TEMPE, Ariz. -
Sept. 21, 2014 -
PRLog -- On Halloween 2013, they gathered in the night on the shore of Tempe Town Lake: the brave, music-loving adventurers who sought to come face-to-face with the most frightening vampire of all: Count Orlok. They packed the house at “Nosferatu:
A Symphony of Horror,” last year’s Halloween performance by Arizona Pro Arte Chamber Orchestra. And for the Halloween season 2014, Count Orlok will rise again, as APA presents an encore of “Symphony of Horror” on Saturday, Oct. 25.
“Nosferatu:
A Symphony of Horror” is an original concept of Timothy Verville, APA’s founding artistic director and conductor, providing a classical music score performed live to accompany the silent classic, “Nosferatu.”
Widely considered the most unforgettable film in the vampire genre, this masterwork defined the vampire legend for all films to follow, and offered the most disturbing image of the undead ever seen: the eerie and inhuman Count Orlok.
Last year’s near-capacity audience was enthusiastic, with comments such as, “… loved the ‘Symphony of Horror’ … appeared that music was scored directly for the scenes!!! Incredible insight into both horror films and silent films,” “The music went superbly with the movie!” and “Arizona Pro Arte was excellent. They really made the silent movie a unique experience.”
More than one audience member, however, wished “Symphony of Horror” had been offered prior to Halloween night to help set the tone for the holiday, and to allow for family trick-or-treating.
This year, APA is happy to provide Halloween 2014’s first treat: “Nosferatu:
A Symphony of Horror” will be presented one night only, Saturday, Oct. 25 at 7:30 p.m. in the Theater of the Tempe Center for the Arts.
Film director F.W. Murnau took the story for “Nosferatu”
directly from Bram Stoker’s unforgettable novel “Dracula,”
but the resulting film was judged so disturbing upon its 1922 release that it was banned in one nation, and the courts of another ordered prints of the film destroyed. Several copies apparently could not be killed, so the cinematic masterpiece has intrigued audiences through the decades to today, and of course, for Halloween.
“Nosferatu”
featured many firsts, including special effects that were groundbreaking in its day, as well as ghoulish makeup. And it was Murnau who added a now-familiar twist to vampire lore: that the undead can be killed by sunlight.
The original “Nosferatu”
also featured a full orchestra score, performed live during the film, but the music was lost. In years since composers have sought to recreate the score, even reinvent or replace it. As he did for “Alice in Wonderland” and Chaplin’s “The Gold Rush,” Timothy Verville breathed musical life into Murnau’s classic with a score created from orchestral classics by Brahms, Wagner, Dvořák and others, and a work created for the project by APA’s composer in residence, Christopher Norby.
“Nosferatu:
A Symphony of Horror” will be presented in the Theater of the Tempe Center for the Arts, 700 West Rio Salado Parkway on the south shore of Tempe Town Lake. Last year’s performance was a near sell-out on Halloween night, so audience members are cautioned that this Oct. 25 performance will prove very popular. Advance ticket purchase is strongly recommended. Information and tickets are available at
azproarte.com.
Arizona Pro Arte attracts attention and praise for its fearless and fun artistic synthesis. The orchestra performed live on 12 News Phoenix, earning recognition for “a unique collaboration of performing and visual arts that’s never been done before.” KBAQ-FM described APA as “… infused with a vigorous dose of collaboration often utilizing visual arts: film, painting and real-time computer visualizations.”
Read more about Arizona Pro Arte at azproarte.com. Hear KBAQ’s Sterling Beeaff in conversation with APA Founding Artistic Director and Conductor Timothy Verville at kbaq.org/content/
arizona-pro-
arte-ensemble (
http://www.kbaq.org/content/arizona-pro-arte-ensemble).
