SUNDAY AUGUST 17th – 730 PM – ONE NIGHT ONLY! LIVE SCORE BY JAKE PEPPER AND ZACH KOEBER – PLAYED BACK TO BACK WITH A 10-MINUTE INTERMISSION. THIS WILL SELL OUT.
Following their debut as a duo in May, last month’s performance of improv music virtuosos Jack Pepper and Zach Koeber sold out at Spectacle. We are proud to give Jake and Zach a full deserved encore for their new live scores of two Spectacle silent classics, AFTER DEATH and THE DYING SWAN
AFTER DEATH
dir. Yevgeni Bauer, 1915
Russia, 46 min.
Silent with Russian intertitles and English Subtitles
Based on a novella by Ivan Turgenev, AFTER DEATH is arguably cinema’s first foray into gothic romance. The pitifully alienated Andrei (Vitold Polonsky) becomes infatuated with enigmatic actress Zoia (Vera Karalli), and then her sudden passing sends him into a pit of obsessive despair. Presented initially as a melodrama before distinctly veering into the supernatural and psychological, AFTER DEATH is an early testament to the ways film illustrates the complex feelings around loss and dwelling on what could have been.
THE DYING SWAN
dir. Yevgeni Bauer, 1917
Russia, 49 min.
Silent with Russian intertitles and English Subtitles
A few years later, Bauer, Polonsky, and Karalli reunited for another morbid tale of obsession and fame. Written by Russian actress Zoya Barantsevich, THE DYING SWAN follows the tragic trajectory of mute ballet dancer Gizella (Karalli) as she encounters heartbreak, breakthroughs in fame, and admirers with pernicious motives. Released in the twilight of Bauer’s career, THE DYING SWAN is also considered his most noteworthy achievement for its gaze into the darker side of inspiration and desire.
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Jake Pepper and Zach Koeber make up half of Ace Bandage, the jam-heavy rock band based in Brooklyn. Their fondness of improvisation and vast knowledge of timbral music allows them to shift seamlessly through varied sonic palettes. Pepper also performed in Brooklyn synth punk outfit Future Punx, while Koeber got his start in the local scene as one-third of Archie Pelago, and he currently collaborates with deep house producer Max in the World. Both Jake and Zach have also guest DJ’d on the prestigious independent station The Lot Radio.
Special thanks to George Schmalz and Kino Lorber.