Set List | Film Screening - 'The Frozen North', E F Cline, B Keaton, Film Screening - 'Big Business', J W Horne, L McCarey, Film Screening - 'There Ain't No Santa Clause', J Parrott |
Performance Notes | This December, cosy up in our intimate Elgar Room for a festive evening of Christmassy silent films featuring live musical accompaniment from world class silent film pianist and host Neil Brand.
Relax with a mince pie and mulled wine as you enjoy our specially curated programme of shorts featuring comic geniuses Buster Keaton and Laurel and Hardy. Theres also the chance to see some other rarer gems from Charley Chase and more
Programme includes: Buster Keaton in The Frozen North Directors: Edward F. Cline, Buster Keaton USA \ 1922 \ 23 min \ B/W Buster Keaton uproariously lampoons the melodramas of William S. Hart, and the highly stylised and absurd conventions of Twenties Western epics, when he finds himself in the frozen north, last stop on the subway.
Laurel and Hardy in Big Business Directors: James W Horne, Leo McCarey USA \ 1929 \ 19 mins \ B/W Ollie and Stanley are two Christmas Tree sales reps who get into one of their usual mutual destruction fights with a homeowner.
Scrooge, or, Marleys Ghost Director: Walter R. Booth UK \ 1901 \ 4 min \ B&W Scrooge, or, Marleys Ghost, is the oldest known film adaptation of Charles Dickenss classic ghost story, A Christmas Carol and features the miserly Ebeneezer Scrooge confronted by Marleys ghost and given by visions of Christmas Past, Present and Future.
Recognised as the doyen of silent film pianists, Neil Brand has been accompanying silent films for nearly 30 years and is considered one of the finest exponents of improvised silent film accompaniment in the world. He recently presented the BBC4 series Sound of Song, hot on the heels of his previous series for BBC Four, the highly acclaimed Sound of Cinema. |