Alma Mater
Run 3: 26th-29th March 2026
Ellen
the Cellaress’s Assistant
Age:
20s - 40s
Psalm 37: Trust in the Lord, and do good; so shalt thou dwell in the land, and verily thou shalt be fed. Delight thyself also in the Lord: and he shall give thee the desires of thine heart.
Themes:
Ambition; theological debate; class clown
While some people think life in an abbey is sombre, you never saw that word in the Rule. You had a joyful childhood and you are a witty woman - it gives you great pleasure to bring some mirth and joy to the lives of your sisters at Whitwood.
Your father was a learned man - an accountant and an amateur philosopher who worked as an exchequer for the English Ambassador to the French court. Following the French custom, your mother was educated, and he made sure that you and your sisters were as well, arranging for you to be tutored in philosophy and French, in addition to the traditional female skills of sewing and singing.
You embraced and enjoyed the opportunities that education offered. Your childhood was marked by debates on theology, law, and politics across the dinner table, and you developed an independence of thought and eloquence that more than once got you into trouble with more conservative visitors to your home, especially when you could not resist laughing at those who took themselves too seriously.
Role:
Assisting the Cellaress, whose role is to be in charge of food and drink for the sisters and their guests.
In keeping with your education in wit and style, you have always enjoyed making people smile and laugh. Sometimes you can’t resist doing it even at the most inappropriate times - something which brightens the sisters’ days, but does also get you in trouble from time to time.
Connections:
Dorothy, the Cellaress
You have been Dorothy’s assistant for a couple of years now. Your appointment to the post was her idea rather than yours, although you don’t resent it. Actually, you rather like Dorothy - she laughs at your jokes when others pretend not to. When the French wine comes through, the two of you always ‘test’ a few cups from the barrel before passing it on to the other sisters, and it is the only opportunity to truly speak freely you feel you have at the abbey. That said, you don’t feel like Assistant Cellaress is a role which is ever going to take you further. You feel little desire to become the Cellaress yourself.
Clemence, the Cantrix
Secrets:
You caught Maud and Bess in a tryst
About eight years ago, you woke in the night and decided to sneak out of the dormitory for a walk around the grounds. As you wandered, you came by chance upon Maud and Bess alone in an alcove of the gardens. They ran away from you so red-faced that it was quite clear they had been doing something forbidden. You have remained quiet about it so far, but you’ve always wondered what the significance of the whole event was.
You broke a water clock and someone else got punished for it