Who we are?
The organisation was formed in March 1999 and has achieved a reputation for producing new and challenging works. Balagan works with children aged between 9 and 18, recruited mainly from schools in the London Borough of Lambeth.
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What we do?
The objects for which the charity was established are to:(a) encourage, promote, maintain, improve and advance education and participation in music and drama for children and young people;
(b) develop and disseminate new musical repertoire for schools.
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Links
Musicnow.co.ukComposer.co.ukBoosey.comStudioredgables.comIguanastudio.co.ukMySpaceTobicomix.co.uk
Marc Forde
Marc Forde was born in Hampshire and started learning the piano at the age of 7. He graduated from Keele University, then moved to London, acting in a theatre companies, and playing piano in Soho. A chance conversation with a friend in 1986 convinced him to pack a bag and move to Paris to learn French and play jazz. Whilst performing back in London in 1988, he met tap dancer Tobias Tak, then newly arrived from Holland. With him he toured Britain and Europe various times, as well as performing numerous sessions with other bands.
In 1989, began working for Musicworks, a community music organisation in Brixton, teaching piano to adults and children, ran band workshops, taught songwriting, theory, etc. Also began a drugs awareness project for year 5/6 primary school children called It's up 2U in which the children wrote songs based on what they knew about drugs and the issues surrounding them. This project turned out to be very successful (until funding was cut), visiting over 35 schools in south London and was featured on the BBC's Children In Need Appeal programme.
In 1994, he began to write Orpheus, for schools after getting tired of being asked to accompany the same handful of schools' shows that had been performed since the 1960s/70s. A CD of the musical with Johnny Morris narrating was completed in 2004 produced by musicnow in collaboration with Boosey & Hawkes. Marc's aim eventually is to produce a series of musical shows that can be put on by any class teacher, no matter how developed (or not) their musical skill. It was with this in mind that he founded Balagan Theatre Company. Currently, Balagan has a new CD out of Marc's musical, The Magick, inspired by the painting "The Death of Alexandrina" by the Argentine artist Carybé. Recordings of the musicals The Chalk Circle and Hansel and Gretel are also in the pipeline. Apart from being a keen potter, he has also returned to theatre, acting with companies such as subVERSE and Actors for Refugees.
Latest Releases
Hansel and Gretel
The Magick (by Marc Forde), was a piece inspired by a painting by the Argentine artist Carybé, The Death of Alexandrina (A Morte de Alexandrina). It concerns the life of an adolescent girl (Alex) who discovers that she has magical powers.