A touch of Provence this Christmas!

Although I do hate talking about Christmas so early I feel I have to let our friends and followers know that our next and last "French on your plate" workshop this year will take place on Thursday 6th of December and that it is already getting lots of bookings.  We have to limit numbers to a maximum fifteen, so do not miss out on this very special evening!  We plan on celebrating our traditional Provençal Christmas dinner for the fourth time in the splendid Lacanche kitchen at Cook's Barn.  Christine and I are really looking forward to sharing this event with you once more.  We will explore further the magical art and craft of "santons" making  and discover the displays of Nativity scenes all over Provence.  We will experience the very special way Christmas is celebrated there, its symbolism and culture which are so different from our Northern traditions. We will learn under Christine's expert guidance all there is to know about the preparation of the famous "Thirteen Desserts".  You will not only get a chance of enjoying a beautiful meal but practise your French in good and friendly company.  You will leave Cook's Barn with your head filled with joy and confidence and your arms with Made in Provence's goodies.

 

George Sand at Madingley…

and so were we all for the duration of a whole weekend.  We gathered in a cosy wood panelled room overlooking Madingley Hall's beautiful grounds shrouded in the autumn mist, reminiscent of a bygone time.

The setting was absolutely perfect for the theme of the weekend. The course took us back to provincial France in the middle of the XIXth century, in enchanting Nohant nestled in the heart of the  Berry where George Sand grew up, entertained the greatest of her contemporaries and where she died uttering her beautiful last words “ Laissez… verdure”.

Through photos, films, recordings of her correspondence, readings and various improvisations we managed to conjure up her presence… at least we felt, at times that we had managed to do so!  We learnt about her childhood in the Berry, her formative years in an English convent, the tragedies and the joys of a very tumultuous life, her relationship with her siblings,  her children, grandchildren, relationships with Musset, Chopin or Alexandre Manceau, her last love.
The participants were brilliant, imaginative, creative and full of mischief, but we were after all in Le Berry, the land of witchcraft and magic. So there were spooky stories in the mist and magical trees as beautiful as the ones George Sand planted to celebrate the birth of each of her children. There were lots of subtle remarks expressed, quite astute and profound analysis and criticism of her works made, comments on her lifestyle and the politics of the times.  We wrote and told stories in the style of "La mare au diable".
 
And from literary heights some switched to nonensical witticism. J. had us in stitches when she said that with a different hairstyle George Sand might have looked more beautiful and then we saw in the credits of the Saturday night film the name of her private hairdresser or was it that of the actress who played her part?   M. imagined that nowadays George Sand  would probably be staying up all night over her ipad consulting Facebook and Twitter.  What an entertaining and inspiring weekend that was! Thank you Madame George Sand!

Happy 30th Birthay to the Alliance française de Cambridge!

I had the great honour and privilege of being entrusted with the creation of a new branch of the Alliance française in Cambridge. Last Friday, October 19th 2012 the Alliance française de Cambridge celebrated 30 years of "French flavour" in the city.  As I could not attend the event in person due to the course on "George Sand" that I was leading at Madingley Hall on that night I thought I would write a letter to celebrate in my own way the happy years that I spent at its service and thank everyone who played a part in its success to this day. This will have to be in French for once.

Tout d’abord je voudrais exprimer ici mes regrets de ne pas avoir  pu être parmi les fidèles de l'Alliance française vendredi dernier pour célébrer 30 années d’amitié franco-britannique à Cambridge. Grâce à la magie de l’électronique je leur fais parvenir ces quelques lignes d’amitié et d’encouragement.   L’Alliance a vu le jour bien avant l’existence de l’internet et même d’Eurostar. C’est donc en s’appuyant exclusivement sur les contacts amicaux et humains qu’elle a prospéré et vibré de mille façons dans les moindres recoins de cette belle ville.  Je voudrais exprimer toute ma gratitude aux amis britanniques, membres des comités successifs qui ont soutenu notre action avec constance et bonne humeur, aux membres, aux étudiants qui nous ont fait confiance et aux professeurs dont certains ont passé 15, 18 ou 20 ans au service de l’association et à tous ceux qui ont fait de l’espace Alliance un petit coin de France, un espace d’échanges et d’amitié, véritable antichambre de l’Entente cordiale.

J’ai une pensée reconnaissante pour les artistes, chanteurs, acteurs, conférenciers, musiciens, écrivains, cinéastes et poètes invités par l’Alliance française, trop nombreux pour être nommés ici, qui ont apporté la culture française à notre public au fil des ans avec le soutien des services culturels de l'Ambassade de France à Londres ou de l'Institut français. Que des partenaires comme Churchill College, Kings College, Homerton College et tout particulièrement Trinity College ainsi que Parkside Community College, Hills Road Sixth Form College et quelques écoles privées locales soient aussi remerciés.

J’ajouterai que le soutien du « Arts» cinema, celui du City Council, de la Central Library et de la BBC locale ont joué une grande part dans le succès de l’Alliance.  Il en est de même pour les grandes compagnies locales qui ont eu recours à ses services pendant de longues années: Philips, Colgate Palmolive,   Nickerson Biocem, Agrevo, Customs and Excise, Andros et tant d’autres.

Sans eux, sans la passion, le dévouement et la compétence des uns et sans la confiance des autres, rien n’aurait pu se faire.  
Pour terminer, j’aimerais tout particulièrement remercier Jackie Lovett, la deuxième personne après moi à avoir cru au projet que m’avait confié la Fédération des Alliances françaises du Royaume  Uni : celui de créer une nouvelle branche de l’Alliance à Cambridge. 
En me recevant chez elle  un matin d’automne en 1981 et en m’entendant lui dire une phrase du style «  I have a dream…. »  elle a simplement répondu quelque chose  comme   « Sounds great, let’s give it a go…, another cup of tea love?” C’est ainsi que tout a commencé… Quelle aventure et quel bonheur!  Merci à tous !

Long live the spirit of the Alliance in Cambridge!  My warmest wishes to you all for another happy 30 years!

How about a weekend in Nohant?

There might be space for a couple more guests next week at Madingley Hall if you mention my name, who knows…We will be visiting George Sand’s beautiful house in Berry where she grew up and died in the 19th century.

We’ll learn about the life she led amongst family and friends as a woman and as an artist. Amongst the friends she entertained in Nohant were the likes of Balzac, Turgenev, Dumas, Flaubert, Chopin or Delacroix. She is the author of over a hundred novels, a massive correspondence, plays and newspapers articles. She was an accomplished musician, a gifted artist, a passionate social critic, a keen gardener and she made her own jam. Like Balzac and many other contemporary writers such as Dickens or George Eliot she wrote constantly, mostly during the night, sleeping throughout the morning and spending the rest of the day running the house and entertaining her illustrious guests.

Generous with her time and money she supported anyone in need and was called “la bonne dame de Nohant” by the villagers. Well, the place and its owner are definitely worth a detour and I am sure the participants will enjoy meeting her. Check the link for details about the course. 

You can also join Christine of Made in Provence and I at Cook's Barn on Thursday 18th October at 6pm for a "French on your plate" workshop on the Berry region, George Sand's homeland.