Premiere of Restored Pandora’s Box with Live Accompaniment

The Lindsay Theater and Cultural Center, in partnership with the Pittsburgh Silent Film Society, will present Pandora’s Box, starring legendary actress Louise Brooks and accompanied by live music, on Sunday, March 3, at 3 p.m. 

Considered a masterwork of the silent film era, the picture by G.W. Pabst will be shown in its 2K restoration for the first time in the Pittsburgh area. Lurid and highly controversial upon its release, the film follows the downward spiral of the fiery yet innocent showgirl Lulu.

The film was rediscovered by scholars in the 1950s and began to earn the reputation of an unsung classic. Film critic Roger Ebert reviewed the film in 1998 with great praise, and included the film on his list of The Great Movies. Director Quentin Tarantino also listed it among his 10 greatest films of all time.

“Louise Brooks dazzles as the dangerously appealing seductress,” says the British Film Institute. Brooks’ “rightly acclaimed performance oozes careless vivacity and irresistible charm. But the direction is also brilliantly meticulous, making memorable use of Günther Krampf’s fluid camera and expressive lighting.”

“We are pleased to again partner with the Pittsburgh Silent Film Society to bring a treasured silent film to the Theater,” says Carolina Pais-Barreto Thor, CEO of The Lindsay. “Audience response to these films has been enthusiastic; particularly because of the texture added by the live musical accompaniment.”

Accompanying the film will be Ben Opie, who performs on reeds and electronics, and teaches music technology at both Carnegie Mellon University and Pittsburgh’s CAPA High School; and Mark Micchelli, a pianist, composer, technologist and educator pursuing a doctorate in jazz studies, composition and theory at the University of Pittsburgh.

“We’re thrilled to co-present this brand new restoration of Louise Brooks’ best film at one of our favorite independent cinemas, and accompanied by some of Pittsburgh’s best jazz musicians,” says Chad Hunter, director of the Pittsburgh Silent Film Society, whose work has been praised by Martin Scorsese. “It doesn’t get any better.”

“Pandora’s Box is a piece of glowing cinema which has one searching for superlatives,” says Stage and Cinema. Louise Brooks’ face “defies time and period, and is as relevant today as it was in 1929 when she was lured to Germany by Pabst to play the doomed Lulu. No other actress of her period could have realized this character so subtly or with such insouciance.”

The 141-minute film has original intertitles in German with English subtitles. All tickets are $15, and no passes can be used. For this and other special events hosted at the Theater, absolutely no ticket refunds are possible. For regular screenings, the Theater is pleased to issue ticket “swaps” or refunds when contacted at least 24 hours in advance of the ticketed showtime.