OVERTURE
ISSUE TEN | JUNE 2021 THE NEWSLETTER FOR FRIENDS AND SUPPORTERS O F B U X T O N I N T E R N AT I O N A L F E S T I VA L
DEAR FRIENDS MESSAGE FROM THE ARTISTIC DIRECTOR OF BIF As we move towards our much-heralded ‘new normal’, I begin to feel something which has been unfamiliar for too long: anticipation. Planning a Festival programme is a challenge at the best of times. Determining what will appeal to the Festival’s most loyal supporters, but also what might capture the imagination of potential new audience members is an ongoing puzzle. When we were forced to cancel the Festival last year, everybody was struck by the extraordinary loyalty and support shown by the Festival’s friends. This support was the key element that convinced us that, despite an uncertain outlook, we were determined to produce a Festival in 2021. I am pleased that the response to our programme has been so positive. Despite restrictions, we have, I believe, created a programme which contains variety and, as always in Buxton, undiscovered gems.
On Friday 23 July there will be a unique opportunity to hear one of the greatest singers of his generation, Sir John Tomlinson, singing the role of King Lear in John Casken’s The Shackled King. The evening is a double bill which also includes Brünnhilde’s Dream which combines music by Mendelssohn, Schumann and features Sir John singing an extract from perhaps his most celebrated Wagnerian role, Wotan.
We are thrilled that the BBC Philharmonic is returning to Buxton. Their concert in 2019 was one of the highlights of the 40th Anniversary Festival. This year’s concert in the Octagon on Monday 19 July features Artist-in-residence Jennifer Pike playing Bruch’s Violin Concerto, as well as works by Haydn and Malcolm Arnold. As you know, we are trying something new at this summer’s Festival in the form of Stephen Sondheim’s A Little Night Music. Stage Director Paul Kerryson has helped to assemble a first-class musical ensemble, starring Janie Dee, one of the few artists to have won an Olivier Award both for straight theatre and musical performances. The programme for the Strictly Musical Gala on 21 July features songs from some of the finest musicals of the 20th century, by composers such as Rodgers and Hammerstein, Leonard Bernstein, Lerner and Loewe and Stephen Sondheim. 2
Finally, I would like to urge any of you who are apprehensive about contemporary music to take the plunge with both The Shackled King and Dido’s Ghost. These pieces are new, but they contain at their core classic works which are familiar to all of us, and are a reimagining. New perspectives for the new normal – I am full of anticipation. See you in July! ADRIAN KELLY Artistic Director, BIF
buxtonfestival.co.uk
DRUM ROLL PLEASE! We are delighted to announce the BBC Philharmonic Orchestra’s superb programme with Jennifer Pike on violin and conducted by Ben Gernon. J Bologne Overture to the Anonymous Lover M Bruch Violin Concerto No. 1 INTERVAL M Arnold Sinfonietta No. 3 J Haydn Symphony No. 103 (Drum Roll) The BBC Philharmonic Orchestra will be playing on Monday 19 July at 7.30pm – 10pm in the Octagon, Pavilion Gardens.
We also have great pleasure in announcing a surprise addition to our line up! Jonathan Dimbleby, presenter, author and historian will be speaking about his latest book Barbarossa: How Hitler Lost the War, on Monday 19 July at 12.30pm in Buxton Opera House. Contact the box office to book your tickets!
OUR SUPPORTERS Thank you to all our supporters this year, we really appreciate your support financial and emotional. Your donations of over £60K kept us going throughout 2020, meant we could plan for this year and, alongside amazing support from the Cultural Recovery Fund, are the reason we are all here now. We would love to see you during the Festival, do come and have a chat at the Assembly Rooms in the refurbished Crescent Hotel on the two Super Thursday Friends’ days.
3
WE LOOK FORWARD TO WELCOMING YOU BACK MESSAGE FROM THE CHAIRMAN OF BIF Most of us have discovered a huge array of online musical delights over the past twelve months or so, but somehow it has only made my longing for live performance all the stronger. Judging by the appetite for tickets in the opening weeks of BIF box office, I am not alone. The sheer joy on the faces of the young people attending the experimental dance nights in Liverpool recently said it all; we love ‘live’ music and it is so much better shared with other people. That is why we were so determined to stage the Buxton International Festival in 2021. Our Chief Executive Michael Williams and Artistic Director, Adrian Kelly, started from the perspective of how can we keep everyone safe but still give our audience a Festival of live performances offering the very best of opera, music and books. This year’s programme has distilled the essence of what makes Buxton so ‘more-ish’ to offer you a series of programmes, each slightly shorter than usual and in some cases repeated so that the limited number of tickets available can be doubled for the most popular performances; measures designed to ensure that all performances take place with plenty of space and ventilation. We have enjoyed working with partner companies to bring you a stunning series of unusual operas, several of which are already on course for prestigious awards.
of so many artists and producers from across the country, 2021 will go down in our history as one of the most imaginative and thrilling Festivals yet staged. We have tried to keep all ticket prices as low as possible and I am confident most people will understand that our costs stay the same even when our audience capacity is halved. Our Friends have sustained us through one of the most challenging periods we have ever known; your generosity and enthusiasm for BIF are what makes all the hard work worthwhile and have given us some of the extra help needed to cover the extraordinary costs we will incur to stage this year’s event. Your reward is at hand; we look forward to welcoming you back this July for a feast of wonderful live entertainment. FELICITY GOODEY, CBE DL Chairman, Buxton International Festival
2022 will see us once again presenting our own major international productions but with the help
DON’T FORGET TO ORDER YOUR PROGRAMME BOOK Highlights of the 2021 Programme book will include: • Rupert Christiansen’s article on the impact of Covid-19 on classical music; the High Peak and the festival that didn’t happen • Laura Thompson’s perspective on the still popular The Pursuit of Love • Wyn Davies on the ‘whipped cream with knives’ style of A Little Night Music
• Gerry Northam’s interviews with composer Errollyn Wallen and librettist Wesley Stace (Dido’s Ghost) • George Hall on Pauline Viardot, composer of Cendrillon • John Andrew’s introduction to the work of Sir Malcolm Arnold, composer of The Dancing Master
Call or email the Box Office to order your copy today on boxoffice@boh.org.uk or 01298 72190
4
THANK YOU FOR YOUR EXCEPTIONAL SUPPORT MESSAGE FROM THE CHAIRMAN OF THE FESTIVAL FRIENDS The day the Festival brochure lands on the doormat always feels pretty special – the sense that summer isn’t far away and the anticipation and excitement as you flick through working out the mix of music, opera and book events you’d like to attend. This year that day felt even more significant, knowing how long you have all waited and how hard the Festival Team have worked to put on the 2021 Festival. Navigating the ever-shifting sands of COVID-19 has not been a simple task! As ever, the Friends have stepped up and, despite the continued uncertainty, the online, postal and telephone bookings have flooded in. I know that some of you have been frustrated that the government’s social distancing restrictions meant you were unable to get all the seats you wanted, and for that we can only apologise.
We’ve been thrilled to welcome a surge in new Friends over the last few months and I speak on behalf of the Friends Trustees and Festival Team when I say we’re looking forward to welcoming you all to Buxton this July. A special mention should also go to those of you who have upgraded your membership, or re-joined as a Friend.
As a thank you for your exceptional support over the last year we are also holding two, free, Friends only recitals. These are available to book online or via the Opera House Box Office Telephone: 01298 72190. The details are:
We’re also delighted by those who have become Friends via the ‘Next Generation’ scheme – this is open to all those under the age of 35 and allows access to £10 tickets from 1 June as well as updates from the Friends and invitations to our events throughout the year. Please do promote this scheme to anyone in your networks as we’re keen to bring opera, music and book events to as wide an audience as possible.
Young Artists led by Adrian Kelly Tuesday 20 July, 3-4pm
Thursday 15 and Thursday 22 July this year are the two Friends’ Days – when we celebrate and recognise all that the Friends have done for the Festival over the years. We’re in the process of finalising two informal ‘drop in’ Friends events at the Assembly Rooms in the newly opened Buxton Crescent Spa Hotel which will give us all a chance to meet old Friends and new as well as experience this incredible space which has been behind hoardings for so long.
BIF Chamber Ensemble: Corran Quartet Sunday 11 July, 5.30-6.30pm
If the events are full when you try to book, please add your name to the waiting list in case we can open up more seats after the 21 June government restrictions announcement. Otherwise, we’ll keep a note and offer you a thank you in 2022. We’re all crossing our fingers that social restrictions are relaxed by the time you join us in Buxton but whatever government guidelines we must follow, rest assured we’ll all be doing our utmost to welcome you back like the fantastic Friends you are. Best wishes PETE SPRIGGS Chair, Friends of Buxton International Festival
5
H OW B U X TON D I R E C T OR WO R K ED S ID E B Y SID E W I T H B R O A D WAY L EG E ND Working with Broadway legend Stephen Sondheim was like being in a Hollywood movie, says the director who will be bringing one of the American writer’s masterpieces to the Buxton Opera House stage in July. Paul Kerryson will present Sondheim’s bittersweet comedy A Little Night Music at the Opera House as part of the 2021 Buxton International Festival. One of the highlights of Paul’s award-winning career in the theatre was working side by side with Sondheim for a month in 1992 to help create what was to become the definitive version of his musical, Merrily We Roll Along. Now Chief Executive of the Buxton Opera House, Paul was Artistic Director of the Leicester Haymarket when Sondheim flew to the UK for a month to rehearse the show. ‘I did a lot of his work while I was in Leicester,’ said Paul, who in 2014 received The Stage Award for Outstanding Contribution to British Theatre. ‘He rehearsed with us because he’d re-written the show and there were a lot of new things in it,
A Li Little ittle ight M Mu usic usic Niight Music and Lyrics by STEPHEN SONDHEIM Book by HUGH WHEELER Directed by Paul Kerryson Original orchestrations by Jonathan Tunick Suggested by a Film by INGMAR BERGMAN Originally Produced and Directed on Broadway by Harold Prince Performed by arrangement with Music Theatre International (Europe) Limited
6
and we were the first company to do the new version. At the time it was a case of let’s get the show fixed, very much as you imagine it in those old films. It was a fantastic experience.’ Their partnership was so successful that now it is the only version of Merrily which Sondheim will allow to be performed. ‘I remember it as a great pressure, but it turned out alright because the show got good reviews,’ said Paul. ‘There is even a CD of it.’ Paul believes A Little Night Music, which was a big hit from its première in 1973, will be the first Sondheim show to be performed on the Opera House stage. Inspired by the Ingmar Bergman film Smiles of a Summer Night, it mixes romance with Sondheim’s trademark wit and includes his often covered classic, Send in the Clowns. Sondheim’s spectacular career includes writing the lyrics for Leonard Bernstein’s sublime West Side Story, but he has since become a composer of huge importance in his own right with hits such as Side by Side, Gypsy, Sweeney Todd and Into the Woods. ‘They are all supremely a cut above other contemporary musicals and became the benchmark for a new generation of artists,’ says Paul. ‘I think his works are now more popular than they’ve ever been.’ A Little Night Music will be conducted by Wyn Davies, patron of the Friends of Buxton International Festival and promises to be a highlight of the summer. Article by John Philips
T HE BOOKS HEL F BOOK FESTIVAL DIRECTOR VICKY DAWSON REFLECTS ON CAPTURING THE ZEITGEIST BIF Books 2021 was largely programmed in the dark days of December 2020. At the time, we were heading for further lockdown, Black Lives Matter was starting to noticeably alter both public discourse AND book commissioning, statues had been toppled, Brexit felt stagnant, statistics featured at the ‘top of the news’ and my elderly mother broke her hip. On 6 January 2021 the Capitol was stormed. Life felt relentlessly grim. By July would our audience want to be informed, or just, with relief, entertained? Would we even have an audience at all? The BIF Board took a risk that our loyal audience would return, and I decided that our erudite and committed audience would want to continue to be informed (and entertained) by our events. STRUGGLE AND THE CREATIVE AND SUCCESSFUL MIND A strong theme around overcoming personal struggle links events across the 2021 Books Series. Parm Sandhu in her ‘searingly honest’ memoir Black and Blue chronicles her journey from Birmingham daughter of Punjabi immigrants, escaping an abusive arranged marriage at just sixteen. Despite this, Parm went on have a successful thirty-year career in the upper echelons of the Metropolitan Police from counter terrorism to the Met’s Police Corruption Unit. Also hailing from Birmingham, Nazir Afzal OBE faced a childhood of racist violence and the death of a young family member. Nazir rose to become a Chief Crown Prosecutor and was Chief Executive of the UK’s Police and Crime Commissioners. Nazir prosecuted some of the most high-profile legal cases in the country with a special focus on child sexual abuse, and honour-based violence. Since October 2017, he has been a member of the Independent Press Standards Organisation (IPSO). Nazir’s bestselling book is called The Prosecutor.
Dr Waheed Arian was born in war-torn Afghanistan. Fleeing the conflict with his family, he spent much of his childhood in refugee camps in Pakistan. Waheed and his family returned to Kabul following the Soviet withdrawal in 1989. However, at the age of 15, his parents sent him to the UK to stay with a distant family friend. Waheed worked in shops to support himself and send money back to his family. He studied at three separate colleges in the evenings, eventually gaining five A Levels and a place at Trinity College, Cambridge. His book Into The Wars is an extraordinary memoir of both this upbringing and his subsequent charity work. In 2017 John Simpson made a documentary about him called Waheed’s Wars: Saving Lives Across the World. Through the pandemic, Waheed has been working as a doctor in the NHS. Can our theme of personal struggle leading to successful life outcomes be considered and celebrated by one of our most thoughtful and perceptive thinkers? You bet it can. Matthew Parris will be with us to discuss Fracture: Stories of How Great Lives Take Root in Trauma. Drawn from his long running Great Lives series on Radio 4, Matthew explores those who have succeeded and 7
contributed to society not only in spite of, but possibly because of, their backgrounds and experiences. ENGLISH PASTORAL: AN INHERITANCE Festival book events are like children. You should not have favourites. But there is a literary buzz amongst the wider Festival team and it is around one particular author. I had ordered a copy of James Rebanks’ second book English Pastoral: An Inheritance on its publication and finished it a day later. It is as exceptional as his previous bestseller The Shepherd’s Life. This will be James’s second appearance at BIF. I cannot claim credit for his first appearance, but I can note his ticket sales (he sold out) for a book, which on the face of it, was about ‘sheep farming’. Of course, James Rebanks’ welldeserved success and critical acclaim stems from the fact that both books defy classification and
BIF BOOK CLUB Join the newly formed BIF Book Club, first meeting: Tuesday 9 June 2021 at 11am on Zoom. To book, please email friends@buxtonfestival.co.uk
A Houseful of Daughters by Juliet Nicolson, published by Chatto and Windus Author Sarah Ward will lead the discussion on this family memoir about seven generations of women, including flamenco dancing Pepita, society hostess Victoria and Vita Sackville-West, who created the famous garden at Sissinghurst. Come and meet the organisers and founding members of the Book Club in person on the first Friends’ Day of the 2021 Festival.
Date: Thursday 15 July 2021 Time: 10am Venue: The Assembly Rooms, Buxton Crescent Hotel 8
speak to readers personally with compassion and clarity. Julian Glover (our interviewer for James’s event) described English Pastoral to me as ‘important’; our Chair, Felicity Goodey, suggested ‘English Pastoral should be read by everyone who cares about the future of our food and environment’; I love its mixture of both elegy and genuine ideas. It has a sing song lilt that makes you believe that James is speaking to you directly, even when he is clearly angry or desperately sad. Picking up on a theme I’ve discussed elsewhere, James was let down by an education system that didn’t have high aspirations for the children of farming folk. Night school and a place at Oxford were combined with the punishing demands of a Lake District Hill Farm. The two books relate an extraordinary story, deserving of their place amongst classics of rural life. Yet James also makes radical suggestions for our environment, our tourism industry, and our custodians of the land. English Pastoral: An Inheritance IS an exceptional book.
Sarah Ward, author and host of the newly formed Friends Book Club, discusses a writer’s life during a pandemic, BIF and Dr Who. Sarah Ward is the author of four DC Childs novels; In Bitter Chill, A Deadly Thaw, A Patient Fury and The Shrouded Path set in the Derbyshire Peak District where she lives. Her Gothic historical thriller, The Quickening, was published under the name Rhiannon Ward in 2020 and was a Radio Times book of the year. Her second historical crime novel The Shadowing will be published in September 2021. Sarah also writes audio dramas and is membership secretary of the Crime Writers Association. Sarah is also a regular interviewer and Chair at BIF. Book Festival Director Vicky Dawson conducts a short interview. Vicky: Sarah, I’m sure many in our audience will be curious about your change of name on your latest books. Many authors publish under two names – Barbara Vine/Ruth Rendell comes to mind as does John Banville/ Benjamin Black. Is it a help or hindrance when you have an established track record in publishing? Sarah: I was quite relaxed about it as I wanted to distinguish my historical thrillers from my contemporary crime novels. Rhiannon is my middle name so it didn’t feel particularly removed from my current name. I’m not sure if it’s a help or hindrance. A bit of both, I suppose, but I engage with my readers on social media a lot so I think most people knew Rhiannon Ward was me. Vicky: As Membership Secretary of the Crime Writers’ Association and as a usually very active author, appearing at library events, festivals and bookshops, what has the last twelve months been like for you and do you think the book trade will recover? Sarah: It’s been an interesting twelve months for everyone, of course, but those working in the creative industries have been particularly affected. As an author, it might seem that we weren’t as impacted financially as, say, a musician as we could still write and I worked on the book I was contracted for during the various lockdowns. However, while much of a writer’s life is a solitary connection between themselves and their laptop, we rely on festivals, library events and bookshop appearances to get out and meet readers, make connections with fellow authors and thank hard-working organisers. All
this disappeared a year ago. We have had some events over Zoom but I’ve not found them to be as enjoyable as real-life appearances. I think the book trade will recover. Rumours of its demise have been circulating for centuries but people will always want good stories. Vicky: The above is your biography from the forthcoming BIF 2021 Programme Book. You are fairly understated about your other career as a writer ‘of audio dramas’. This is actually Doctor Who and it’s a real passion of yours, isn’t it? Sarah: Well, I was very surprised when they asked me to do the first story as I’m a crime writer and people tend to put you into genre boxes. The first story I wrote though was a classic Doctor Who cast – Peter Davison as the Fourth Doctor with his companions Tegan and Nyssa. I enjoyed it very much and have since written for NewWho (ie post revival). I do like a good classic story though. My favourite Doctor is Jon Pertwee! Vicky: You have been closely involved with BIF over the last four years. What are you most looking forward to in the BIF 2021 line-up? Sarah: I’m interviewing Giles Fraser about his book, Chosen. It’s an exploration of his own family history, events in his recent past and also a religious reflection on some of the issues he addresses. I’m extremely impressed by his writing and honesty and I can’t wait to speak to him about his book. Sarah is interviewing Giles Fraser, Rebecca Wragg Sykes and hosting the Festival Salon with Wendy Moore at BIF. She is Chairing the event The Moving Finger: Historical; Crime Fiction and the Writer as Chronicler of the Past. She is also co-organiser of the BIF Book Club. 9
CAUTIOUS OPTIMISM ON THE COVID-19 ROADMAP ‘When can we?’ has been THE question. From hugs to pubs to live performance, we are stepping with trepidation out of lockdown. BIF’s Marketing Manager Harriet Grubb looks at the Government’s COVID-19 roadmap and what it means for BIF. For a moment at the beginning of May it felt like things were well on track. Theatres, shops, hotels, cafes and museums could all re-open and we could enjoy freedoms such as hugs, planning a holiday, or visiting a gym. It seemed likely that social distancing measures would be removed on 21 June. Now, however, more caution is being urged and there are warnings there could be a delay in the next stage of the easing of COVID-19 restrictions. As we go to print there are reasons for optimism. Across the UK, the number of patients admitted to hospital with COVID-19 is declining, along with the number of deaths within 28 days of a positive test. More than 36 million people have received their first dose of vaccine, including everyone at the BIF office, and there is good access to community testing. In Buxton there were no new cases, no deaths within 28 days of a positive test, and no patients admitted to Stockport according to the latest figures on 19 May 2021. * Currently we are planning a socially distanced Festival. We are planning for the use of face masks, for sanitiser stations, for extra cleaning, for the use of allocated entrances to our venues, and for queuing. In Buxton Opera House fever screening units are in place. The layout of the building has been scrutinised by a health and safety consultancy and as a one-way system is not viable, you will be asked to keep to the left as you move around the building. There will be extra signage to help things run smoothly. The Government has stated their decisions on the easing of lockdown will be made ‘on data, not dates’ and we will continue to follow the official guidance. The 21 June is two and a half weeks before our opening night. If we get the announcement that it is safe to open extra seating across our venues, the Box Office will contact those on the waiting list first. We will 10
then take extra bookings over the phone and online. We thank you for your support and understanding as we navigate the extra complications that have arisen from planning a Festival during a pandemic. On average we have 45% of the usual seating capacity available in our venues and there are frustrations surrounding reduced seating that are not simple to solve. We have put measures in place to make the Festival accessible, including repeating many of our musical recitals and filming a selection of events, to be made available via subscription after the Festival, as BIF Digital. We are also currently re-looking at our seating plans, to see if we can make more single tickets available. If you have not been able to get a ticket for the performance you would like, please do contact the box office on 01298 72190 and get yourself on the waiting list, as they may soon be in touch. We look forward to welcoming you to Buxton this summer. Here’s to July and to celebrating a fabulous Festival, 150 years of Buxton’s Pavilion Gardens, 70 years of the Peak District National Park, but above all the joy of live performance. *Source: Gov.uk dashboard, 19 May 2021
B I G B I F W E E K E N D , S AV E T H E D AT E . . . 15 – 17 October 2021 Big BIF Weekend, in case you haven’t been before, is a jab… of BIF in October. It’s for those of you who miss the camaraderie, the entertainment and the spectacle of the full Festival. It’s to inoculate you against the dark, dismal days of winter and to strengthen you until the next full BIF programme falls on your door mat with the first snowdrops (or in a pandemic year, daffodils) of Spring. Big BIF Weekend takes place across a Friday, Saturday and Sunday morning in October and combines music and books in our inimitable BIF way. It’s easy to navigate, with events taking place in our usual venues of Pavilion Arts Centre, St John’s and the Assembly Rooms. There will be five book events with our usual high calibre of authors, five music events showcasing the talents of the BIF company plus a curated range of our nation’s finest musicians, and a very special lunch. If you live in Derbyshire, then Big BIF Weekend will be a must see in your Autumn Calendar. If you come from afar, then book your accommodation now for a shot in the arm of your favourite festival.
HELP BRING LIVE PERFORMANCES BACK! Buxton International Festival is looking for volunteers to help us host a COVID-19 safe, socially distanced Festival from 8-25 July. We are pleased to have received applications from 59 people wishing to get involved, and there is still time to submit your application. The Festival Volunteers are the smiling and welcoming face of the Festival, greeting and seating ticket holders, and supporting the staff team to deliver the annual celebration of creativity in Buxton.
•
Volunteering is good for your mental and physical health
•
Get to see some of the BIF events
•
Work as part of the awesome BIF team
Benefits of being a BIF volunteer:
•
Be able to say ‘I was part of that’
•
Enjoy the buzz of the Festival
•
Grow your social circle and meet new people
•
Access free training and enhance your personal skills, knowledge and experience
Volunteer training will be provided online and in person in the weeks leading up to the Festival. For more information visit the Buxton Festival website and click on Support Us.
11
B I F D I G I TA L BIF Digital will appeal to two kinds of Friends - those of you who are able to come to Buxton in July and those of you who do not yet feel ready to do so. BIF Digital is an opportunity to experience some of the memorable events if you cannot do so in person, and to relive them if you have already seen them! BIF Digital will be largely filmed during our BIF 2021 Festival. You won’t notice we are doing it. A Digital pass will cost just £40. With this you will be able to view a full production of Acis and Galetea, The Fitzwilliam Quartet, Jennifer Pike with Martin Roscoe, Natalie Clein, Tebea Debus and Elizabeth Kenny, Roderick Williams and Susie Allan, The Prime Ministers Panel with Iain Dale, Lord Adonis and Julian Glover, Isabel Hardman interviewed by Peter Moore, Margaret MacMillan interviewed by
Julian Glover, Nazir Afzal interviewed by Gerry Northam, and Richard Fortey in conversation with Mark Cocker. Just to add to the package of literary delights we have William Dalrymple and Richard Dawkins both of whom were to be with us in 2020 and have been filmed in advance of our Digital release speaking with their interlocutors as originally planned. So join us at your leisure – on your sofa, in your bed, with friends, with family or on your own. Be part of the BIF experience; catch up on events you didn’t make it to see; share and enjoy performances you have loved. BIF will always be first and foremost about live performance but we adapt with the times. We hope you are enjoying our journey.
B I F D I G I TA L E X T R A William Dalrymple
Richard Dawkins
Venue - Reclining at home with a glass of wine
Venue - Reclining at home with a G&T
Date - From July 25th for three months, as often as you wish, with our Festival Pass
Date - From July 25th for three months, as often as you wish, with our Festival Pass
The Anarchy: The Relentless Rise of the East India Company
Books Do Furnish a Life: Reading and Writing Science
In August 1765 the East India Company defeated the young Mughal emperor and forced him to establish a new administration in his richest provinces. Run by English merchants who collected taxes using a ruthless private army, this new regime saw the East India Company transform itself from an international trading corporation into something much more unusual: an aggressive colonial power in the guise of a multinational business. The Times History Book of the Year, The Anarchy is a cautionary tale about the pernicious effects of capitalism and the dangers of unregulated corporate greed. He will be interviewed by historian Peter Moore. 12
Books Do Furnish a Life is divided by theme, including celebrating nature, exploring humanity, and interrogating faith. For the first time, it brings together Richard Dawkins' forewords, afterwords and introductions to the work of some of the leading thinkers of our age – Carl Sagan, Lawrence Krauss, Jacob Bronowski, Lewis Wolpert – with a selection of his reviews to provide an electrifying celebration of science writing, both fiction and non-fiction. It is also a sparkling addition to Dawkins' own remarkable canon of work. He will be interviewed by author and naturalist Mark Cocker.
FUTU RE F RIE N D S E V E N T S The Events Committee of the Festival Friends are now busy planning a programme of events for later this year and beyond. The first event we are planning is for a musical event at Lydgate House in Chapelen-le-Frith on Saturday, 2nd October. We will email you more details of our planned events as they are finalised. If you are not
F E S T I VA L FRIENDS H O L I D AY S It’s been a tricky year for all of us. At last, though, it seems that better news on the slowing of COVID in the UK brings promise of a return to enjoying live music - and in the case of John Whibley Holidays with Music, travelling again. Pragmatically, our programme of Musical Holidays this year will focus on UK destinations, but European destinations are firmly in the plan for 2022. Full details of the planned UK opera holidays below (assuming the COVID situation allows them to happen as planned) will be in our summer brochure coming out in June. We make a contribution towards Friends’ fundraising for each holiday booked by a Friend of BIF in any case, but as a oneoff, once booking opens from 1 July, if you decide to book, and send in a copy of this article, then as a Buxton Friend, in addition we will give you £50 per person towards the cost of the holiday.* To be sure to benefit from this offer, why not get in touch by emailing john@whibley.co.uk and we’ll send you further information when available.
already receiving our regular email newsletters please give us your email address by sending it to friends@buxtonfestival.co.uk If you have unsubscribed from our email newsletter and wish to receive them again visit the Festival website to resubmit your email address.
Whibley Holidays with Music – UK Opera Trips Autumn 2021 Glyndebourne Tour at Glyndebourne – two options. • Option 1 – 10-13 October, Fidelio and Don Pasquale only, staying at the Grand Hotel, Eastbourne. • Option 2 – 24-28 October, Fidelio, Rake’s Progress and Don Pasquale, staying at Dean’s Place Hotel in Alfriston. Both Options will include coach transfers to and from Glyndebourne and a visit to Kipling’s house, Bateman’s, or the Royal Pavilion in Brighton. Glyndebourne Tour at the Marlowe Theatre, Canterbury – likely first week of November staying at the comfortable and convenient Cathedral Lodge Hotel in the precincts of Canterbury Cathedral, with a tour of the Cathedral included.
Welsh National Opera in Llandudno – November; dates and performances to be confirmed, staying at St George’s Hotel on the seafront, a short walk from Venue Cymru with private coach provided picking up from Buxton Opera House, and points in Manchester and Chester. 13
A N A P P R E C I AT I O N ANDREW GREENWOOD Long standing Friends of Buxton Festival are only too well aware of the ups and downs of operatic life, but there is no doubt that Andrew Greenwood’s tenure as Artistic Director from 2006 was a definite ‘up’. His untimely death in January saddened Friends, festival goers and a host of visiting artists. I don’t know if it was his Yorkshire background and Lancastrian schooling, but Andrew really understood the Festival and its unique blend of the local and the national. First and foremost of course he was a top quality conductor. Having started on the music staff at the Royal Opera House, he was closely linked over many years with Welsh National Opera, as both chorus master and conductor. His varied career had many highlights including his time as music director of English Touring Opera and abroad in both Copenhagen and Cologne as principal guest conductor. Although he is remembered for his work in the opera house, he was a go-to conductor for opera galas and competitions, where his skills were particularly appreciated. Always well prepared and a very efficient rehearser when time was short, he was serious about his music but generous and supportive of colleagues of all ages. All done with a neat sense of humour. He was the master of a great range of music from the marvellous Donizetti operas in Buxton to unknown gems by Chabrier
with the Chelsea Opera Group, or Foroni at the Wexford Festival.
MORWENNA BROOKE
Besides her involvement with the Festival, Morwenna was a Friend of the Northern Chamber Orchestra, and attended the seasons of Halle concerts. She had a talent for painting, belonged to two Art Groups, and was a member of The Cavendish Arts Society. In the wider community, she was a founder-member of the Peak District National Trust Centre, and served as a local magistrate for 25 years.
Morwenna’s friends in Buxton, and those she made through the Festival, will have been deeply saddened by the news of her death on 17 October 2020. Morwenna moved to Derbyshire in 1979, which coincided with the first year of the Festival, and she was an enthusiastic supporter of the Festival throughout the years since. She joined the Friends of the Festival in its early years, and was an active member of the Committee for many years. She gave generously of her time through helping at events, and hosted a number of events at her home when she lived at Gadley House. On its Events Sub-Committee she was enthusiastic, hard-working and reliable, and always prepared to help with catering. During the Festival she took part in stewarding, welcoming many visitors, and helping to contribute to the friendly reputation for which the Festival is known. 14
Andrew brought great energy and enthusiasm to the Festival. The music programme reached new heights under his stewardship, and he very much led from the front as conductor and accompanist, giving the chorus special care. His generosity of time and spirit extended to the Friends for whom he was open and available, and he always showed genuine interest in the audiences and their views. Over its forty year history the Festival has had some memorable personalities. Andrew Greenwood was one. He is much missed by family, friends, colleagues and audiences, but will be gratefully remembered as someone of great talent who really ‘got’ what Buxton was all about. A true Friend of the Festival. DONALD MAXWELL
She helped the Festival in so many ways, but never sought to publicise her contributions. A recent example was for the 40th Festival in 2019. Morwenna was born in South Africa, and made friends there over the years, so she generously provided sponsorship towards the cost of bringing the soloists from Cape Town Opera to perform at the Festival. With her warmth of personality, and her gift of friendship, she will be greatly missed by all who knew or met her, and particularly by her friends and family. ESTHER ALLBUTT
INTRODUCING P L AT F O R M 3 AND THE BIF CHAMBER ENSEMBLE Introducing Platform 3, a joint Buxton International Festival and Buxton Opera House initiative providing platforms for people throughout the High Peak and Derbyshire to create, perform, and learn more about the performing arts. Artistically led and community driven, our passion is to inspire greater participation in live performances, showcase new work and increase engagement in the arts for people all ages. We will be creating new work for the next generation and reaching out to people who don’t normally get involved in music and theatre. Platform 3 will be launched in September this year – look out for the energy bursting in, around and out of the Opera House into our streets. The programme is led by a new
NEWS FROM THE FESTIVAL FOUNDATION Founded by the Friends in 2002, the purpose of the Buxton Festival Foundation (BFF) is to safeguard the future of the Festival by building an endowment fund that can be spent on specific projects additional to the annual BIF programme. To this end we were most grateful to receive a legacy of £10,000 earlier this year from the estate of Geoffrey Alan Collens of Blackheath, London who had been a regular attender at the Festival for some time. We will remember his generosity with gratitude. Like many of you, we have been forced to embrace digital technology in the last 12 months with more enthusiasm than might have been the case preCOVID. We have Zoomed and scanned and shredded our old papers with the aim of creating a digital archive of the Foundation’s activities and satisfying the most arcane data protection regulations. Face to face meetings in Buxton have
Learning & Engagement Manager Allie Spencer; we are delighted she will be joining us in June. The Oratorio Our Future in Your Hands, now taking place in 2022 with over 100 young people, is part of this programme. We are also creating opportunities for young and emerging artists with our BIF Chamber Ensemble initiative, which in 2021 features the Corran Quartet. They will be working on a number of projects including: • Two performances at this year’s Festival, one a special thank you to our Friends • A special programme for care homes later in the year during the Big BIF weekend • Performance platforms throughout the year at beautiful venues, attracting new audiences. been replaced by online exchanges interrupted by ‘freezing’ and ‘yawning’ when the WiFi wobbles and pauses whilst a doorbell is answered or the cat needs letting out. The truth is, as volunteers, we expect to enjoy ourselves at our meetings over a coffee or something stronger and we are all looking forward to our June meeting – and the Festival in July – when we can meet each other, and our Festival Friends in person. We have also welcomed a fifth trustee to the board of the Foundation this year. John Young first attended the Festival in the late eighties and when he retired as the Bank of England’s agent for the North West in December last year, agreed to commit some of his free time to our activities. His skills and experience are most welcome. I look forward to seeing you in Buxton in July. May the sun shine on us all! JANE DAVIES Chairman of Trustees, BFF 15
Trains to a fine art Visit towns and cities across the UK, with a view from the window that’s worthy of a frame. Book safe travels online, on our app or on the phone. Visit avantiwestcoast.co.uk for more information.