FOLA Silent Movie Festival Returns to Ludlow Auditorium Sat., August 23
In keeping with its long tradition, FOLA (Friends of Ludlow Auditorium) will present its annual Silent Movie Festival on Saturday, August 23 at 7 PM in the Heald Auditorium located in Ludlow’s Town Hall.
This year, the feature movie will be a Buster Keaton full length comedy. “Our Hospitality”. It will be preceded by a short comedy to be determined. Jeff Rapsis will provide the musical background to “Our Hospitality”. Glenn Brown will render his wonderfully created piano support for the opening comedy.
“Our Hospitality” is Keaton’s satirical view of the Hatfield-McCoy feud in which the two families, over the decades, seek the elimination of each other.
Pictured above is the scene in FOLA’s Silent Movie Festival “Our Hospitality” where a Canfield brother sneaks up on Willie McKay with gun in hand. This deadly effort failed as the Keaton-directed movie used comedy to deflect the intentions of the Canfield brother.
In this presentation, the Canfield and McKay families have been feuding for so long, no one remembers why the feud started in the first place. Twenty years after the feud started, Willie McKay, raised in New York and having no knowledge of the feud learns he has inherited an estate.
Enroute to the South, he meets a young and shy, Virginia Canfield who is unaware of Willie’s family name. He helps her during their train ride. She, in turn, invites him for dinner at her family’s home where he spends the night.
Virginia’s brothers and her father are anxious to kill Willie when they learn who he is. However, the father warns them not to because of the rules of hospitality which do not permit such action so long as a guest is in the house.
What transpires is the amusing, if not deadly, efforts of the brothers and father to kill Willie once he leaves the house. The humor that Keaton creates in this effort is amazingly funny while remaining totally logical. As observed by critics, Keaton’s mastery of comedy makes this attempt at revenge worthy of Shakespeare in a modern, comedic manner.
The movie is free; donations to underwrite the cost of film and entertainment is appreciated. Doors open at 6:30 PM. Information is available at 802-228-3238.
FOLA Plans More Events This Fall and Winter
FOLA Chairman, Jim Alic, and Program Director, Scott Stearns, have announced a series of planned events fpr the coming Fall and Winter that will offer a wide variety of entertainment to area audiences.
On Sunday, November 2, at 2 PM, they indicated that a string trio from the Vermont Symphony will appear in Heald Auditorium in Ludlow’s Town Hall.
This Sunday matinee will feature classical music played by a trio of classical musicians that promises to feature chamber pieces as well as generally well-known classical works.
This will be the first Sunday matinee offered by FOLA since 2009.
Stearns indicated that additional events are now in the scheduling phase that are pending dates during this period.
They will include a musical evening planned by FOLA that will include “danceable” music and a Christmas program. Dates on these offerings are pending but will be announced soon.
FOLA is also planning a special program for the younger set. Information on this program will be released sometime this Fall.