Behind the Mask: “You Are Passionate, Jane” – The Story of a Play

Some years ago, I wanted to write a play about Jane Austen, in which she would have a conversation with another famous author. My choice was Lord Byron, for they were both alive and in England, sometimes even in London, at the same time. They never met, but they knew about each other’s existence. Austen didn’t seem to think very highly of Byron, as in a letter she famously wrote “I have read the Corsair, mended my petticoat, and have nothing else to do,” which sounds rather disparaging. We know...