Current Season
An Oratorio with Silent Film Music by Richard Einhorn, 1928 Film by Carl Theodor Dreyer With the Baltimore Symphony Orchestra and UC Alumni Chorus and Chorales Saturday, March 31 at 8:00PM At Zellerbach Hall UC Berkeley The Passion of Joan of Arc (La passion de Jeanne d'Arc). Carl Th. Dreyer (France, 1928) Falconetti's portrayal of Joan of Arc "may be the finest performance ever recorded on film." -Pauline Kael Carl Dreyer's remarkable depiction of the trial and execution of Jeanne d'Arc (condensed for the sake of narrative from 18 months to one day), was written largely from the actual records of the trial and based on historical evidence which had come to light in 1924, four years before the film was made. Often cited as an "austere masterpiece," with reference to the starkness of Dreyer's sets, his refusal to allow his actors to use make-up, and his use of extreme close-up photography, The Passion of Joan of Arc is in fact one of the most poignant, terrifying and unrelentingly emotional historical documents ever filmed. "I am searching for nothing but life," Dreyer wrote during the shooting. "…It is the objective drama of the spirit that is important, not the objective drama of the images." Originally intending to make a sound film, Dreyer was forced by finances to abandon the idea. Maria Falconetti gives one of the greatest of all silent screen performances in her first (and last) film role, and Antonin Artaud and Michel Simon are memorably captured by Rudolph Maté's camera. -Judy Bloch Written by Dreyer. Photographed by Rudolph Maté. With Maria Falconetti, Eugène Silvain, Antonin Artaud, Michel Simon. (81 mins, Silent with English intertitles, B&W, 35mm, From Academy Film Archive, permission Gaumont) About the score: "A moving score, expertly performed, sublimely matches one of the great films of all time." -Chicago Sun-Times Richard Einhorn's Voices of Light is a meditation on the life and personality of Joan of Arc. It is scored for soloists, chorus, orchestra, and one very special bell (the digitally sampled sound of the Domremy churchbell). The libretto is a montage of ancient writings, assembled primarily from female medieval mystics, including Joan of Arc herself. The piece explores the patchwork of emotions and thoughts that are stitched together into the notion of a female hero. Ticketing Tickets are on sale online through Cal Performances at http://www.calperformances.org/2011-12/special-events/. |
