane couldn’t have predicted her likeness would be on lip balms and toothpaste 200 years later, but I bet she would be amused. In ‘Merchandising Jane: The 21st C Consumerism of Jane Austen,’ we’ll discuss the increasing consumerism trend of Austen and her works and why we’re obsessed with having a candle smelling like Pemberley or t-shirts with quotes from Northanger Abbey. And yes, a slide deck will be included with links to purchase said items.

Presenter: You may know Lisa Rabey (she/they) as Excessively Diverting, the popular Jane Austen social media empire. As Excessively Diverting, Lisa shares her love of Jane Austen (and sometimes the Brontës) by promoting articles, videos, events, essays, and more about Jane and the Bronte Sisters. She was also on a recent episode of the beloved podcast CraftLit, talking about Austen’s ‘Emma’ along with Becca from Book It With Becca. Excessively Diverting can be found at https://excessivelydiverting.net.

Lisa lives in N. Michigan with her husband (whom she sometimes likes) and her persnickety pug (who sometimes likes her). She watches a lot of trashy TV, reads heaving bosom books, and is really into trying to make bread but opts to buy it instead. Lisa is a librarian and writer with a side hustle, Nerd Girl Industries. Her favorite Elizabeth Bennet is Keira Knightley. She can be found at https://lisarabey.com.

4:00 pm UTC – The Sublime & the Beautiful: Exploring Edmund Burke’s Aesthetic Theory in Emma (2020) – Tiffany Cruz

The 2020 adaptation of Emma, directed by Autumn de Wilde brings Austen’s novel to light through visual choices highlighting the beautiful and sublime. In A Philosophical Enquiry into the Origin of Our Ideas of the Sublime and the Beautiful, Burke defines the beautiful as “quality or those qualities in bodies by which they cause love, or some passion similar to it.” While the sublime—a concept attributed to the ancient Greek philosopher Longinus that Burke builds upon—excites “ideas of pain, and danger,” which “operates in a manner analogous to terror.” The film at first glance leans heavily into Burke’s category of the beautiful with the pastel color palette, symmetrical compositions, and meticulous costuming reinforcing refinement and control. However, de Wild strategically disrupts this by introducing moments of the sublime—most notably the nosebleed scene—expressing emotional intensity. This presentation will explore how Emma (2020), analyzed through Burke’s theory of aesthetics, uses the transitions between beauty and sublimity to evoke a shifting emotional response, Burke describes as a means of strengthening the narrative and visualization of the film.

Presenter: Tiffany, a New York City native, holds a Master’s in English Literature from Mills College at Northeastern University. She focuses on Black people in British literature during the long eighteenth and nineteenth century. Tiffany brings the voices of those in the past to life in the present. She also explores Black people in contemporary texts that adapt classic works, examining why there is such a strong interest in creating historical novels with these protagonists, and the significance of highlighting Black people within these novels. She is particularly interested in the constructions of genre and how they shape both classical and modern texts, especially in relation to notions of race. This fascination extends to how literature influences societal values particularly in regards to Black stories. By analyzing these elements, showcase the importance of these perspectives, and their contribution to literature during this historical period. She is currently a PhD student at Northeastern University getting her degree in English Literature.

5:00 pm UTC – All the Single Men: What if the Bennet Sisters were the Bennet Brothers? – Erin Page and Margaret Beaufort

It is a truth universally acknowledged… that a family of five sisters is significantly different from a family of five brothers. What if the Bennet family had five sons, instead of the five iconic sisters portrayed in Pride and Prejudice? How would they have moved through the world? What kind of partners would they have engaged for themselves? And, most importantly, how would their mother have weathered their upbringing? In this convivial dialogue, two real life sisters re-imagine Jane Austen’s story where the genders are flipped and the stakes are high. They will examine the realities of life as a lower-tier landed gentleman within the Regency era, as well as the dramatic narrative arcs that parallel those of Austen’s five heroines, to build an outline that shadows Austen’s construct for a romantic adventure with a different POV.

Presenters:

Erin Page (she/her) is a technical writer and marketing specialist by trade, and a historical fiction author and fan in every other aspect. She believes that all forms of writing and communication—from instruction manuals to literary masterpieces—are founded in the same ancient art of storytelling and connecting with one another. An active member and reviewer for the Historical Novel Society, she has also published short fiction in several anthologies, including ‘District Lines’ and ‘Mytholog’. When she is not working on her upcoming novel, she can be found trying to cook excellent boiled potatoes or at her website, www.erinpage.com.

Margaret Beaufort (she/her) is a journalist and communication specialist. Her work promotes education and the international exchange of arts and opportunities for young people. She is also a constant reader, with a taste for classic literature and the more obscure corners of American history. She is currently pursuing a Master’s degree in cultural heritage management.

6:30 pm UTC – Handsome. Clever. Stitch.: Costuming an Austen Adaptation – Bianca Hernandez-Knight

What does it take to make costumes for a Jane Austen adaptation? Costume Designer Bianca Hernandez-Knight shares a look behind-the-scenes as she designs, drafts and executes costumes for a stage production. And yes, you will learn why bonnets are a nightmare.

Presenter: It started with a cookie tin. A blue one that Bianca Hernandez-Knight quickly learned had no cookies, but instead had a bunch of tools she’d eventually use everyday to turn all sorts of materials into magical costumes. Today, she makes magic with a needle and thread.

10:00 pm UTC – A Tale of Two Emmas: 1996 – Briana Michelle Meyer

Emma Woodhouse might be described as “handsome, clever, and rich” but in 1996 there were two to pick from. One was a feature film. The other, made for TV. One starred Gwyneth Paltrow, while the other starred Kate Beckinsale.

Released months apart, the 1996 adaptations of Emma have a history. In A Tale of Two Emmas: 1996, we’re going to look at the decision behind both adaptations being made. Then, each version will be discussed in regards to their differences and their similarities. Finally, the impact of these two versions will be looked at as well.

Presenter: Briana Michelle Meyer spends her days selling books at a bookstore and her nights writing stories. Previously, she spent 6 years as a Native English Teacher in South Korea. When not writing or working, Briana enjoys reading in coffee shops, researching history, and studying the works of Sally Rooney, Nora Ephron, and Greta Gerwig.