SILENT FILM: PANDORA'S BOX

Pandora’s Box is a 1928 silent film based on two plays by Frank Wedekind; Earth Spirit and Pandora’s Box. Louise Brooks plays Lulu, who is a wickedly charming showgirl and the mistress of a wealthy publisher, Dr Ludwig Schön. A tragic series of events is set into motion when Schön finds Lulu entertaining another man. In his attempt to end his relationship with Lulu, Schön confesses he is engaged to another woman. An intense argument results in Lulu shooting and killing him. Now on the run, Lulu’s downward spiral devastates everyone around her.

Organist Jay Spencer, currently the house organist at the Canton Palace Theatre, began playing pre-show music before the feature films at the Palace Theatre pushing to bring back silent movies to the theatre. He prepares for silent films by first watching the movie with the volume on mute in order to develop his accompaniment repertoire. The audience should expect to hear some period songs that they might recognize.

The E.M. Skinner Pipe Organ, Opus 582 is the only remaining Skinner organ in the area. The organ features four manual consoles, 67 stops, and nearly four thousand pipes that vary from the smallest which is the size and weight of a #2 pencil to the largest which is 30 inches by 32 feet and weighs 750 pounds. There are 58 ranks altogether.