DEAR FRIENDS

At the beginning of March, Buxton was cut off for a day or two by heavy snowfall in the Peak District. Since then, Spring has been trying to spring, but, at least as I write this, not entirely convincingly.

Nonetheless there is a mood of great optimism and excitement in the Festival office as we look forward to July. Ticket sales are well ahead of our target and show no signs of slowing down. Nicola Benedetti’s concert in the Opera House has sold out and other events are close to capacity with a full three months to go until we open. It is immensely gratifying to see this positive response to this summer’s programme, particularly after a difficult few years for the Festival, and for the arts in general. I would like to thank all of you, the Friends of the Buxton Festival, for your continued support. It is your support that allows us to keep striving to improve our offering each summer.

We are always trying to think of ways of bringing new audiences to Buxton. I am convinced that the most powerful resource in this endeavour is our network of Friends. So many of you came to the Festival for the first time because it was recommended by friends and acquaintances. It goes without saying that the impact of each Friend bringing one new visitor with them to the Festival would be enormous. So, if you feel the same sense of anticipation for this summer that we do, I urge you to tell any friends who haven’t yet experienced the colourful array of cultural events which the Festival lays on each year, to give Buxton a try this July. I’m sure they won’t regret it.

ADRIAN KELLY

2023 Launch At Derby Museum And Art Gallery

HM Lord-Lieutenant of Derbyshire Elizabeth Fothergill CBE hosted Friends of BIF at a special after-hours evening at Derby Museum and Art Gallery on Thursday 30 April 2023. The evening included drinks and canapés along with a tour of the excellent Hogarth Exhibition, which has been produced in partnership with the National Gallery and the National Portrait Gallery.

There was music from three talented singers from BIF’s Young Artist Programme, sopranos Jessica Hopkins and Jane Burnell and tenor Dominic Morgan. Adrian Kelly introduced events from this July’s programme, including a number of sellout performances.

Hogarth’s Britons: Succession, Patriotism, and the 1745 Jacobite Rebellion can be seen at Derby Museum and Art Gallery until Sunday 4 June 2023. See page 5 for more Friends events.

FRIENDS’ EVENTS: ALL WELCOME!

LUNCH & RECITAL BY THE ENGLISH TOURING OPERA

Lismore Road, Buxton

11am – 2pm, Saturday 13 May, £45

Soloists from the English Touring Opera will perform a lunchtime musical concert with Baritone Jerome Knox and Soprano Julia Mariko, who’ll also be performing in this year’s musical The Land of Might-Have-Been.