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Silent Movie Performances
Silent Movie Shows has Two types of programs:
School
Programs and General Entertainment.
Feel free to visit both.
School Programs
Performances
School Programs
Tom Mix Little Rascals Laurel & Hardy
There are Three Educational Silent Movie Program Levels
Each program logically progresses through 12 modules that highlight important key elements leading to the invention of early motion pictures and musical accompaniment. The elementary school program focuses on demonstration and participation without getting bogged down in lots of details. Also, classroom animation learning projects are available and free to download on this website. The junior high and high school programs are more flexible because they allow teachers in the music and audio visual departments to request more music performance and different silent movie selections (from which there are many).
The programs take your students on a colorful musical and visual trip into the past when their great-great grandparents grew up and lived. They will see some very ingenious devices demonstrated like the Thaumatrope, Flip Book, Praxinoscope, Edison’s ‘Talking Machine’ Cylinder Phonograph, 16mm flexible film and an antique motion picture projector. ‘Persistence of Vision’ (which allows all of us to be able to watch moving pictures) is demonstrated. The early films are explained and some of the funniest and most interesting are screened. Also, musical accompaniment for the silent movies (Mood Music) is explained with some great examples of colorful music played by Richard Hughes.
Each module has supportive visual content projected on a big screen so everyone in the assembly can see clearly what is being talked about. Demonstrated vintage artifacts and animation devices let students actually see and hear what their great grandparents were experiencing from 1890-1910. The basic modules are:
1) Thomas Edison - the inventor - with a demonstration of a 90 year old Edison Mazda Lamp that still shines brightly.
2) Edison’s favorite invention - the Cylinder Phonograph with an actual demonstration of a restored ‘Talking Machine’ that plays wax cylinders.
3) An explanation of “Persistence of Vision” and a demonstration of an early animation device called a Thaumatrope to show how this phenomenon tricks our brains every time. (Card stock cutouts are available for hands-on participation in the classroom afterwards)
4) A further explanation of “Persistence of Vision” by way of a Flip Book. Edweard Muybridge’s contributions to Edison’s invention are talked about. (Card stock cutouts are also available for hands-on participation in the classroom afterwards)
5) Another spectacular early animation device - the Praxinoscope – is demonstrated.
6) An explanation of how a camera works: it needs to take rapid photographs in succession. Before this could happen, though, glass slides needed to be replaced with a flexible film that could go through a camera. George Eastman was the man who, in 1886, invented flexible film that made it possible for Edison to invent the motion picture camera. Some 16 mm film stock is shown.
7) An explanation and demonstration of an antique projector is given that makes it easy to understand how still pictures on the film can be transformed into a motion picture projected on a screen.
8) Thomas Edison, inventor of the motion picture camera, got a patent for it in 1894. The next question was what to photograph. The first ‘Actualities’ are shown on the big screen. Richard accompanies the films on the piano.
9) Some early Edison films featuring Vaudeville routines are screened. Musical accompaniment selections are talked about and synchronized to each film.
10) A short Biograph Company film is screened with musical accompaniment. William Kennedy Dickson – who worked for Edison in Menlo Park, New Jersey -is acknowledged as the person who actually put together the first working motion picture camera.
11) ‘Mood Music’ is explained: happy music, sad music, humorous music,
romantic music, chase-scene music, railroad music and even scary music that
was played at the proper time. A few examples are played on the piano so that
students can pick out the differences in musical moods.
12) Finally, a landmark short film called “The Great Train Robbery” (1903 and 11 minutes long) with an original musical score composed by Richard Hughes will be screened. This film is significant because it is the first film to tell a story on the screen by way of film editing.
The hold-up scene from The Great Train Robbery
The program ends with a favorite sing along activity that was done in between movies by following the bouncing ball to “In My Merry Oldsmobile” (Copyright MCMV)). Just follow the bouncing ball.
