Thursday, April 30, 2009

Not forgotten

Tuesday, April 28, 2009

Silent Film Stars on the Stages of Seattle

I've just posted a review of Silent Film Stars on the Stages of Seattle, a new book by Eric Flom. I recommend it. My article can be found at examiner.com  This new book is film history seen through the lens of the local.



Louise Brooks never visited Seattle, but many of her contemporaries and co-stars did - everyone from Ted Shawn to Charlie Chaplin and Buster Keaton and Rudolph Valentino. Their stories are told in Silent Film Stars on the Stages of Seattle.

Monday, April 27, 2009

Dance inspired by Louise Brooks

The silent film star Louise Brooks, a one time member of Denishawn and an exhibition dancer later in life, is the inspiration behind a dance piece in Spain. The piece is called "Sono Silente," or "Silent Dream."

Dolores Mayan, artistic director and choreographer of the company, sent me an email about the performance. More information, including images, text and video can be found at the dance company's website at www.bstudiodanza.com/ Additional information can be found at www.bstudiodanza.com/pageID_6666168.html

According to her email, her choreography was "inspired by the actress Louise Brooks" and her still "potent image" - and in particular two of her movies, The Canary Murder Case and Pandora's Box. Bangs, black bobs, expressive physical behavior and cages which echo those seen in The Canary Murder Case can be seen in the video clip seen below.




From the Bstudiodanza website: "La compañía Bstudiodanza estrena su último espectáculo, Sono Silente de la directora Dolores Mayán que nos acerca una reflexión teórica sobre el sistema sexo-género. Y lo hace a través de dos filmes de Louise Brooks, la actriz norteamericana e icono del cine mudo de los años 30. La pieza evidencia el devenir preformativo de la feminidad y ‘la mascarada’ teorizada por Joan Riviere en un trabajo de gran carga simbólica y poética.

Tomando como referente dos de sus filmes más conocidos, ‘The Canary Murder Case’ y ‘Pandora’s Box’, Sono Silente trata de analizar los estereotipos que rodean a la feminidad en el discurso cinematográfico de la época, para describir y clasificar los roles asignados en función del género.

La relación entre el concepto y la coreografía conforma una plataforma a partir de la cual los cuerpos se apropian del movimiento de una forma reflexiva, recontextualizando los patrones establecidos y abriendo campos de búsqueda.

Con este espectáculo al igual que con los dos anteriores, ‘De Meu’ y ‘Corpos Reflexivos’, BStudiodanza pretende contar historias cercanas que despierten la curiosidad del público y la reflexión dentro de una plástica más sensorial que racional. La historia adquiere importancia, al igual que el guión y el trabajo de las bailarinas Emilia Pardo, Natalia Iglesias, Vanesa Otero y Celia Mayer.
"

Saturday, April 25, 2009

Louise Brooks screenings in LA

Four Louise Brooks films will be shown in May at the Silent Movie Theatre in Los Angeles, California. If I lived in Southern California, I would not miss these screening. For more information, see http://silentmovietheatre.com/calendar/wednesday.html#may

5/6 @ 8pm / SERIES: Louise Brooks
Pandora's Box
Description coming soon...
Tickets - $10
5/13 @ 8pm / SERIES: Louise Brooks
Diary Of A Lost Girl
Tickets - $10
5/20 @ 8pm / SERIES: Louise Brooks
It's The Old Army Game
Tickets - $10
5/27 @ 8pm / SERIES: Louise Brooks 
Beggars Of Life 
Tickets - $10

Friday, April 24, 2009

Meredith from the UK

Yesterday, my wife and I had lunch with Meredith Lawrence, longtime member of the LBS from Nottingham, England who was here in San Francisco on a visit. Meredith brought me some Louise Brooks goodies from across the pond. Thank you Meredith. it was a pleasure to see you again!

Thursday, April 23, 2009

A Shakespearean Lulu

Today's edition of the Columbia Missourian carries an article about a local Shakespearean production whose characters are composed of silent film stars, including Louise Brooks. Check out the article here. The article reads in part:
 
He has taken a meta-theatrical approach — that is, the use of theater as a metaphor for life — to the direction of "Twelfth Night," which begins Thursday. The characters on stage play archetypal figures from the era of silent film.

“I chose actors from the silent film era who crafted on-screen personas that resemble the characters found in 'Twelfth Night,'” Johnson said. For example, Orsino, the Duke of Illyria in "Twelfth Night," is Rudolph Valentino as he appeared in the classic "Son of the Sheik."

Johnson said that in Shakespeare’s play, Orsino becomes trapped in the role of a lover who is narcissistic and immobilized by his vision of true love. Similar to Orsino’s character, Valentino was inextricably linked to his image as "The Great Lover." "Women are not in love with me but with the picture of me on the screen," he was reported to have said. "I am merely the canvas on which women paint their dreams.”  

Other "Twelfth Night" re-imaginings include Malvolio as Lon Chaney, Olivia as Louise Brooks, Sir Toby as Roscoe "Fatty" Arbuckle and Feste as Charlie Chaplin. 

For audience members unfamiliar with silent film stars and stories, lobby displays and program notes will help fill in the context. Johnson hopes the production will work on a few levels.  

“Audience members who see the parallels between the two will have additional layers to contemplate," Johnson said. "Lovers of Shakespeare can hear his beautifully crafted story and poetry, and everyone can enjoy the physical humor, the music and the dancing."
 
I would love to hear from anyone who attends this production!

Wednesday, April 22, 2009

Bibliophilia



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