I LOVE silent movies. If you are fortunate enough to watch them in theaters, you might occasionally catch a screening accompanied by live music. When I was in grad school in Columbus, Ohio, I was lucky enough to see several silent films accompanied by the incredible silent film organist Clark Wilson.
For any silent movie fans who find themselves in Columbus during the summer, I highly recommend taking a tour of the Ohio Theatre. It is a stunning Spanish Baroque-style building originally constructed as a movie palace. Most importantly, it features a historic theatre organ that is still in use today. I was told it is one of the very few remaining theatre organs in the country that resides in its original home. I still remember Wilson “showing” us the different instruments hidden inside the theatre’s massive columns just by playing them on the organ.
Here is a glimpse of him performing back in June 2016 on the theatre tour:
I thought it would be hard to beat the silent movie experience at the Ohio Theatre until I was introduced to Japanese silent films at the Egyptian Theatre in Hollywood.
I went to a double feature of Every-Night Dreams and Apart From You at the end of February. Accompanying the films was pianist Makia Matsumura, but what truly captivated me was the presence of a Benshi performer. I had no idea what a Benshi was until I saw the advertisement for the screening.
A Benshi is a live narrator and voice actor who performs alongside the film. Because of this, the experience sits beautifully somewhere between cinema and live theatre. For instance, during Every-Night Dreams, Benshi performer Ichiro Kataoka was impeccable, seamlessly acting out every single character, including a child, a mother, and a father.
The presenter who introduced the double feature mentioned that Japan essentially never had a truly “silent” movie era, because their films were always brought to life by the voice of a Benshi. Considering that I watched these movies about three months ago and I am still thinking about them, the experience was truly unforgettable.