One of our most popular events RETURNS with a silent horror double feature!

Join us as “Austin’s most adventurous band”, The Invincible Czars, return to Buffalo to present LIVE scores to both F.W. Murnau’s FAUST (1926) and NOSFERATU (1922).

***PROGRAM UPDATE: This screening will now feature NOSFERATU (1922) in place of THE CABINET OF DR. CALIGARI. All other event details remain unchanged.

This year marks the exciting debut of their new soundtrack to FAUST, celebrating the 100th anniversary of Murnau’s legendary silent horror masterpiece.

Over the years, The Invincible Czars have taken this show to premiere venues, indie movie theaters, and Alamo Drafthouses all over the country. This showing marks their 8th appearance at the North Park Theatre.

Thursday 10/22 at 7:00 PM

Single feature and double feature tickets are now available. NOTE: “VIP” is for the double feature:

DOUBLE FEATURE VIP at 7:00 PM

“(The Invincibe Czars’) live Nosferatu silent film score is a brilliantly realized wedding of contemporary musical sensibility and technology with early 20th century cinema.”
-Chico News Review

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Hailing from Austin, Texas, The Invincible Czars have been “keeping it weird” since 2003 when they could be found playing their left-of-the-dial music in clubs like Emo’s and Stubb’s. In 2004, they stepped into the arts realm with their re-imagined version of Tchaikovsky’s Nutcracker Suite. In 2006, they began performing live silent film soundtracks at the first Alamo Drafthouse and have since blazed their own touring circuit of cinemas, colleges and PACs across the US and Canada.

Their tastefully modern silent films soundtracks and dynamic live performances give modern day audiences a context in which to appreciate early cinema and they have earned accolades from film and music buffs alike.

With influences ranging from film composers like Bernard Herrmann and Graham Reynolds to their favorite oddball rockers like Primus and Sleepytime Gorilla Museum, The Invincible Czars create an unforgettable live experience that appeals to audiences of all backgrounds.

ABOUT FAUST (1926):

An elderly alchemist named Faust (Gösta Ekman) makes a pact with the demon Mephisto (Emil Jannings) to gain the power to protect his village from plague. Faust soon succumbs to temptation and asks Mephisto to restore his youth and help him acquire all the hedonistic pleasures that earth can offer. Eventually, his love affair with a young woman named Gretchen (Camilla Horn) leads to tragic and devastating consequences for them both.

Faust has quite a history. It is the quintessential “deal with the devil” tale based on a centuries-old European legend. The legend inspired Johann Wofgang Goethe’s 1808 play which is considered Germany’s greatest literary work. The play inspired the famous opera by Charles Guonod which director FW Murnau used as a map for his 1926 film. Virtually every “sell your soul” type story from the film Crossroads to songs like “The Devil Went Down To Georgia” owes a debt to Faust whether the creators know it or not. (In fact, Faust is the opera in Gaston Leroux’s Phantom of the Opera.)

Murnau had already made a name for himself and set the standard for early horror films with Nosferatu (1922) and in 1926 he was on top of his game and found himself with a big budget for Faust with a lot of autonomy from the studio UFI. The result is silent-era German Expressionist eye candy full of amazing sets, innovative special effects and Murnau’s signature camera work. It was his last German-made film before he moved to Hollywood later that year.

For modern audiences, it’s the cast that really makes the movie entertaining. The virtually-unknown Camilla Horn is hard not to love in the role of Gretchen. (Horn had replaced the legendary Lillian Gish in the role when Gish ultimately turned it down due to the subject matter in the film.) The charismatic (if complicated) Emil Jannings was like the Jim Carrey of his day bringing all emotions with equal gusto and power. He is hilarious, hateable, terrifying and unforgettable especially when paired with Yvette Guilbert as Aunt Marthe

ABOUT NOSFERATU:

Nosferatu has been The Invincible Czars’ most popular silent film score since it debuted in 2015. The show is ear and eye candy for fans of horror movies from all eras.

Nosferatu is most certainly the most important horror film of the silent era and one of the first vampire movies. Directed by F. W. Murnau and released in 1922, it’s an unauthorized adaptation of Bram Stoker’s novel “Dracula.” The film follows Thomas Hutter as he journeys to Transylvania to sell property to the eerie Count Orlok, a vampire played by Max Schreck. Orlok travels to Germany, terrorizing the village of Wisborg and preying on its inhabitants. His obsession with Thomas’ wife, young Ellen Hutter, leads to a climactic showdown as she attempts to thwart his evil plans.

The film is celebrated for its atmospheric cinematography, haunting performances, and enduring influence on the horror genre. Many consider it to be the pinnacle of German Expressionist film and it has been remade by directors Werner Herzog and Robert Eggers. (Count Orlok even shows up in an episode of Spongebob Squarepants!)

Fans, theaters and media have praised The Invincible Czars’ soundtrack for making the near century-old movie “actually scary” for modern day audiences since they debuted it in 2015.

Using a mix of acoustic and electric instruments helped. Violin, glockenspiel, organ, flute, bass clarinet, voices and vocals, music box, loops, electric guitar, bass, piano and percussion all play prominent roles in the score and are a sight to behold when performed live by only four or five players!

They’ve performed this soundtrack well over 200 times across the US and Canada in art house cinemas, colleges, parks and art spaces. In 2022, they released a DVD with their score accompanying the movie for the film’s centennial accompanied by a 2-month tour.

The Invincible Czars encourage fans and attendees to dress for the Halloween season at these shows regardless of the season.