The Soraya Screens PHANTOM OF THE OPERA with Live Orchestra

Terror rages at the Paris Opera House, all in the name of love.

A Halloween treat pairs live orchestra with the 1925 horror classic The Phantom of the Opera on The Soraya's large screen on Saturday, November 3 at 8:00pm. The original score ratchets up the spook factor with the world's foremost theater organ expert, Dennis James on the rare Allen theatre organ. CSUN alum Richard Kaufman returns to conduct the New West Symphony with the haunting score.

Single tickets from $34 to $71 are now available. For more information or to purchase tickets, visit www.TheSoraya.org or call 818-677-3000. Younes and Soraya Nazarian Center for the Performing Arts is located at 18111 Nordhoff Street, Northridge, CA 91330. Ticket prices subject to change.

"Audiences can enjoy Star Wars with live orchestra at the Hollywood Bowl. At The Soraya, we mix it up, representing nearly a century of film music and film composers," said The Soraya's Executive Director Thor Steingraber. "The partnerships with New West Symphony and conductor Richard Kaufman have become a staple in our season every year. Returning from the huge success of Buster Keaton's The General is organist Dennis James."

The film is noted for not only for Lon Chaney's memorable performance, but also the innovative make-up that looks so striking on film. Roger Ebert said, "The Phantom is invested by the intense and inventive Lon Chaney with a horror and poignancy that is almost entirely created with body language. More of his face is covered than in modern versions (a little gauze curtain flutters in front of his mouth), but look at the way his hand moves as he gestures toward the coffin as the titles announce 'that is where I sleep.' It is a languorous movement that conveys great weary sadness. In [Phantom's] fevered melodrama and images of cadaverous romance, it finds a kind of show-biz majesty. And it has two elements of genius: It creates beneath the opera one of the most grotesque places in the cinema, and Chaney's performance transforms an absurd character into a haunting one."

About the silent film, The Phantom of The Opera

Universal Pictures spared no expense in producing The Phantom of the Opera. They built the first steel and concrete stage in Hollywood, which housed the entire interior set of the Opera House, the backstage area, and the grand staircase. This stage, which still stands today on the Universal lot, is the only surviving set from any Chaney film. The studio also hired over 250 dancers for elaborate dance numbers supervised by renown dance producer Ernest Belcher and shot the masked ball sequence, among other scenes, in the early two-color Technicolor process.

It is easy to see why Chaney was attracted to the title character of Gaston Leroux's novel. The dramatic demands and the makeup required for the Phantom presented a challenge Chaney couldn't pass up. Some of his gruesome effects were created by using a combination of cotton and collodion for the raised and extended cheekbones, a strip of fishskin attached to the nose with spirit gum for the up-tilted nose effect, and dark eyeliner shading to give him that hollow-eyed look

Chaney's performance was universally praised and so were the elaborate sets and costumes; his innovative makeup influenced generations of makeup artists like Bob Kane (Tim Burton's Batman)..
It also marked a turning point in Chaney's career. It would be his final film with Universal Studios. Chaney had just signed a new contract with MGM and already completed the studio's first feature, He Who Gets Slapped, which was an unqualified success.

The filming itself was plagued by numerous difficulties -- Chaney clashed frequently with his director, Rupert Julien, whose claim to fame as completing Merry-Go-Round after Erich von Stroheim had been fired. The relationship between Chaney and Julien deteriorated to where the actor refused to talk to or take direction from Julien. Various scenes, including the sequence with the falling chandelier, were re-shot due to inadequate lighting.

And after production was completed, a sneak preview for audiences convinced the studio to go back and add scenes with Chester Conklin - directed by Edward Sedgwick known for his MGM Buster Keaton films -- for comic relief as well as a romantic subplot. They were discarded, even a new set of title cards was created since so many gaps existed in the film's storyline. (adapted from www.tcm.com)

About Dennis James, Organ

Dennis James has dedicated his professional career to the theatrical traditions of organ performance and furthering public interest in the pipe organ. From the time he began performing concerts while still in his teens, James has been at the top of the organ profession. He has played virtually everywhere pipe organs are to be found, from the spectacular movie palaces throughout the United States and Canada to the most prestigious concert halls and theaters in Europe and the Far East.

For more than 40 years Dennis James has played a pivotal role in the international revival of silent films with live music. Beginning as an accompanist for university screenings, James now tours worldwide under auspices of his Silent Film Concerts Production Company presenting professional silent film programs with accompaniments ranging from solo piano or theatre organ, to chamber ensembles and full symphony orchestras. Performing to film at an ever-increasing number of sites throughout the world, James is celebrated for providing the most comprehensive selection of authentic silent films with live music presentations available today. James recently performed sellout silent film programs with the Chicago Symphony Orchestra at Orchestra Hall and the Dallas Symphony Orchestra at Meyerson Symphony Center, and his international silent film presentations have been seen most recently in Canada, Mexico, Australia, New Zealand, England , Singapore, France, Germany, Austria, The Netherlands and Italy.

About Richard Kaufman, Conductor

Richard Kaufman has devoted much of his musical life to conducting and supervising music for film and television productions, as well as performing film and classical music in concert halls and on recordings. The 2017-2018 concert season marks Richard's twenty-sixth season as Principal Pops Conductor of Orange County's Pacific Symphony. He holds the permanent title of Pops Conductor Laureate with the Dallas Symphony, and is in his eleventh season with the Chicago Symphony Orchestra concert series, CSO at the Movies, conducting classic and contemporary film music, as well as classical music used in motion pictures. Richard regularly appears as a guest conductor with symphony orchestras throughout both the United States and around the world including Cleveland, St. Louis, San Diego, Indianapolis, Utah, Edmonton, the Royal Liverpool Philharmonic, the Royal Scottish National Orchestra, and the RTE Concert Orchestra in Dublin, Ireland. Richard has conducted throughout Australia, including sold-out performances at the Sydney Opera House. Following his 2014 conducting debut at the Catalina Island Museum Silent Film Gala, Richard returned to Catalina in 2015, conducting the 1925 classic thriller,Phantom of the Opera with Organist Dennis James. In May 2015, Kaufman made his conducting debut with the Boston Pops, substituting for John Williams at the Annual Pops Film Night. This past summer, Mr. Williams graciously invited him to share the podium at the annual Tanglewood Film Night. During the summer of 2016, Richard also conducted a live performance of Michael Giacchino's score for Star Trek Beyond with the San Diego Symphony, accompanying the film in its gala world premiere. It was the first time a film was presented outdoors in IMAX.

With a life-long passion for film music, Richard often conducts programs featuring live performances of entire scores while the film is shown. These include Amadeus, E.T., Raiders of the Lost Ark, The Wizard of Oz, Casablanca, Bride of Frankenstein, Psycho, Fantasia, On the Waterfront, Pirates of the Caribbean 1 & 2, Singin' in the Rain, Vertigo, Silverado, Star Trek 2009, Star Trek Beyond, the Chaplin classic City Lights and numerous other silent films. In April, 2014 at the Virginia Arts Festival, Richard conducted the world premiere performance of Stewart Copeland's score for the 1925 silent classic Ben Hur. Following the premiere, he has joined composer/soloist Stewart Copeland in performances of this exciting work with orchestras including the Chicago Symphony, Pacific Symphony, and the Luxembourg Philharmonie. Richard received the 1993 Grammy Award in the category of Best Pop Instrumental Performance for a recording he conducted with the Nuremberg Symphony.

About New West Symphony

Founded in 1985, the New West Symphony is a professional orchestra that draws its players from the rich talent pool of professional Los Angeles area musicians. The Symphony presents an annual Masterpiece Series concert season and provides many educational opportunities for local youth through its annual Symphonic Adventures concerts, its traveling Music Van, and the Harmony Project of Ventura County. For more information go to www.newwestsymphony.org and follow them on Facebook at
www.facebook.com/newwestsymphony.

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