Thursday, September 22, 2011

Phantom of the Opera at Saltburn Community Arts

Saltburn Community and Arts Centre is staging a thrilling vintage film screening on Friday 30 September at 7.30pm.
The 1925 silent film version of ‘The Phantom of the Opera’, directed by Rupert Julian, is a classic adaptation of the novel by Gaston Leroux. It stars Lon Chaney in the title role as the masked and facially disfigured ‘Phantom’. It is a masterpiece of horror that shocked cinema for decades.
The film is most famous for Lon Chaney’s intentionally horrific, self-applied make-up, which was kept a studio secret until the film’s premiere. The impressive sets of the Paris Opera House, the catacombs, the colour footage, and the lavish costuming, all add to the atmosphere of the film. This was truly the masterpiece of Chaney’s career and ranks as one of the greatest tour-de-force performances of the silent era. The grand atmospheric melodrama with its balance of terror and tragedy provides a perfect vehicle for the dark ambient jazz soundscapes of Cipher who provide the live score to the film.

Tickets cost £6.00 and are available from Saltburn Health Foods or by calling 01287 624622.

No comments: