Fraserburgh Junior Arts Society: The group backed by Judi Dench that 'means so much to so many'
Driven by a unified passion for theatre Fraserburgh Junior Arts Society has been at the heart of the local community for more than 70 years.
With the youngest member only six-years-old and the oldest 93, generations combine to bring the magic of stage to the Broch.
Supporters of Fraserburgh Junior Arts Society (FJAS) include King Charles, legendary Oscar winning actor Dame Judi Dench and Joanna Lumley.
Dame Judi's donation helped fund a sign that shines a beacon for arts and creativity through the streets of Fraserburgh town centre.
Their latest production is an ambitious performance of Charlie and the Chocolate Factory at Fraserburgh Leisure Centre – complete with stunning glass elevator.
Their rendition of the classic Roald Dahl novel also contains unique Oompa-Loompa's.
Show producer Lewis Platt said: 'Fraserburgh Junior Arts Society means so much to so many people and we are very proud of the organisation.
'We are fully self-funded and rely on the goodness of people buying tickets for our shows.
'We have support from the King, Dame Judi Dench, Joanna Lumley and the Lord Lieutenant of Aberdeenshire.
'A donation from Dame Judi was used to buy a big Junior Arts logo for our 70th jubilee.
'Our logo sits above the Leisure Centre building and when it is on at night it lights up and shines right up the Broch.
'When you come down from Broadgate you can see our sign which is amazing.'
Rising talent Caleb Patterson plays Charlie Bucket who visits the wonderful factory of eccentric chocolatier Willy Wonka, played by Craig Roger.
First published in 1964 Charlie and the Chocolate Factory focuses on the adventure of 10-year-old Charlie and his grandpa Joe (Joss Duthie).
In the irreverent, darkly comic children's novel Charlie wins a golden ticket to tour the magical chocolate factory.
Timeless characters also include Augustus Gloop (Joss Maclaren), Veruca Salt (Eden Park), Violet Beauregarde (Zoe Burnett) and Mike Teavee (Ethan Doutre).
FJAS's production also has unique Oompa-Loompas that are the result of tireless work from the costume design team.
Lewis, who is also president of FJAS, said: 'We have a cast of 48 with our youngest member Caleb Patterson who is 12-years-old and plays Charlie Bucket.
'Caleb had never done anything with junior arts before but came to auditions in January and blew us away.
'He is great to work with and his singing voice is beautiful.
'We purchased a unique glass elevator that has come up from London and glows.
'It will fly about the stage.
'Our Oompa-Loompas are quite unique as they all have specialised costumes made for them.
'All the costumes are made of foam and are boxed out to make them look smaller and dumpier than they are .
'Our costume ladies Wendy Simpson and Doreen Gibson sat for many hours with their team cutting out foam, lining it and putting costumes into it.
'There are four different types of Oompas for different parts of the factory.
'When you see the workers in the chocolate room they are completely different from the ones in the nut room, mixing room and television room.'
The origins of the Fraserburgh Junior Arts Society trace back to 1952.
A pantomime was staged by Fraserburgh Photographic Society that year to raise funds for equipment.
Inspired by the success of the production the following year some of the members formed the Fraserburgh Junior Arts Society.
The society represented Aberdeenshire in 2000 at the Millennium Dome, taking 200 youngsters to London to perform 'Our Town Story'.
Lewis said: 'We sit 600 people per night with 4,200 people a week coming to see our show.
'We have 548 members that range from the age of six-years-old to 93.
'Our oldest member is Elma Goodlad who is 93 and makes our costumes.
'She has been making costumes for 50 years.
'Everything in Fraserburgh Junior Arts Society is built by us… all the sets, costumes and props.
'The only thing we take in is the script and light and sound where we use a company from Dundee.
'Even though it is amateur we try to make it as professional as we can.
'I have been in junior arts since I was eight and I'm 34 now.
'Many of us have been here for 20, 30 or 40 years.
'Doreen Gibson has been in our society for 50 years.
'Everything we do from the committee to front of house has a passion, from everyone.'
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Time Out
5 hours ago
- Time Out
Like any good matchmaker, Song wants to give her audience everything it desires
Be warned: despite its glossy cast and slick marketing, Materialists is not a romantic comedy. As to what it is instead, not even its creator seems entirely sure. At first, writer-director Celine Song (Past Lives) appears determined to turn genre conventions inside out: to expose romance as the soulless simulation it often seems to be. So, in classic romcom tradition, our heroine Lucy (Dakota Johnson) is a pragmatic matchmaker so successful in juggling dating algorithms that she's celebrating her ninth client wedding. And it's at these nuptials that she meets Harry (Pedro Pascal), a financier her industry considers a 'unicorn': handsome, wealthy, and tall. (Lucy's clients, like the film itself, fetishise male height and female youth, so if you are a man under six feet or a woman over 30, prepare to feel vaguely unworthy.) Coincidentally, Lucy's ex-boyfriend John (Chris Evans) is also at the reception. But while Harry is a guest, John is a waiter. And therein lies her dilemma: does our material girl choose love or money? For a while, Lucy enjoys the fancy restaurants, enormous bouquets and easy life that Harry offers. But Lucy's Cinderella story hits midnight in a jarringly dark manner, when a client experiences unexpected tragedy. And suddenly, Lucy wonders whether John – with his two roommates, lack of savings, and uncertain future – might actually be the stronger prospect. Song has, undeniably, done a beautiful job composing this visually absorbing film. Cinematographer Shabier Kirchner – who also lensed her lovely, Oscar-nominated debut – knows just how to capture New York with both illusory sheen and palpable warmth. The impeccably cool soundtrack is packed with the likes of Cat Power, St. Vincent, and Japanese Breakfast. And the settings are a dream, from Harry's magazine-spread apartment to Lucy's loft-like office. But everything else comes across as constructed, too. Song's ambitious desire to dismantle and reconsider contemporary fairy tales is admirable, and intriguing. Is love truly just a commodity, as nearly everyone here seems to believe? The answer to such a blunt question requires a level of equally unsparing honesty, whether cynical or sincere. And unfortunately, her uncertain script tries to have it both ways. So while the actors are individually appealing, their characters feel like paper dolls designed to represent concepts, rather than generate chemistry. Like any good matchmaker, Song wants to give her audience everything it desires: the packaged fantasy of a Hollywood product, and the earthy emotion of a solemn indie. But even her wavering heroine gets tired of debating between heartfelt conviction and practical avarice. When it comes to love – and work – you can only hedge your bets for so long. Eventually, Lucy learns, you're gonna have to pick a side.
South Wales Argus
8 hours ago
- South Wales Argus
Weinstein case judge declares mistrial on remaining rape charge amid jury issues
Deliberations ended on Thursday, a day after the jury delivered a partial verdict in Weinstein's sex crimes retrial. The jury foreperson said he would not continue deliberating after claiming he was bullied by another juror (Elizabeth Williams via AP) The jury got stuck on a third charge – a rape accusation dating to 2013. The foreperson complained on Wednesday that he felt bullied by another juror and said on Thursday he would not go back into the jury room. The panel convicted the former studio boss of one charge but acquitted him of another. Both of those charges concerned accusations of forcing oral sex on women in 2006. Those verdicts still stand. The jury of seven women and five men unanimously reached those decisions last Friday, the foreperson later told the judge. The verdict was delivered on Wednesday only because Judge Curtis Farber asked whether there was agreement on any of the charges. The third charge was a rape accusation involving a woman who also said she had a consensual relationship with the Oscar-winning producer. Under New York law, the third-degree rape charge carries a lesser penalty than the other two counts. Weinstein denies all the charges. In an unusual exchange with the judge, Harvey Weinstein told him the judge was 'endangering' him, saying 'I can't be judged by a situation that's going on like this' (Elizabeth Williams via AP) In an unusual exchange with the judge during some legal arguments before the partial verdict was disclosed on Wednesday, Weinstein insisted it was unfair to continue the trial after two jurors came forward with concerns about the proceedings. 'I can't be judged by a situation that's going on like this,' said Weinstein, 73, claiming the judge was 'endangering' him. Jury-room strains started leaking into public view on Friday when a juror asked to be excused because he felt another was being treated unfairly. Then on Monday, the foreperson complained that other jurors were pushing people to change their minds and talking about information beyond the charges. The man raised concerns again on Wednesday. In a closed-door discussion with prosecutors, defence lawyers and the judge, the foreperson said another juror was yelling at him for sticking to his opinion and at one point vowed, 'You going to see me outside.' 'I feel afraid inside there,' the foreperson told the judge and lawyers, according to a transcript. Weinstein's initial conviction five years ago seemed to cement the downfall of one of Hollywood's most powerful men in a pivotal moment for the #MeToo movement against sexual misconduct. Harvey Weinstein was convicted of one charge, was acquitted of another and a mistrial ruled on the third (Jefferson Siegel /The New York Times via AP, Pool) But that conviction was overturned last year and the case was sent back for retrial in the same Manhattan courthouse. Weinstein's accusers said he exploited his Tinseltown influence to dangle career help, get them alone and then trap and force them into sexual encounters. His defence portrayed his accusers as Hollywood wannabes and hangers-on who willingly hooked up with him to court opportunity, then later said they were victimised to collect settlement funds and #MeToo approbation. Miriam Haley, the producer and production assistant whom Weinstein was convicted – twice, now – of sexually assaulting, said outside court on Wednesday that the new verdict 'gives me hope'. Accuser Kaja Sokola also called it 'a big win for everyone,' even though Weinstein was acquitted of forcibly performing oral sex on her when she was a 19-year-old fashion model. Her allegation was added to the case after the retrial was ordered. Weinstein also was convicted of raping another woman in California. He is appealing that conviction. The Associated Press generally does not name people who say they have been sexually assaulted, unless they agree to be identified. Ms Haley and Ms Sokola did so.
Rhyl Journal
8 hours ago
- Rhyl Journal
Weinstein case judge declares mistrial on remaining rape charge amid jury issues
Deliberations ended on Thursday, a day after the jury delivered a partial verdict in Weinstein's sex crimes retrial. The jury got stuck on a third charge – a rape accusation dating to 2013. The foreperson complained on Wednesday that he felt bullied by another juror and said on Thursday he would not go back into the jury room. The panel convicted the former studio boss of one charge but acquitted him of another. Both of those charges concerned accusations of forcing oral sex on women in 2006. Those verdicts still stand. The jury of seven women and five men unanimously reached those decisions last Friday, the foreperson later told the judge. The verdict was delivered on Wednesday only because Judge Curtis Farber asked whether there was agreement on any of the charges. The third charge was a rape accusation involving a woman who also said she had a consensual relationship with the Oscar-winning producer. Under New York law, the third-degree rape charge carries a lesser penalty than the other two counts. Weinstein denies all the charges. In an unusual exchange with the judge during some legal arguments before the partial verdict was disclosed on Wednesday, Weinstein insisted it was unfair to continue the trial after two jurors came forward with concerns about the proceedings. 'I can't be judged by a situation that's going on like this,' said Weinstein, 73, claiming the judge was 'endangering' him. Jury-room strains started leaking into public view on Friday when a juror asked to be excused because he felt another was being treated unfairly. Then on Monday, the foreperson complained that other jurors were pushing people to change their minds and talking about information beyond the charges. The man raised concerns again on Wednesday. In a closed-door discussion with prosecutors, defence lawyers and the judge, the foreperson said another juror was yelling at him for sticking to his opinion and at one point vowed, 'You going to see me outside.' 'I feel afraid inside there,' the foreperson told the judge and lawyers, according to a transcript. Weinstein's initial conviction five years ago seemed to cement the downfall of one of Hollywood's most powerful men in a pivotal moment for the #MeToo movement against sexual misconduct. But that conviction was overturned last year and the case was sent back for retrial in the same Manhattan courthouse. Weinstein's accusers said he exploited his Tinseltown influence to dangle career help, get them alone and then trap and force them into sexual encounters. His defence portrayed his accusers as Hollywood wannabes and hangers-on who willingly hooked up with him to court opportunity, then later said they were victimised to collect settlement funds and #MeToo approbation. Miriam Haley, the producer and production assistant whom Weinstein was convicted – twice, now – of sexually assaulting, said outside court on Wednesday that the new verdict 'gives me hope'. Accuser Kaja Sokola also called it 'a big win for everyone,' even though Weinstein was acquitted of forcibly performing oral sex on her when she was a 19-year-old fashion model. Her allegation was added to the case after the retrial was ordered. Weinstein also was convicted of raping another woman in California. He is appealing that conviction. The Associated Press generally does not name people who say they have been sexually assaulted, unless they agree to be identified. Ms Haley and Ms Sokola did so.
