2025 Schedule
The Old Curiosity Shop Dickens Universe Schedule
The 2026 Bleak House Dickens Universe schedule will be posted in early 2026.
Saturday, July 19
| Time | Event | Location |
|---|---|---|
| 2:00-5:00 PM | Faculty and Graduate Students Check-in and Registration | Community Room |
| 5:30-7:30 PM | * Welcome Dinner | University Center’s Alumni Room |
| 7:30-9PM | * Orientation for Faculty and Graduate Students | University Center’s Alumni Room |
Sunday, July 20
| Time | Event | Location |
|---|---|---|
| 8:00-8:45 AM | * Breakfast | Dining Commons |
| 8:45-10:00 AM | * Consortium Faculty Planning Meeting | 71 Social Sciences 2 |
| * All Graduate Students Meeting | 75 Social Sciences 2 | |
| 10:00-10:30 AM | * Morning Coffee and Pastries | 71 Social Sciences 2 |
| 10:30-12:00 PM | * Plenary Meeting of Faculty and Graduate Students | 75 Social Sciences 2 |
| 1:00-1:45 PM | * Lunch | Dining Commons |
| 2:00-5:00 PM | Universe Participants Check-in and Registration | Community Room |
| 2:00-3:00 PM | Executive Committee Meeting | 153 Social Sciences 1 |
| 5:15-6:00 PM | Road Scholar and First-Timer Orientation | 72 Social Sciences 2 |
| 6:15-7:00 PM | Dinner | Dining Commons |
| 7:00-7:45 PM | Post-Prandial Potations (refreshments) | Multipurpose Room |
| 7:45-9:00 PM | Lecture: Teresa Mangum (University of Iowa): “Curious Old Age in The Old Curiosity Shop“ | Multipurpose Room |
| 9:15-11:15 PM | Film Screening: Punch and Judy, with introduction by Logan Browning (Rice University) | 71 SocSci 2 |
Monday, July 21
| Time | Event | Location |
|---|---|---|
| 8:00-8:45 AM | Breakfast | Dining Commons |
| 8:15-10:15 AM | Morning Coffee and Tea Service | Community Room |
| 9:00-10:00 AM | Faculty-led Contextual Discussion Groups | A: 110 Social Sciences 1 B: Cancelled C: 75 Social Sciences 2 D: Zoom |
| Nineteenth-Century Seminar | 153 Social Sciences 1 | |
| * Graduate Student Publication Workshop | 145 Social Sciences 1 | |
| * Graduate Student Writing Workshop | 149 Social Sciences 1 | |
| 10:15-11:30 AM | Lecture: Daniel Novak (University of Alabama): “‘Magic Reel’: Photography, Theatre, and Narrative in The Old Curiosity Shop“ | Multipurpose Room |
| 11:45-12:45 PM | Graduate Student-led Workshops on the Novel | A: 110 Social Sciences 1 B: 145 Social Sciences 1 C: 149 Social Sciences 1 D: 153 Social Sciences 1 E: 161 Social Sciences 1 F: 71 Social Sciences 2 G: Zoom |
| * Faculty Seminar | Namaste Lounge | |
| 1:00-1:45 PM | Lunch | Dining Commons |
| Farce Rehearsal | Multipurpose Room | |
| 2:00-3:00 PM | Dickensian Seminars | A: 75 Social Sciences 2 B: Zoom |
| Undergraduate Seminar | 145 Social Sciences 1 | |
| * Faculty-led Graduate Student Seminars | A: 110 Social Sciences 1 B: 161 Social Sciences 1 C: 149 Social Sciences 1 | |
| 2:00-4:00 PM | Repeat Film Screening (repeat of Sunday night’s screening) | 71 Social Sciences 2 |
| 3:00-3:45 PM | Victorian Tea presented by the Friends of the Dickens Project | Community Room |
| 4:00-5:00 PM | Talk: Carolyn Williams (Rutgers University): “How Melodrama Works” | Multipurpose Room |
| 5:15-6:15 PM | Undergraduate Writing Workshop (New Time!) | 145 Social Sciences 1 |
| Teacher Workshop | 153 Social Sciences 1 | |
| Victorian Dance Lesson | Multipurpose Room | |
| Dickensian Needlepoint | 117 Social Sciences 1 | |
| 6:15-7:00 PM | Dinner | Dining Commons |
| 7:00-7:45 PM | Post-Prandial Potations, Dickens Project T-shirt and Sweatshirt Sale, and Book Sale | Multipurpose Room |
| 7:45-9:00 PM | Lecture: Tara Menon (Harvard University): “Whose Novel is This Anyway? Speech and Character in The Old Curiosity Shop“ | Multipurpose Room |
| 9:15-11:15 PM | Film Screening: Mr. Quilp (1975) | 71 Social Sciences 2 |
Tuesday, July 22
| Time | Event | Location |
|---|---|---|
| 8:00-8:45 AM | Breakfast | Dining Commons |
| 8:15-10:15 AM | Morning Coffee and Tea Service | Community Room |
| 9:00-10:00 AM | Faculty-led Contextual Discussion Groups | A: 110 Social Sciences 1 B: Cancelled C: 75 Social Sciences 2 D: Zoom |
| Nineteenth-Century Seminar | 153 Social Sciences 1 | |
| * Graduate Student Publication Workshop | 145 Social Sciences 1 | |
| * Graduate Student Writing Workshop | 149 Social Sciences 1 | |
| 10:15-11:30 AM | Lecture: Jacob Risinger (Ohio State University): “Sure Enough” | Multipurpose Room |
| 11:45-12:45 PM | Graduate Student-led Workshops on the Novel | A: 110 Social Sciences 1 B: 145 Social Sciences 1 C: 149 Social Sciences 1 D: 153 Social Sciences 1 E: 161 Social Sciences 1 F: 71 Social Sciences 2 G: Zoom |
| * Faculty Seminar | Namaste Lounge | |
| 1:00-1:45 PM | Lunch | Dining Commons |
| Farce Rehearsal | Multipurpose Room | |
| 2:00-3:00 PM | Dickensian Seminars | A: 75 Social Sciences 2 B: Zoom |
| Undergraduate Seminar | 145 Social Sciences 1 | |
| * Faculty-led Graduate Student Seminars | A: 110 Social Sciences 1 B: 161 Social Sciences 1 C: 149 Social Sciences 1 | |
| 2:00-4:00 PM | Repeat Film Screening (repeat of Monday night’s screening) | 71 Social Sciences 2 |
| 3:00-3:45 PM | Victorian Tea presented by the Friends of the Dickens Project | Community Room |
| 4:00-5:00 PM | Talk: Jonathan Grossman (UC Los Angeles): “The Tragedy Tolled in Clock” | Multipurpose Room |
| 5:15-6:15 PM | Undergraduate Writing Workshop (New Time!) | 145 Social Sciences 1 |
| Victorian Dance Lesson | Multipurpose Room | |
| Dickensian Needlepoint | 117 Social Sciences 1 | |
| 6:15-7:00 PM | Dinner | Dining Commons |
| 7:00-7:45 PM | Post-Prandial Potations, Dickens Project T-shirt and Sweatshirt Sale, and Book Sale | Multipurpose Room |
| 7:45-9:00 PM | Lecture: Maha Jafri (Sewanee: University of the South): “Curiouser and Curiouser: The Uncanny and the Size of Life” | Multipurpose Room |
| 9:15-11:15 PM | Film Screening: The Old Curiosity Shop (BBC, 1979) | 71 Social Sciences 2 |
Wednesday, July 23
| Time | Event | Location |
|---|---|---|
| 8:00-8:45 AM | Breakfast | Dining Commons |
| 8:15-10:15 AM | Morning Coffee and Tea Service | Community Room |
| 9:00-10:00 AM | Faculty-led Contextual Discussion Groups | A: 110 Social Sciences 1 B: Cancelled C: 75 Social Sciences 2 D: Zoom |
| Nineteenth-Century Seminar | 153 Social Sciences 1 | |
| * Graduate Student Publication Workshop | 145 Social Sciences 1 | |
| * Graduate Student Writing Workshop | 149 Social Sciences 1 | |
| 10:15-11:30 AM | Lecture: Galia Benziman (Hebrew University of Jerusalem): “Seeing in the Dark: Realism, Objects, and Transitional Attachment” | Multipurpose Room |
| 11:45-12:45 PM | Graduate Student-led Workshops on the Novel | A: 110 Social Sciences 1 B: 145 Social Sciences 1 C: 149 Social Sciences 1 D: 153 Social Sciences 1 E: 161 Social Sciences 1 F: 71 Social Sciences 2 G: Zoom |
| * Faculty Seminar | Namaste Lounge | |
| 1:00-1:45 PM | Lunch | Dining Commons |
| Farce Rehearsal | Multipurpose Room | |
| 2:00-3:00 PM | Dickensian Seminars | A: 75 Social Sciences 2 B: Zoom |
| Undergraduate Seminar | 145 Social Sciences 1 | |
| * Graduate Professionalization Seminar A: Accessible Teaching and Presentations | 110 Social Sciences 1 | |
| * Graduate Professionalization Seminar B: Journal Publication | 153 Social Sciences 1 | |
| * Graduate Professionalization Seminar C: Teaching High School | 161 Social Sciences 1 | |
| 2:00-4:00 PM | Repeat Film Screening (repeat of Wednesday night’s screening) | 71 Social Sciences 2 |
| 3:00-3:45 PM | Victorian Tea presented by the Friends of the Dickens Project | Community Room |
| 4:00-5:00 PM | POSTPONED UNTIL AFTER THE UNIVERSE: Talk: John O. Jordan (UC Santa Cruz): “Dickens and Soundscape: The Old Curiosity Shop“ | Multipurpose Room |
| 5:15-6:15 PM | Undergraduate Writing Workshop (New Time!) | 145 Social Sciences 1 |
| Victorian Dance Lesson | Multipurpose Room | |
| Dickensian Needlepoint | 117 Social Sciences 1 | |
| 6:15-7:00 PM | Dinner | Dining Commons |
| 7:00-8:30 PM | Sing Along with Gene Kirkham | Multipurpose Room |
| 7:15-9:15 PM | Early Film Screening: The Old Curiosity Shop (BBC, 1979) | 71 Social Sciences 2 |
| 7:15-11:00PM | Free Time |
Thursday, July 24
| Time | Event | Location |
|---|---|---|
| 8:00-8:45 AM | Breakfast | Dining Commons |
| 8:15-10:15 AM | Morning Coffee and Tea Service | Community Room |
| 9:00-10:00 AM | Faculty-led Contextual Discussion Groups | A: 110 Social Sciences 1 B: Cancelled C: 75 Social Sciences 2 D: Zoom |
| Nineteenth-Century Seminar | 153 Social Sciences 1 | |
| * Graduate Student Publication Workshop | 145 Social Sciences 1 | |
| * Graduate Student Writing Workshop | 149 Social Sciences 1 | |
| 10:15-11:30 AM | Lecture: Robyn Warhol (Ohio State University), Helena Michie (Rice University) and Huw Edwardes-Evans (Rice University): “Curious Endings, Curious Beginnings: Close Reading with Project Endings” | Multipurpose Room |
| 11:45-12:45 PM | Graduate Student-led Workshops on the Novel | A: 110 Social Sciences 1 B: 145 Social Sciences 1 C: 149 Social Sciences 1 D: 153 Social Sciences 1 E: 161 Social Sciences 1 F: 71 Social Sciences 2 G: Zoom |
| * Faculty Seminar | Namaste Lounge | |
| 1:00-1:45 PM | Lunch | Dining Commons |
| Farce Rehearsal | Multipurpose Room | |
| 2:00-3:00 PM | Dickensian Seminars | A: 75 Social Sciences 2 B: Zoom |
| Undergraduate Seminar | 145 Social Sciences 1 | |
| * Faculty-led Graduate Student Seminars | A: 110 Social Sciences 1 B: 161 Social Sciences 1 C: 149 Social Sciences 1 | |
| 2:00-3:45 PM | Repeat Film Screening (repeat of Wednesday night’s screening) | 71 Social Sciences 2 |
| 3:00-3:45 PM | Victorian Tea presented by the Friends of the Dickens Project | Community Room |
| 4:00-5:00 PM | Talk: Clark Cloyd (The Paideia School), Ray Crosby (Kern Valley High School), and Catherine Springer (The Paideia School): “Teaching Dickens at the High School Level” | Multipurpose Room |
| 5:15-6:15 PM | Victorian Dance Lesson | Multipurpose Room |
| Dickensian Needlepoint | 117 Social Sciences 1 | |
| 6:15-7:00 PM | Dinner | Dining Commons |
| 7:00-7:45 PM | Post-Prandial Potations | Multipurpose Room |
| 7:45-9:00 PM | Farce: “Curiosity Killed the Shop: A Dickensian Travesty,” written and directed by Adam Abraham (University of Miami) | Multipurpose Room |
| 9:00-10:30 PM | Grand Party, to which everyone is invited (hosted by the Friends) | Namaste Lounge |
Friday, July 25
| Time | Event | Location |
|---|---|---|
| 8:00-8:45 AM | Breakfast | Dining Commons |
| 8:15-10:15 AM | Morning Coffee and Tea Service | Community Room |
| 9:00-10:00 AM | Faculty-led Contextual Discussion Groups | A: 110 Social Sciences 1 B: Cancelled C: 75 Social Sciences 2 D: Zoom |
| Nineteenth-Century Seminar | 153 Social Sciences 1 | |
| 10:15-11:30 AM | Roundtable with all the Speakers | Multipurpose Room |
| 11:45-12:45 PM | Graduate Student-led Workshops on the Novel | A: 110 Social Sciences 1 B: 145 Social Sciences 1 C: 149 Social Sciences 1 D: 153 Social Sciences 1 E: 161 Social Sciences 1 F: 71 Social Sciences 2 G: Zoom |
| * Faculty Seminar | Namaste Lounge | |
| 1:00-1:45 PM | Lunch | Dining Commons |
| Road Scholar Lunch | University Center’s Alumni Room | |
| 2:00-3:00 PM | Dickensian Seminars | A: 75 Social Sciences 2 B: Zoom |
| 3:30-4:30 PM | Fireside Chat with John O. Jordan (UC Santa Cruz) and Renée Fox (UC Santa Cruz) | Multipurpose Room |
| 5:00-5:45 PM | Early Dinner | Multipurpose Room |
| 6:00-7:00 PM | Early Post-Prandial Potations, Dickens Project T-shirt and Sweatshirt Sale, and Book Sale | Multipurpose Room |
| 6:30-11:00PM | The Curiosity Gala: Celebrating 45 years of the Universe | Multipurpose Room |
| 7:00-8:00 PM | Friends of the Dickens Project Fundraising Auction | Multipurpose Room |
| 8:00-8:20 PM | Announcement of the 2026 novel. Copies will be available for sale. | Multipurpose Room |
| 8:30-11:00 PM | Victorian Dance | Multipurpose Room |
Saturday, July 26
| Time | Event | Location |
|---|---|---|
| 8:00-8:45 AM | Breakfast | Dining Commons |
| 8:15-10:15 AM | Check-out, Return Keys and Meal Cards Please see Dickens Project staff for assistance with luggage. | Community Room |
| 9:00-10:00 AM | Everyone departs. See you next year! | |
| Return Shuttles to SJC and SFO Airports Reservations required. Click links above to access the reservation pages for each airport shuttle. | Community Room |