Encore performance, “Down to the Sea in Ships,” Fri., 2/7. Doors open at 5:30 PM, Film begins at 6:00 PM. Tickets are $10 for Members or $20 for General Public At the New Bedford Whaling Museum, 18 Johnny Cake Hill. Experience the film just as audiences would have in the silent film era . . . with live piano!
Down to the Sea in Ships (1922), directed by Elmer Clifton and filmed in New Bedford, is a full feature silent film (1:34) that’ll be screened in the Whaling Museum’s Harbor View Gallery with musical score performed live at a grand piano by Jennifer A. Maxwell, a Classical Concert Pianist.
Using some archival material and some original material, Maxwell created a theme for each character (hero’s theme, villain’s theme, etc.) and each type of action (love theme, whaling theme, etc.), timed them to occur exactly for the durations of the scenes, and composed them in keys and such that would segue appropriately from one to the next. She also utilized a couple of vintage tunes that would have been recognizable in the day, weaving them in with the original music. All with the purpose of underscoring the narrative and providing cohesion in a medium in which there is no dialogue. With its theme of whaling, and its inclusion of the only legally filmed whale hunt in cinema history, the film is a brilliant record of New Bedford history. It also is notable for featuring the debut of the inimitable flapper girl movie star Clara Bow — and she is indeed delightful!
Doors open at 5:30 PM for a lite bite and cash bar service in the Harbor View Gallery (Upper Level), with limited cabaret style seating, and rows of chairs. for film viewing. Remarks and film screening will begin promptly at 6:00 PM. The event ends at 8:00 PM Tickets at https://tinyurl.com/krwyxpww. Visit https://www.whalingmuseum.org/
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