Published: 4/1/2022 8:01:11 AM
Modified: 4/1/2022 8:00:15 AM
Town Hall Theatre, 40 Main St. in Wilton, will show a double feature of Lon Chaney in the crime drama “Flesh and Blood” and Harry Houdini in the adventure film “The Man From Beyond” Sunday, April 3 at 2 p.m.
The screenings will be accompanied with live music by Jeff Rapsis. Admission is free, and a donation of $10 per person is suggested to help defray expenses.
Released in 1922, both films celebrate their 100th anniversaries this year. In “Flesh and Blood,” Chaney plays an escaped convict who hides out in Chinatown and plots revenge. Chaney, known as the "Man of a Thousand Faces" due to his versatility with makeup, was a major star during Hollywood's silent era, including the title roles in the silent versions of “The Hunchback of Notre Dame” (1923) and “The Phantom of the Opera” (1925).
In “The Man From Beyond,” illusionist and escape artist Houdini plays an Arctic adventurer frozen for 100 years. Discovered and thawed out, he searches for his reincarnated lost love. Houdini was a Hungarian-born, American-Jewish illusionist and stunt performer noted for his sensational escape acts. His repertoire included escaping from ropes slung from skyscrapers, from straitjackets under water and from inside a sealed milk can with water in it.
Rapsis emphasized the value of seeing early cinema as it was originally presented.
"These films were designed for the big screen, live music, and large audiences. Put it all together, and you can get a sense of why people first fell in love with the movies," he stated.
The double feature is part of the Town Hall Theatre's ongoing series honoring the 100th anniversary of significant motion pictures that debuted in 1922, which will conclude with “Othello” Sunday, April 17 at 2 p.m. William Shakespeare's tragedy is brought to the screen in this early German version starring Emil Jannings.
For information, visit wiltontownhalltheatre.com or call 603-654-3456. For more about the music, visit jeffrapsis.com.