Alexander Waugh to be honored at the De Vere Society Conference
SAT members invited: October 12 at Regent's University.
I am still trying to come to terms with the huge loss this year of one of our most brilliant scholars, Alexander Waugh. He was, like the writer of the Shakespeare canon, a true polymath, prolific writer, linguist, superb musician and delightful human being, as well as a wicked demolisher of the Shakespeare myth. His keynote speech at our joint conference with the De Vere Society last autumn, unpicking that obscure poem of Ben Jonson’s in the First Folio, earned him a standing ovation. Over the years he has participated in many SAT conferences, illuminating all kinds of wide-reaching Shakespearean questions and challenging what he called the ridiculously closed minds of the orthodox Stratfordians.
This year’s De Vere Society conference on October 12th, to which everyone is cordially invited, especially SAT members, is on a subject very dear to his heart, exploring Shakespeare’s deep knowledge of Renaissance Hermetic traditions: ‘Rapt in Secret Studies – Knowledge the wing wherewith we fly to heaven.’
It's a subject which involves metaphysics, magic, mystery, and messages hidden within the plays, messages about the hidden author, too. I can’t wait to have it demystified, although it is a subject deliberately, I think, shrouded in mystery. SAT Trustee Julia Cleave will be speaking and also Emily Carding, actress and writer, who was hugely helpful to us last year at the Charterhouse, stepping in at the last moment effectively to run the day. There will also be a posthumous address filmed by Alexander himself, as well as a tribute to him. It should be illuminating.
Two of Alexander’s podcasts provide an excellent introduction:
The Incalculable Genius of John Dee
The Divinity of Man:
Meanwhile, his devotion to the Authorship Question makes me all the more determined to keep exploring it, and to find real evidence in my lifetime, if possible. He left us in a blaze of glory, willing us to go forward. We have to keep searching for the answer.
To attend the De Vere Society Conference contact eventsteam@deveresociety.co.uk
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Those attending may be interested in this statue of Mercury in the Victoria and Albert Museum.
https://collections.vam.ac.uk/item/O18105/mercury-statuette-minelli-antonio/
The sculptor completed it when Mercury was calculated to be at exact inferior conjunction, ie aligned with and between the Sun and Earth. The sculptor began it on 14th February of the same year the day of the previous inferior conjunction of Mercury.
'Shakespeare' refers to the dates of many such conjunctions, generally through wordplay on saints' days and religious feasts. It is key to many things in her/his/their plays.
If anyone is interested to know more please contact me through my substack.
Dear Annabel,
Thank you so much for sharing this lovely tribute to Alexander. I am very much looking forward to attending the event.
Best,
Cheryl