Charlie Chaplin and Virginia Cherrill in City Lights. Used by permission, City Lights © Roy Export S.A.S.
(Photo: Submitted)
FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. – The University of Arkansas will join
with Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art and the Arkansas Philharmonic Orchestra
for a series of events devoted to the films of Charlie Chaplin, and
particularly to the music Chaplin composed for those films.
Chaplin is considered to be one of the greatest film performers
and directors of the 20th century. Like every silent filmmaker, he was
challenged by the coming of sound in the late 1920s and early 1930s. Chaplin
met this challenge by composing film scores that matched the quality of his
images, and his performances.
The U of A will host a panel discussion exploring the art
of silent film music and Chaplin’s virtuosity as a composer from 8-9:30 p.m.
Thursday, Sept. 26, in Giffels Auditorium at Old Main. The event is free
and open to the public.
Filmmaker Lynn Cadwallader will show clips from her new
documentary The Sound of the Silents,
then join noted Chaplin scholars Charles Maland, Kate Guyonvarch, Lisa Haven
and Hooman Mehran in a discussion of early movie music and Charlie Chaplin's innovations
as a composer. Silent film pianist Jeff Rapsis and Steven Byess, director of
the Arkansas Philharmonic, will also share their insights on Chaplin and his
music.
This event is sponsored by the University of Arkansas
Department of Communication, the J. William Fulbright College of Arts and
Sciences, and the Center for Arkansas and Regional Studies.
The panel discussion is being held in conjunction with
Crystal Bridges’ “Art of the Citizen” symposium, which also focuses strongly on
Chaplin’s film and music. The symposium events begin with a reception from 7-9
p.m. Wednesday, September 25 in the Great Hall at Crystal Bridges that will
feature screenings of four of Chaplin’s early two reelers, with live piano
accompaniment by Jeff Rapsis. Symposium organizers Sara Segerlin, senior
educator at Crystal Bridges, and Frank Scheide, U of A professor of film, will
offer opening remarks. The event is free with online registration.
The symposium continues with a panel discussion of one of
Chaplin’s masterpieces, City Lights,
at 11 a.m. Thursday, Sept. 26, featuring Chaplin experts Charles Maland and
Kate Guyonvarch, along with Arkansas Philharmonic director Steven Byess. At 12:30 p.m., three more of Chaplin's early
comedies will be shown with live musical accompaniment by Jeff Rapsis. This
will be followed at 2 p.m. by a discussion of “Chaplin in the 1930s as a
Citizen Artist,” with Hooman Mehran, Lisa Haven, and Kate Guyonvarch offering
insights on Chaplin’s influence on art for the citizen.
The Chaplin events will conclude with the Arkansas
Philharmonic performing the score of City
Lights as the film is shown at 2 p.m. Sunday, Sept. 29, in the Arend Arts
Center, Bentonville.
More information about these events is available at the Crystal Bridges website or 479-418-5700, and at the Arkansas Philharmonic website.