Here's a running list of upcoming screenings of silent film with live music by Jeff Rapsis.
• Monday, Jan. 6, 2025, 6:30 p.m.: "The Strong Man" (1926) starring Harry Langdon; Greenfield Garden Cinemas, 361 Main St., Greenfield, Mass.; call (413) 773-9260 or visit www.gardencinemas.net. With World War I over, baby-faced soldier Harry Langdon searches for the girl who sent such moving letters to him in the trenches. Directed by a very young Frank Capra, 'The Strong Man' is today hailed as Langdon's best feature, and also one of the greatest comedies of the silent film era. Tickets $10.50 adults; $8.50 students, seniors, and veterans.
• Saturday, Jan. 18, 2025, time about 3 p.m.: "The Lost World" (1925) at the 50th Annual Sci-Fi Marathon presented by the Case Western Reserve University Film Society, 10900 Euclid Ave., Cleveland, Ohio. Live music for 'The Lost World,' a featured attraction in this year's annual 36-hour (!) sci-fi marathon at Case Western Reserve University in Cleveland, Ohio. First-ever movie adaptation of Arthur Conan Doyle's legendary tale of British explorers who discover prehistoric creatures still thriving atop a remote South American plateau. Great entertainment; ground-breaking special effects by the same team that later created 'King Kong' mesmerized early movie audiences and remain impressive today.
• Sunday, Jan. 26, 2025, 2 p.m.: "Way Down East" (1920) starring Lillian Gish, directed by D.W. Griffith; Wilton Town Hall Theatre, Main Street, Wilton, N.H.; (603) 654-3456. Griffith's enduring box-office smash sees Lillian Gish pitted against
small town New England and one very large waterfall. Features Gish as
a wronged woman who can't escape her past. Still-thrilling climax on
ice floes heading towards the falls was filmed on the Connecticut River!
Engrossing melodrama, and the silent era's fifth-highest grossing motion
picture; an audience favorite for more than a century.Silent film
with live music at a theater where movies have been shown since 1912.
Admission free, donations of $10 per person encouraged.
• Wednesday, Jan. 29, 2025, 7 p.m.: "Wild Orchids" (1928) starring Greta Garbo; The Rex Theatre, 23 Amherst St., Manchester, N.H.; (603) 574-4826. An older man takes his young wife across the South Pacific to the island nation of Java, where he plans to invest in tea plantations. Aboard ship, she witnesses a passenger hitting one of his servants. The violent man is immediately taken by the beauty of this mysterious woman and resolves to make her acquaintance, marking the start of a dangerous romantic triangle leading to an unforgettable climax in the jungle. Join us for a series of silent film programs with live music in a wonderful restored theater in downtown Manchester. Tickets $10.
• Saturday, Feb. 1, 2025, 5 p.m.: "To Be Announced" (1925); Campton Historical Society, Campton Town Hall, Route 175, Campton, N.H. Silent film program preceded by potluck supper beginning at 5 p.m. Film program to start approximately 6:15 p.m. Free and open to the public!
• Monday, Feb. 3, 2025, 6:30 p.m.: "Nanook of the North" (1922), directed by Robert Flaherty; Greenfield Garden Cinemas, 361 Main St., Greenfield, Mass.; call (413) 773-9260 or visit www.gardencinemas.net. W Classic 1922 documentary tells the story of Inuit hunter struggling to survive in far-north Canada. Breakthrough film that used the motion picture camera to take audiences to far-away places ordinarily unreachable. Tickets $10.50 adults; $8.50 students, seniors, and veterans.
• Sunday, Feb. 9, 2025, 2 p.m.: "The Strong Man" (1926), starring Harry Langdon, directed by Frank Capra; Wilton Town Hall Theatre, Main Street, Wilton, N.H.; (603) 654-3456. With World War I over, baby-faced soldier Harry Langdon searches for the girl who sent such moving letters to him in the trenches. Directed by a very young Frank Capra, 'The Strong Man' is today hailed as Langdon's best feature, and also one of the greatest comedies of the silent film era. Silent film with live music at a theater where movies have been shown since 1912. Admission free, donations of $10 per person encouraged.
• Sunday, Feb. 16, 2025, "Algol: Tragedy of Power" (1920) starring Emil Jannings; Somerville Theatre, 55 Davis Square, Somerville, Mass.; (617) 625-5700; Somerville Theatre.
Early sci-fi film from Germany long thought lost but recently rediscovered and now available. Story centers on a man given a machine by an alien spirit
which, if used, would allow him to rule the world. Sets for the
movie were constructed by Walter Reimann, one of the designers of 'The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari' (1920). Silent film with live music, part of the 50th Annual Boston Sci-Fi Film Festival's
annual 24-hour science fiction film marathon, which runs noon on
Sunday, Feb. 16 to noon on Monday, Feb. 17. Admission charged.
• Friday, Feb. 28 and Saturday, March 1, 2025, Kansas Silent Film Festival at Washburn University in Topeka, Kansas. Scheduled to accompany 'Something New' (1920) melodrama starring Nell Shipman. Annual pilgrimage to multi-day celebration of silent film with live music. Check it out at www.kssilentfilmfest.org. My 26th consecutive year of attending this festival, which includes during the pandemic in 2021, when it was held online but we recreated it in New Hampshire. See you in the Sunflower State!
• Monday, March 3, 2025, 6:30 p.m.: "The Sheik" (1921)
starring Rudolph Valentino; Greenfield
Garden Cinemas, 361 Main St.,
Greenfield, Mass.; call (413) 773-9260 or visit
www.gardencinemas.net. Paris-educated Sheik Ahmed Ben Hassan (Rudolph Valentino) provides
brides for wealthy Arabs. The high-spirited Lady Diana Mayo (Agnes
Ayres), learning that the sheik will be in the city of Biskra, Algeria,
playfully decides to disguise herself as a dancing girl to become one of
the prospective brides. Hearing that Diana will be touring the
Sahara Desert, Ahmed abducts her, intending to make her fall in love
with him. Tickets $10.50 adults;
$8.50 students, seniors, and veterans.
• Saturday, March 8, 2025, Time to be announced: 3rd Annual Lois Weber Film Festival. More details to come. Scheduled to be shown: "Hypocrites" (1915) directed by Lois Weber.
• Sunday, March 9, 2025, 2 p.m.: "Underworld" (1928) starring George Bancroft, directed by Josef von Sternberg; Wilton Town Hall Theatre, Main Street, Wilton, N.H.; (603) 654-3456. Director Josef von Sternberg's groundbreaking tale of big city mobsters,
widely considered the father of all gangster pictures. Tale follows
crime boss "Bull" Weed (George Bancroft) as he battles rival 1920s
gangsters. Incredible black-and-white photography; winner of first-ever
Oscar for original story by Ben Hecht. Silent film
with live music at a theater where movies have been shown since 1912.
Admission free, donations of $10 per person encouraged.
• Wednesday, March 19, 2025, 7:30 p.m.: "Before They Could Speak: Laurel & Hardy in the Silent Film Era" starring Stan Laurel and Oliver Hardy; The Walker Lecture Series, Concord City Auditorium, 2 Prince Street, Concord, N.H. Free and open to the public. See the famous comedy duo when they got their start during the silent film era, prior to the transition to talkies. Films include 'Two Tars' (1928), 'The Finishing Touch' (1928), and 'You're Darn Tootin'' (1928).
• Saturday, March 29, 2025, 2 p.m.: "Hollywood's First Sequel, Part I: The Mark of Zorro" (1920) starring Douglas Fairbanks Sr.; Wilton Town Hall Theatre, Main Street, Wilton, N.H.; (603) 654-3456. The film that led to Hollywood's first-ever big-time sequel! Douglas Fairbanks Sr. stars in the still-thrilling original adaptation. Great crowd-pleaser that had an enormous impact on popular culture, including inspiration for the "Batman" comic book series. The film was so successful it inspired Hollywood's first-ever big budget sequel: 'Don Q, Son of Zorro' (1925) to be screened on Sunday, March 30. Silent film with live music at a theater where movies have been shown since 1912. Admission free, donations of $10 per person encouraged.
• Saturday, March 29, 2025, 7 p.m.: "To Be Announced"; at the Blazing Star
Grange Hall, North Road in Danbury, N.H. (Preceded by "soup and bread"
dinner at 6 p.m.) Join us for a silent film
program in a historic (and authentic) small town N.H. Grange Hall. Soup
and bread supper served at 6 p.m., $5 per person; movie shown at 7 p.m.,
suggested donation of $5 per person.
• Sunday, March 30, 2025, 2 p.m.: "Hollywood's First Sequel, Part II: Don Q, Son of Zorro" (1925) starring Douglas Fairbanks Sr. Wilton Town Hall Theatre, Main Street, Wilton, N.H.; (603) 654-3456. Action/adventure sequel to mega-hit 'Zorro' with Fairbanks playing both son and
father, and having a ball. Builds on the original film to
create a hugely entertaining swashbuckler that shows how far Hollywood
had come in just five years. Silent film
with live music at a theater where movies have been shown since 1912.
Admission free, donations of $10 per person encouraged.
• Wednesday, April 2, 2025, 7 p.m.: "Show People" (1928) starring William Haines, Marion Davies; directed by King Vidor; The Rex Theatre, 23 Amherst St., Manchester, N.H.; (603) 574-4826. Young Peggy Pepper (Marion Davies) ventures to Hollywood to make her mark in drama, but finds an unexpected (and unwelcome) flair for slapstick comedy. King Vidor directed this entertaining valentine to an art form that would soon be swept aside by talking pictures. Full of cameos of stars ranging from Charlie Chaplin to Douglas Fairbanks Sr. Join us for a series of silent film programs with live music in a wonderful restored theater in downtown Manchester. Tickets $10 per person.
• Monday, April 7, 2025, 6:30 p.m.: "The Lost World" (1925) starring Wallace Beery; Greenfield Garden Cinemas, 361 Main St., Greenfield, Mass.; call (413) 773-9260 or visit www.gardencinemas.net. First-ever movie adaptation of Arthur Conan Doyle's legendary tale of British explorers who discover pre-historic creatures still thriving atop a remote South American plateau. Great entertainment; ground-breaking special effects by the same team that later created 'King Kong' mesmerized early movie audiences and remain impressive today. Tickets $10.50 adults; $8.50 students, seniors, and veterans.
• Sunday, April 13, 2025, 2 p.m.: "Ben Hur" (1925) starring Ramon Novarro; Wilton Town Hall Theatre, Main Street, Wilton, N.H.; (603) 654-3456. Celebrate the Easter Season with this resurrection of a vintage Biblical blockbuster! In the Holy Land, a Jewish prince is enslaved by the occupying Romans; inspired by encounters with Jesus, he lives to seek justice. One of the great religious epics of Hollywood's silent film era, including a legendary chariot race that's lost none of its power to thrill. Silent film with live music at a theater where movies have been shown since 1912. Admission free, donations of $10 per person encouraged.
• Sunday, April 27, 2025, 2 p.m.: "For Heaven's Sake" (1926) starring Harold Lloyd, Jobyna Ralston; Wilton Town Hall Theatre, Main Street, Wilton, N.H.; (603) 654-3456. Wealthy playboy Harold (who buys new cars based on how they match the color of his pants) falls for a young gal working for her father's church in the slums, giving rise to one of the best movie taglines ever: "A Man With a Mansion. A Miss With A Mission." Silent film with live music at a theater where movies have been shown since 1912. Admission free, donations of $10 per person encouraged.
• Saturday, May 10, 2025, 7 p.m.: "Title TBA"; Brandon Town Hall
and Community Center, Main Street/Route 7, Brandon, Vt.;
http://www.brandontownhall.com. Join us for a series
of silent films and live music in a wonderfully restored town hall in
Brandon Vt. that features great acoustics. Admission free, donations
accepted, with proceeds to help continuing preservation work.
• Sunday, May 18, 2025, 2 p.m.: "The Gaucho" (1927) starring Douglas Fairbanks Sr.; Wilton Town Hall Theatre, Main Street, Wilton, N.H.; (603) 654-3456. The leader of a band of outlaws in Argentina must help save a religious shrine from being taken over and closed by a corrupt general. Rarely screened and widely regarded as Fairbanks' darkest role. Silent film with live music at a theater where movies have been shown since 1912. Admission free, donations of $10 per person encouraged.
• Wednesday, May 28, 2025, 7 p.m.: "Title TBA";
Leavitt Theatre,
259 Main St. Route 1, Ogunquit, Maine; (207) 646-3123. Join us for a
summer season of movies and entertainment at the historic Leavitt
Theatre, celebrating its 100th anniversary. See great silent films with live music in a summer-only theater
opened in 1925 and barely changed since.
• Saturday, June 7, 2025, 7 p.m.: "Title TBA"; Brandon Town Hall and Community Center, Main Street/Route 7, Brandon, Vt.; http://www.brandontownhall.com. Join us for a series of silent films and live music in a wonderfully restored town hall in Brandon Vt. that features great acoustics. Admission free, donations accepted, with proceeds to help continuing preservation work.
• Sunday, June 8, 2025, 2 p.m.: "The Shakedown" (1929) starring James Murray, Barbara Kent; Wilton Town Hall Theatre, Main Street, Wilton, N.H.; (603) 654-3456. Summer mini-series of silent boxing movies. Round 1: Recently restored prize-fighting drama about a low-rent pugilist who finds reasons outside the ring to find success inside it. Directed by William Wyler, who would go on to a storied Hollywood career that included directing the 1959 remake of 'Ben Hur.' Silent film with live music at a theater where movies have been shown since 1912. Admission free, donations of $10 per person encouraged.
• Wednesday, June 11, 2025, 7 p.m.: "Title TBA";
Leavitt Theatre,
259 Main St. Route 1, Ogunquit, Maine; (207) 646-3123. Join us for a
summer season of movies and entertainment at the historic Leavitt
Theatre, celebrating its 100th anniversary. See great silent films with live music in a summer-only theater
opened in 1925 and barely changed since.
• Saturday, July 19, 2025, 7 p.m.: "Title TBA"; Brandon Town Hall and Community Center, Main Street/Route 7, Brandon, Vt.; http://www.brandontownhall.com. Join us for a series of silent films and live music in a wonderfully restored town hall in Brandon Vt. that features great acoustics. Admission free, donations accepted, with proceeds to help continuing preservation work.
• Wednesday, July 16, 2025, 7 p.m.: "Title TBA";
Leavitt Theatre,
259 Main St. Route 1, Ogunquit, Maine; (207) 646-3123. Join us for a
summer season of movies and entertainment at the historic Leavitt
Theatre, celebrating its 100th anniversary. See great silent films with live music in a summer-only theater
opened in 1925 and barely changed since.
• Sunday, July 27, 2025, 2 p.m.: "The Ring" (1927) directed by Alfred Hitchcock; Wilton Town Hall Theatre, Main Street, Wilton, N.H.; (603) 654-3456. Round 2: We continue our summer of silent boxing films with this British thriller from a very young Alfred Hitchcock. A woman married to an amateur boxer finds herself drawn to a champion pro fighter. The two men then must face each other in the squared circle.Silent film with live music at a theater where movies have been shown since 1912. Admission free, donations of $10 per person encouraged.
• Tuesday, Aug. 12, 2025, 7 p.m.: "Title TBA"; Moultonborough Public Library, 4 Holland St, Moultonborough, N.H.;
(603) 476-8895. Enjoy a classic silent film with live music.
Free and open to the public; attendees are asked to register in advance
at moultonboroughlibrary.org; look under the 'Events' area.
• Wednesday, Aug. 13, 2025, 7 p.m.: "Title TBA";
Leavitt Theatre,
259 Main St. Route 1, Ogunquit, Maine; (207) 646-3123. Join us for a
summer season of movies and entertainment at the historic Leavitt
Theatre, celebrating its 100th anniversary. See great silent films with live music in a summer-only theater
opened in 1925 and barely changed since.
• Saturday, Aug. 16, 2025, 7 p.m.: "Title TBA"; Brandon Town Hall and Community Center, Main Street/Route 7, Brandon, Vt.; http://www.brandontownhall.com. Join us for a series of silent films and live music in a wonderfully restored town hall in Brandon Vt. that features great acoustics. Admission free, donations accepted, with proceeds to help continuing preservation work.
• Saturday, Aug. 23, 2025, 7 p.m.: "Our Hospitality" (1923) starring Buster Keaton. Silent film with live music in the lovingly restored Ludlow Auditorium in Ludlow Town Hall in Ludlow, Vt.
• Sunday, Aug. 24, 2025, 2 p.m.: "Battling Butler" (1926) starring Buster Keaton; Wilton Town Hall Theatre, Main Street, Wilton, N.H.; (603) 654-3456. Round 2 of our mini-series of silent boxing movies. Buster Keaton's rarely screened boxing comedy gives the star a chance to be even more physical than usual. Rich and pampered Buster reluctantly takes up the Sweet Science to impress his girl, leading to knockout comedy both in and outside the ring. Silent film with live music at a theater where movies have been shown since 1912. Admission free, donations of $10 per person encouraged.
• Wednesday, Sept. 17, 2025, 7 p.m.: "Title TBA";
Leavitt Theatre,
259 Main St. Route 1, Ogunquit, Maine; (207) 646-3123. Join us for a
summer season of movies and entertainment at the historic Leavitt
Theatre, celebrating its 100th anniversary. See great silent films with live music in a summer-only theater
opened in 1925 and barely changed since.
• Saturday, Sept. 20, 2025, 7 p.m.: "Title TBA"; Brandon Town Hall and Community Center, Main Street/Route 7, Brandon, Vt.; http://www.brandontownhall.com. Join us for a series of silent films and live music in a wonderfully restored town hall in Brandon Vt. that features great acoustics. Admission free, donations accepted, with proceeds to help continuing preservation work.
• Sunday, Sept. 21, 2025, 2 p.m.: "J'Accuse" (1919) directed by Abel Gance; Wilton Town Hall Theatre, Main Street, Wilton, N.H.; (603) 654-3456. French silent film directed by Abel Gance that juxtaposes a romantic drama with the background of the horrors of World War I. Work on the film began in 1918, with some scenes filmed on real battlefields. The film's powerful depiction of wartime suffering, particularly its climactic sequence of the "return of the dead," made it an international success and confirmed Gance as one of the most important directors in Europe. Silent film with live music at a theater where movies have been shown since 1912. Admission free, donations of $10 per person encouraged.
• Saturday, Oct. 18, 2025, 7 p.m.: "Title TBA"; Brandon Town Hall and Community Center, Main Street/Route 7, Brandon, Vt.; http://www.brandontownhall.com. Join us for a series of silent films and live music in a wonderfully restored town hall in Brandon Vt. that features great acoustics. Admission free, donations accepted, with proceeds to help continuing preservation work.
• Sunday, Oct. 19, 2025, 2 p.m.: "Faust" (1926); Wilton Town Hall Theatre, Main Street, Wilton, N.H.; (603) 654-3456. Special Halloween screening of F.W. Murnau's last film made in Germany, an ambitious and visually stunning cinematic adaptation of the "Faust" legend, with Emil Jannings in a towering performance as Mephisto. Silent film with live music at a theater where movies have been shown since 1912. Admission free, donations of $10 per person encouraged.
• Monday, Oct. 27, 2025, 7 p.m.: "Title TBA";
Leavitt Theatre,
259 Main St. Route 1, Ogunquit, Maine; (207) 646-3123. Join us for a
summer season of movies and entertainment at the historic Leavitt
Theatre, celebrating its 100th anniversary. See great silent films with live music in a summer-only theater
opened in 1925 and barely changed since.
• Saturday, Nov. 15, 2025, 7 p.m.: "Title TBA"; Brandon Town Hall
and Community Center, Main Street/Route 7, Brandon, Vt.;
http://www.brandontownhall.com. Join us for a series
of silent films and live music in a wonderfully restored town hall in
Brandon Vt. that features great acoustics. Admission free, donations
accepted, with proceeds to help continuing preservation work.
• Sunday, Nov. 30, 2025, 2 p.m.: Raymond Griffith comedy double feature: "Paths to Paradise" (1925) and "Hands Up!" (1926); Wilton Town Hall Theatre, Main Street, Wilton, N.H.; (603) 654-3456. Rediscover the forgotten Raymond Griffith, the 'Silk Hat Comedian,'
whose unique character and sly wit made him a major player in 1920s
Hollywood. In 'Paths to Paradise,' Griffith is a jewel thief forced to
match wits with a female rival. 'Hands Up!' (1926), set during the U.S.
Civil War, finds Griffith as a Confederate spy assigned to prevent a
shipment of gold to support the Union Army. Silent film
with live music at a theater where movies have been shown since 1912.
Admission free, donations of $10 per person encouraged.
