FILM

The Orange Show Center for Visionary Art presents Two Star Symphony: The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari, Saturday, October 8, at 8pm.

Houston's own Two Star Symphony will perform their own original soundtrack set to the classic german expressionist film The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari. The group has performed it at the Museum of Fine Arts Houston and Diverseworks with rave reviews, and now they're coming to The Orange Show!

Here's a plot synopsis by Hal Erickson from All-Movie Guide:

In one of the most influential films of the silent era, Werner Krauss plays Caligari, a sinister hypnotist who travels the carnival circuit displaying a somnambulist named Cesare (Conrad Veidt).

In one tiny German town, a series of murders coincides with Caligari's visit. When the best friend of hero Francis (Friedrich Feher) is killed, the deed seems to be the outgrowth of a romantic rivalry over the hand of the lovely Jane (Li Dagover). Francis suspects Caligari, but he is ignored by the police. Investigation on his own, Francis seemingly discovers that Caligari has been ordering the somnambulist to commit the murders, but the story eventually takes a more surprising direction.

Caligari's Expressionist style ultimately led to the dark shadows and sharp angles of the film noir urban crime dramas of the 1940s, many of which were directed by such German emigres as Billy Wilder and Robert Siodmak.