SUSS-EX CLUB
NEWSLETTER No. 10, November 2008
Christmas Party, 17 December
The Suss-Ex Club will be holding a Christmas Party again this year, in conjunction with USPAS, open to all former staff and their partners. We hope for another jovial seasonal reunion. It will be on Wednesday, 17 December, from 12.30 2.30 pm, in the Meeting House Quiet Room.
Unfortunately numbers have to be limited to what the room will officially hold, so we cannot promise that there will be room for everyone who wants to come. Notional tickets, therefore, have to be issued, and we have to charge for them to cover the costs of food and drink though costs are kept as low as possible. Please apply by 30 November, so that we can know in good time how many to cater for. An application form is given below.
Helpers will be needed to prepare the room, deal with food and drink, and clear up afterwards, so volunteers for such tasks will be very much appreciated. If you can help, please let Jennifer Platt (j.platt@sussex.ac.uk; 01273 555025) know.
Tickets are ฃ6 per single person, ฃ9 for a couple; please send a cheque, made out to the University of Sussex.
I would like ticket(s) at a total cost of ฃ ..
NAME: .
ADDRESS: ..
Email: ...
Telephone:
Please return this form, with your cheque, to Susan Ashton at DARO, Bramber House, University of Sussex, Falmer, Brighton BN1 9QU.
Guided walk, 26 April, 2009
Geoffrey Mead will be leading a Brighton city centre walk In the steps of the stars on Sunday, 26 April, starting at 4 pm. This will recall aspects of Brightons theatrical history, concentrating on the venues where it was made, some surviving, some long since replaced by other buildings.
Arrangements for booking places on this walk will be announced in the January Newsletter. But dont wait till then to note the date and time in your 2009 diary!
Obituary
We report with deep regret the death of Phil Elliott, for whom a service was held last week. It is hoped to provide a fuller obituary than that in the Bulletin in a later issue.
ฎ Theatre trips, early 2009 ฎ
Here are the latest suggestions for Suss-Ex theatre trip(s). The dates may seem rather far ahead, but both shows seem popular and likely to get booked up. The usual alternative dates or group reductions on the price of tickets are not available this time, but it seems worth testing interest nonetheless; see below for the details.
A booking needs to be made promptly to ensure that tickets are available, and your money then has to be sent in time for the total bill to be paid in advance. If people are interested, dinner together beforehand, or after a matinee, can be booked. Carluccios has generally been quite successful in the past, but other suggestions would be welcome.
Swan Lake, performed by the Russian State Ballet of Siberia
They are only in Brighton for two days, and the Saturday matinee is the only time when the group reduction is available, if there are at least 10 people interested.
Stalls seats will be ฃ19.
23-28 March
Waiting for Godot
This is performed by Ian McKellen and Patrick Stewart, directed by Sean Mathias. There are no group concessions, and the prices are higher than usual, reflecting the theatres characterisation of this as the theatre event of the year. The possibility is being listed here so early since booking is open now; it may be listed again in a later newsletter if tickets are still available then.
Stalls seats will be ฃ42 for all performances.
If you are interested in either of these, please let Jennifer Platt know by 30 November (preferably by e mail to j.platt@sussex.ac.uk - or phone 01273 555025, or post to Arts D or 98 Beaconsfield Villas, Brighton BN1 6HE).
If possible please use the slips on the next page, and indicate the number of tickets wanted and whether you would like to join dinner before the show (evening) or after it (matinee). Where there is a choice of times, just mark on the grid all days/times which would be OK, and number them in order of preference. Be sure to give name and contact details.
Name:
Contact details:
Swan Lake |
SaturdayFeb.14, 2.30 |
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How many? |
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Dinner? |
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Waiting for Godot |
Mon. Mar. 23, 7.45 |
Tues. Mar. 24, 7.45 |
Weds. Mar 25, 7.45 |
Thurs. Mar. 26, 2.30 |
Thurs. Mar. 26, 7.45 |
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Date & time OK? |
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Preference? |
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How many? |
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Dinner? |
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Waiting for Godot |
Fri. Mar. 27, 7.45 |
Sat. Mar. 28, 2.30 |
Sat. Mar 28, 7.45 |
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Date & time OK? |
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Preference? |
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How many? |
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Dinner? |
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Still to come
We hope to have another talk in the Life after Sussex series early in 2009, probably in March. Particulars should be available in the January Newsletter, which is likely also to contain news of a possible evening at the Brighton & Hove (i.e.greyhound) Stadium in Hove.
A cautionary tale, from Jennifer Platt
The October issue of Library News reports that over the summer many outdated books in one subject area, chosen in consultation with academic staff, were removed from Library stock. I checked up, and found that the area was sociology which, since my research area is the history of sociology, gave me some anxiety. Outdated for one purpose may not be out of date for another, and in that sense out of date is a subjective term, though the Library may sometimes need to make difficult choices.
However, a worrying feature of this story is that although the Sociology group was said to have been consulted, and I retain my office in the Sociology department, use it regularly, and am on some of the departmental mailing lists, I had not heard about what was proposed until I followed up the Library News item. It is likely that things are organised differently in different departments, but other retired-but-active readers of this newsletter might like to check that they figure on appropriate lists to ensure that they are included in consultations on matters affecting them.