Going the distance with Lon Chaney, 'Dracula' at Somerville Theatre, and one more 'Nosferatu'

'Where East is East' (1929), screening today at 2 p.m. at the Town Hall Theatre, Wilton, N.H.

It's silent film aerobics. Three more! Two more! One more!

That's the feeling you get when accompanying nine separate feature films in six days.

Physically, it's not that demanding. I'm basically sitting and moving my fingers.

But mentally, it can be taxing. You're concentrating sometimes for hours without a break, again and again.

The trick, I think, is to pace yourself—take the films one a time, do the best you can with each, and always keep something in reserve.

It's like a 10-round boxing match. If you're in Round 7, you don't think about Round 10. You need to stay in the moment, or you'll get in trouble.

One odd effect of accumulated screenings is that the "silent film accompaniment" instinct sometimes keeps going even after a film has ended. 

I find myself opening the car door and thinking "okay, F minor chord here." 

It's like the old gag in which a punch-drunk boxer responds to any bell-like sound by instinctively going into a crouch and coming out swinging.

Well, the bout continues—in fact, it's actually heading toward something of a climax, this being the actual day of Halloween itself. 

Today's action include a round with Lon Chaney in 'Where East is East' (1929), the actor's final collaboration with director Tod Browning. The bell rings at 2 p.m. at the Town Hall Theatre in Wilton, N.H.

Then I head down to Somerville, Mass. this evening to create a live score for a 35mm print of 'Dracula' (1931)—another Browning film, but this one a talkie, with Bela Lugosi in the lead role. 

It's my first time back at the Somerville since accompanying a Rin Tin Tin double feature on March 15, 2020, the day before the venue shut down due to the pandemic.

I've never done music for the talking Dracula, but I think I have some good stuff ready. My aim is to bob and weave with the movie, to find opportunities where music can augment the movie without getting its way. We'll see how it all comes together this evening.

And I'll try to avoid getting too punchy in the process. Once the film starts, it's like the bell rings, and you must stay focused and in the moment to go the distance.

But then maybe boxing is the wrong analogy. Silent film accompaniment is more like ballet: the film and the musician dance together in the hopes of creating something exciting, absorbing, and perhaps even beautiful.

Or maybe it's a little of both.

Either way, see you at 2 p.m. in Wilton for Chaney is 'Where East is East' and then this evening in Somerville for 'Dracula' at 7 p.m. 

More details in the press release below:

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Bela Lugosi as Dracula menaces Helen Chandler in the 1931 classic.

 

TUESDAY, OCT. 12, 2021 / FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Contact Jeff Rapsis • (603) 236-9237 • jeffrapsis@gmail.com

Halloween special: Lugosi's 'Dracula' on big screen in 35mm with new live score

Horror classic to be shown at the Somerville Theatre on Sunday, Oct. 31 for one screening only

SOMERVILLE, Mass. — Do you dare spend Halloween braving 'Dracula' on the big screen?

That's the question at the Somerville Theatre, where the classic 1931 version of 'Dracula' will run for one showing only on Sunday, Oct. 31.

The movie, starring Bela Lugosi in the title role, will be shown using a 35mm film print from Universal Studios, which released the early horror classic in 1931.

Showtime is 7:30 p.m. General admission tickets are $15, with senior/student discounts. Tickets are available online at somervilletheatre.com or at the box office.

The screening will feature live music by Jeff Rapsis, the Somerville Theatre's silent film accompanist.

Although 'Dracula' is a talking picture, it was released with virtually no musical score, a common practice during the transition period from silent to sound pictures.

Rapsis will perform original music live during the screening using a digital keyboard to recreate the texture of a full orchestra.

Directed by Tod Browning, 'Dracula' was a sensational box office success and has mesmerized movie audiences ever since with its eerie visuals and Lugosi's iconic performance.

The story opens in far-off Transylvania, where mysterious Count Dracula hypnotizes a British soldier, Renfield (Dwight Frye), into becoming his mindless slave.

Dracula then travels to England and takes up residence in an old castle. Soon the Count begins to wreak havoc, sucking the blood of young women and turning them into vampires.

When he sets his sights on Mina (Helen Chandler), the daughter of a prominent doctor, vampire-hunter Van Helsing (Edward Van Sloan) is enlisted to put a stop to Dracula's never-ending bloodlust.

Located in Davis Square, the Somerville Theatre is one of the few first-run venues in the region committed to preserving the ability to screen movies using 35mm film prints.

"We feel it's important to show films on actual film when possible, the way classic movies were intended to be shown," said Ian Judge, creative director of the Somerville Theatre.

The Somerville recently reopened after a 17-month hiatus for the pandemic, during which significant renovations were made to the 1914 theater.

The Halloween screening of 'Dracula' will include live music by Jeff Rapsis, a local composer and performer who specializes in creating accompaniment for silent films.  

'Dracula' was released when Hollywood and movie theatres were still undergoing the transition from the silent era to pictures with synchronized sound and dialogue.

During the silent era, studios did not produce official scores for most films. Instead, accompaniment was left up to local musicians, and could vary greatly from one moviehouse to another.

When studios converted to talking pictures, the tradition of recording a musical score was not well established. In the case of 'Dracula,' Universal omitted music in part to save production costs.

As a result, after the opening credits, the 1931 'Dracula' contains no music except for a brief scene in an opera house.

In recent decades, composers have experimented with creating original music for the movie—most notably Philip Glass, who composed a score in 1998 for the Kronos string quartet.

Rapsis sees 'Dracula' as closely linked to the silent-era tradition of films shown with live music.

"Tod Browning was a prolific director of silent films, including many thrillers that anticipate 'Dracula,' " Rapsis said. "So even though 'Dracula' is a talking picture, Browning's filmmaking style is strongly rooted in the silent era, when it was assumed that local musicians would be important collaborators in a picture's effect on an audience."

Unlike the Glass score, which plays almost continuously during the movie, Rapsis will use music only in certain places where he feels it will either enhance the mood, heighten tension, or signify a change in the emotional line of the story.

Although 'Dracula' is not a silent film, there are definitely places where the silence speaks volumes and remains very effective," Rapsis said. "I hope to leave those intact, but enrich other parts of the film in the way that only music can."

Silent film accompanist Jeff Rapsis. Yes, those are his real teeth!

Rapsis works largely by improvising as a film plays in the theater, in the tradition of theatre organists of the 1920s.

"There's something very special about the in-the-moment energy of a live improvised performance," Rapsis said. "It's never the same, and at its best it really can help a film connect with an audience and make the whole experience come together."

The original 'Dracula' (1931) starring Bela Lugosi will be shown in 35mm and with live music for one screening only on Halloween night, Sunday, Oct. 31 at 7:30 p.m. at the Somerville Theatre, 55 Davis Square, Somerville, Mass.

Tickets are $15 per person, with discounts for students and seniors. For more info, call the theater at (617) 625-5700 or visit www.somervilletheatre.com.

Calling all kids! 'Peter Pan' (1924) with live music on Sunday, 1/24 at Wilton's Town Hall Theatre

Original promotional art for 'Peter Pan' (1924). 

Next up: the original silent film version of 'Peter Pan' (1924), which we're showing with live music on Sunday, Jan. 24 at 2 p.m. at the Town Hall Theatre in Wilton, N.H.

I'm big on this one for people (especially families with kids) who aren't regular silent film fans because it makes a great impression. In fact, I vividly recall the first time I experienced it. 

It was in March 2000, and the first time I attended the Kansas Silent Film Festival. I was there to see (and hear) the Mont Alto Motion Picture Orchestra perform, and used a Delta flight pass to journey out there.

'Peter Pan' was the first film they accompanied. Like most people, I had no idea there was a silent film version, and it turned out to be a revelation. From the moment Nana the family St. Bernard came to life in the opening scene, I was a believer.

I've gone back to Kansas every year since, eventually joining their stable of accompanists once I started doing music for silent film screenings. 

So, in an update from the present, I'm sad to report that just yesterday we learned that this year's Kansas festival has been cancelled due to coronavirus. 

Some online presentations might be staged this year to tide us over. But we'll need to wait until February of 2022 for the next Kansas Silent Film Festival, which by default will now become the 25th "annual."

However, our screening of 'Peter Pan' next Sunday is a go. (That's Betty Bronson in the lead role: she was handpicked by author J.M. Barrie to play the part.) 

Our ability to show films during an ongoing pandemic is thanks largely to the Town Hall Theatre's ability to comply with all Covid-19 public health recommendations to keep patrons safe. It's mostly common sense: masks on until seated, social distancing, frequent cleaning and hand sanitizing. 

We've been doing silent films with live music since the theater reopened last July, with no problems so far.

In fact, we've just completed a week-long series, 'The Storytellers,' which included screenings of five big features five days in a row. That's a lot of music, but I enjoy the occasional multi-day marathon as it enables me to get deeply in the accompaniment zone. 

For some reason, after maybe the third day of a run of continuous shows, I begin to be capable of things that I can't explain. Music seems to flow directly from the keyboard—there's a fluency that's otherwise not present. Maybe it's fatigue-induced.

Well, with no screenings this coming week, I should be well rested for 'Peter Pan' on Sunday, Jan. 24. Also, I'm pleased to report that Jordan Rich of WBZ-AM 1030, the all-news radio station in Boston, recently recorded a "New England Weekend" segment promoting our screening. 

You can listen to it here: New England Weekend

For more information and details, check out the press release below. Hope to see all you kids (and kids at heart) who won't grow up on Sunday, Jan. 24 at the Town Hall Theater!

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MONDAY, JAN. 11, 2021 / FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
For more info, contact: Jeff Rapsis • (603) 236-9237 • jeffrapsis@gmail.com 

Silent film version of 'Peter Pan' at Town Hall Theatre on Sunday, Jan. 24

Original big-screen adaptation of magical fantasy classic to be shown with live musical score

WILTON, N.H.—It was the film that introduced movie-goers to visions of flying children, magical fairies, human-like animals and menacing pirates.

It was the original silent film adaptation of 'Peter Pan,' a picture personally supervised by author J.M. Barrie. The film was a major hit when released in 1924, with audiences eager to get their first big-screen look at the wonders of Neverland.

Movie fans can see for themselves when the first 'Peter Pan' (1924) is screened on Sunday, Jan. 24 at 2 p.m. at the Town Hall Theatre, 40 Main St., Wilton, N.H.

The screening will be accompanied by live music by Jeff Rapsis, a New Hampshire-based silent film musician.

Admission is free; a donation of $10 per person is suggested to support the Town Hall Theatre's silent film series.

The Town Hall Theatre continues to observe procedures to comply with all state and CDC public health guidelines, including reduced seating capacity.

Thought lost for many years, and overshadowed by more recent adaptations, the original silent 'Peter Pan' maintains its freshness and charm nearly a century after its original release.

In the story, first presented as a stage play in 1904, three children in London are visited one night by Peter Pan, a youth in search of his shadow. Pan shows his new friends how to fly, and then convinces them to join him in a journey to Neverland.

There they encounter Indians, mermaids, and a band of pirates whose leader, Captain Hook, is Pan's sworn enemy. The children are captured by Hook and taken prisoner aboard his pirate ship, setting the stage for an epic battle, the outcome of which will determine if the children may return home.

Though the Peter Pan story is well-known today due to subsequent adaptations (and also merchandising that includes a ubiquitous brand of peanut butter), the tale was new when Hollywood first brought it to film in the early 1920s.

In England, author Barrie gave his blessing to the first-ever screen adaptation, though he retained control over casting and insisted that any written titles in the film be taken directly from his own text.

After a major talent search, Barrie settled on unknown 18-year-old actress Betty Bronson for the title role, and filming began in 1924. The role of Captain Hook was played by noted character actor Ernest Torrence, who invented the now-iconic villainous pirate persona that would become a Hollywood legend.

The film's highlights include special effects that maintain their ability to dazzle even today. The film's memorable images include a group of mermaids entering the sea, a miniature Tinkerbell interacting with full-sized children and adults, and a pirate ship lifting out of the water and taking flight.

'Peter Pan' also includes a cast of animal characters played by humans in costume, including the family dog Nana and an alligator who serves as Hook's nemesis, lending the film a magical quality.

After the film's release, no copies of the original 'Peter Pan' were known to exist, and for many years the film was regarded as lost. However, in the 1950s a single surviving print turned up in the George Eastman Archives in Rochester, N.Y., from which all copies today have descended.

The show also includes Chapter 2 of "Officer 444" (1926), a weekly serial in which Officer 444 pursues "The Frog," a criminal mastermind with plans to take over the world. Subsequent chapters will be shown at future Town Hall Theatre silent film screenings.

Accompanist Jeff Rapsis specializes in creating live musical scores for films made prior to the introduction of recorded sound. Based in New Hampshire, Rapsis specializes in improvising music for silent film screenings at venues ranging from Harvard University in Cambridge, Mass. to the Niles Essanay Silent Film Museum in San Francisco, Calif.

Rapsis creates film scores in real time, as a movie is running, using a digital synthesizer to reproduce the texture of a full orchestra. He averages about 100 performances per year, and has created music for more than 300 different silent feature films.

"Improvising a movie score is a bit of a high wire act, but it can result in music that fits a film's mood and action better than anything that can be written down in advance," Rapsis said. "It also lends a sense of excitement and adventure to the screening, as no two performances are exactly alike."

'Peter Pan' is the latest in the Town Hall Theatre's series of silent films with live music.

The series gives movie-goers a chance to rediscover the experience of silent cinema presented as it was intended: on a big screen, with live music, and with an audience.

"If you can put all the original elements together, the films of early Hollywood still come to life," said Rapsis. "These are the films that caused people to first fall in love with the movies."

Upcoming programs include:

• Sunday, Feb. 7, 2021, 2 p.m.: "The Freshman" (1925). In honor of Super Bowl Sunday, Harold Lloyd's blockbuster hit comedy about a college boy who dreams of success on the gridiron. One of Lloyd's all-time best!

• Sunday, Feb. 14, 2021, 2 p.m.: "Seventh Heaven" (1927) Celebrate Valentine's Day with Frank Borzage's legendary tale of romance on the eve of World War I. Leading lady Janet Gaynor won the very first Academy Award for Best Actress for his work in this moving, emotional tribute to the timeless power of love.

‘Peter Pan’ (1924) will be shown on Sunday, Jan. 24 at 2 p.m. at the Town Hall Theatre, 40 Main St., Wilton, N.H. Admission is free; a donation of $10 per person is suggested to support the Town Hall Theatre's silent film series.

For more info, call (603) 654-3456 or visit www.wiltontownhalltheatre.com.