The Ancient Law: A Live Scored Film

In an 1860s Galician shtetl, the teenage son of the community’s rabbi disobeys his father and leaves home to become a Shakespearean actor in Vienna. As delighted as he is by the world of theatre and his success in it, he also longs for home and a way to reconcile his religious heritage with his love of secular literature.

Directed by E. A. Dupont in exquisite visual style that evokes Rembrandt, The Ancient Law is an outstanding example of the creativity of Jewish filmmakers in 1920s Germany. 

Alicia Svigals is the world’s leading klezmer violinist and a founder of the Grammy-winning Klezmatics, and pianist Donald Sosin is one of the world’s foremost silent film accompanists. Together, they have been bringing audiences to their feet across Europe and America with their Klezmer-infused silent film scores.

This performance in co-presented with Northern Silents.

Funding support provided by The Sunrise Foundation for Education and the Arts.