From 1986, for 38 years only interrupted by Covid, Donald Judge directed BFMT, an independent and unique group for children based at Bollington Arts Centre and aided by adult volunteers and musicians. Over the years, numbers on stage ranged from 42 to 5, but the show always went ahead.
BFMT never performed well-known musicals – always something unusual by composers working in broadly the classical sphere, including Benjamin Britten, Peter Maxwell Davies, Stephen Oliver, Richard Rodney Bennett, Christopher Brown and Cecilia McDowall. A very special event was one of the first performances in Britain of Hans Krása’s opera Brundibár, written in the early 1940s for the Jewish children in the Terezín Ghetto near Prague.
As there’s a fairly limited repertoire, Donald took to writing his own shows, both through-composed works and plays with music. Some have a local flavour, including all those performed at every Bollington Festival that followed Britten’s Noye’s Fludde, performed in 1986, that kick started the group. Many are set in the town’s Victorian past. The feisty fictional character Nancy White featured in several adventures. Labyrinth had local children disappearing into Bollington’s new labyrinth to find themselves facing the Minotaur. Many are based on true or folk tales from countries such as Czechia, Latvia, Catalonia, Poland and Sweden, often using their folk song. One memorably retold the story of Wojtech, the bear cub adopted by Polish troops, who served as a private in their regiment before ending his days in Edinburgh Zoo. BFMT usually performed at the Arts Centre, but occasionally at St Oswald’s Church and the Festival Marquee. When Bolly Beat Boney engaged audiences at White Nancy and in the Waterhouse Garden, and The Bollington Railway Cassation on the Recreation Ground during the 2019 Festival.
Donald had decided the 2024-5 season would be his last as both director of BFMT and as conductor of Bollington Festival Choir. But in November 2024 he fell ill, just managed to complete the project Follow the Star based on Czech Christmas traditions, but the Spring project Mothers’ Day never materialised. Happily, the Choir is in new safe hands, but BFMT has reached the end of its exciting journey with literally hundreds of young people.
It’s hoped that BFMT can go out with a bang rather than a whimper, hence this one-off event on Sunday 13 July. Essentially, it’s to workshop some of the mainly upbeat closing musical numbers Donald has composed over the years. They’re straightforward and catchy unison songs all can sing, and hopefully some instrumental colour. The Grand Finale is genuinely open to all, adults and children whether existing or former members, their parents and children, personal friends, and newcomers. Words, sheet music, instrumental parts and sound files will be available in advance as well as on the day.
There will be two sessions to rehearse the music: 11.00-12.30, songs: 1.15-2.45, songs and instruments. Performance and reminiscences from me and former members from 3.00 to 4.00. Tea, water and soft drinks available: please bring snacks and a packed lunch!
There will also be the chance for attendees to take away costume items, props etc accumulated over the years, so as to free the store cupboard for other BAC users.
The event is FREE, but donations will be welcomed and will reward BAC whose support and generosity enabled BFMT to keep going when it became financially unviable.
If you are interested in singing, playing, supervising, dispensing refreshments, or coming to the performance, an email to bfmt@bollingtonartscentre.co.uk would be much appreciated.
Any children under 17 can be signed in by a parent or trusted adult, who are welcome to stay to keep an eye. When we perform at 3.00, to comply with local authority licencing, each child must have a parent or legal guardian present who can keep them in sight and sound.
