Brontë Group in Offaly to celebrate Charlotte Brontë's birthday

Charlotte Brontë's birthday will be celebrated in style on the next Saturday April 18th with a double event organised by the Banagher Brontë Group.

Proceedings will start at 3.30pm. in the Crank House, Main Street, Banagher, with the presentation of Brontës: Love and Honour by Michael and Christine O'Dowd. This is a highly original musical tribute to the celebrated 19th century Brontë family of Yorkshire, a melodic cycle of ten original studio-recorded songs. The suite of songs relates the joys and sorrows of the family in music and lyrics. Linking dialogue creates ambience and clarity. Each song will be accompanied by a lavishly illustrated video.

To help the audience enjoy the performance fully a deluxe souvenir programme with an introduction to each song along with lyrics, will be available. There is great variety in the programme which includes waltz, lament, lullaby, prayer, blessing with assorted choral, instrumental and orchestral backing.

Michael O'Dowd has written five other musicals based on the lives of the Franciscan Missionaries of the Divine Motherhood; St Brendan the Navigator; Vincent van Gogh; Hank Williams, and the Irish Goddess ‘the Morrigan’ of the Táin. In 2019 Michael completed a non-fiction book about the Irish honeymoon of Charlotte Brontë and her husband Arthur Bell Nicholls. Thus began a deep interest in Charlotte, her family, her life and early death.

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During the Covid 19 crisis Michael began work on a musical tribute to celebrate the lives of Charlotte, the Brontë family, and Arthur Bell Nicholls. The musical result ‘Brontës: Love and Honour’ has now been birthed.

Michael's wife Christine comes from a musical family in Co. Donegal. She became a professional musician performing internationally with her family ‘The Pattersons’ in the 1960’s and 70’s. Having married Michael and with music being their common language, they collaborated closely on all musical projects. Michael wrote the music and lyrics; Christine then arranged the pieces and brought them to recording studios where she and other musician family and friends performed them.

The musical event will be followed by a Miscellany for Charlotte, a selection of new writings by members and friends of the Banagher Brontë Group and pupils from Saint Rynagh's Primary School. The celebrations should conclude about 5.30pm.

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