The Journey of Butterfly

Music by Charles Davidson
Poetry from the Children of the Terezin concentration camp, featuring the American Boychoir

Part 1 – The Journey of Butterfly

This documentary weaves together the music, art, poetry and history of the children imprisoned by the Nazis in the ghetto at Terezin in Czechoslovakia from 1941 to 1945. The poetry written by the children during that time has been set to music by Charles Davidson in a song cycle for treble voices, “I Never Saw Another Butterfly.”

Fifty years later, The American Boychoir traveled to Czechoslovakia to perform the music with orchestra under the direction of James Litton. A precious few of the children who survived tell their story in the film. “The Journey of Butterfly” preserves the legacy of creativity and the human spirit which emerged under the harshest of conditions. Directed by Emmy award winner Robert E. Frye. 1995 CINE Golden Eagle Award Winner.

Part 2 – The Legacy of Butterfly

In October 1991, The American Boychoir traveled to Czechoslovakia (now the Czech Republic) and performed “I Never Saw Another Butterfly” composed by Charles Davidson. The story was told in the award winning documentary “The Journey of Butterfly,” incorporating the music, poetry and witness of children imprisoned at the Nazi Ghetto at Terezin between 1941 and 1945. Ten years later, members of the 1991 Boychoir, as young men in their 20s, reunited with survivors featured in the original documentary. “The Journey of Butterfly – The Legacy,” tells the story of the impact the experience had on the Boychoir members.