St Alphege Church Choirs
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Silent Movie Night - 7th October
On
Saturday 7th October, The Friends of St Alphege Music will be offering a
special cinema experience with a difference with our Silent Movie
Night. We will be showing the 1922 silent horror film ‘Nosferatu’
starring Max Schreck as the vampire Count Orlok, together with live,
improvised organ accompaniment from internationally acclaimed organist,
Alex Mason.
Nosferatu is universally recognised as one of the best horror films of all time, and has a key place in the history of cinema. It is an unauthorised adaptation of Bram Stoker’s Dracula, and the production house were sued over its release and ordered to destroy all copies of the film. Fortunately for the history of cinema it was an order that could not be enforced, and a few copies remained.
.
The film follows the story of Dracula closely, though names have been changed. The Dracula character, Graf Orlok, was played by Max Schreck as a hideous walking corpse with a bald head, pointy teeth and long fingernails; Jonathan Harker becomes Thomas Hutter, Mina Harker is Ellen, Renfield is Knock and Van Helsing becomes Professor Bulwer.
The mysterious Count Orlok (Max Schreck) summons Thomas Hutter (Gustav von Wangenheim) to his remote Transylvanian castle in the mountains. The eerie Orlok seeks to buy a house near Hutter and his wife, Ellen (Greta Schroeder). After Orlok reveals his vampire nature, Hutter struggles to escape the castle, knowing that Ellen is in grave danger. Meanwhile Orlok's servant, Knock (Alexander Granach), prepares for his master to arrive at his new home.
Alex Mason is currently the Director of Chapel Music at Shrewsbury School. Prior to that he was Organist and Master of Choristers at St David's Cathedral. He has received numerous prizes for his organ playing, including First Prize in the Grand Prix d'Improvisation in Biarritz in 2001. He has improvised live on BBC Radio 3 and Radio France, performed at music festivals throughout the world, recorded music for CD and television shows, and is an active composer. To read Alex's full biography, please click here.
Nosferatu is universally recognised as one of the best horror films of all time, and has a key place in the history of cinema. It is an unauthorised adaptation of Bram Stoker’s Dracula, and the production house were sued over its release and ordered to destroy all copies of the film. Fortunately for the history of cinema it was an order that could not be enforced, and a few copies remained.
.
The film follows the story of Dracula closely, though names have been changed. The Dracula character, Graf Orlok, was played by Max Schreck as a hideous walking corpse with a bald head, pointy teeth and long fingernails; Jonathan Harker becomes Thomas Hutter, Mina Harker is Ellen, Renfield is Knock and Van Helsing becomes Professor Bulwer.
The mysterious Count Orlok (Max Schreck) summons Thomas Hutter (Gustav von Wangenheim) to his remote Transylvanian castle in the mountains. The eerie Orlok seeks to buy a house near Hutter and his wife, Ellen (Greta Schroeder). After Orlok reveals his vampire nature, Hutter struggles to escape the castle, knowing that Ellen is in grave danger. Meanwhile Orlok's servant, Knock (Alexander Granach), prepares for his master to arrive at his new home.
Alex Mason is currently the Director of Chapel Music at Shrewsbury School. Prior to that he was Organist and Master of Choristers at St David's Cathedral. He has received numerous prizes for his organ playing, including First Prize in the Grand Prix d'Improvisation in Biarritz in 2001. He has improvised live on BBC Radio 3 and Radio France, performed at music festivals throughout the world, recorded music for CD and television shows, and is an active composer. To read Alex's full biography, please click here.
This is cinema as it used to be with a musician trying to capture the
mood as the silent movie's images flash across the silver screen, and promises to be a great evening's entertainment.
Refreshments and a licensed bar will be available. Doors and bar open at 7pm, the film starts at 7.30pm.
Tickets are £10 for adults, £5 for children. Tel 07730 981038 or buy online here.