Sex, murder, and celebrity in Roaring Twenties Chicago
The Film
Long before Bob Fosse’s Broadway hit, Cecil B. DeMille brought the true story of jazz‑loving murderess Roxie Hart to the silent screen.
After killing her lover, Roxie joins forces with slick lawyer Billy Flynn and fellow murderess Velma Kelly to turn her trial into a media circus. A sharp satire on fame and scandal, Chicago is as outrageous as the real events that inspired it.
The Music
This performance brings Cecil B. DeMille’s Chicago (1929) vividly to life with a trio of outstanding musicians. At the piano, Jonny Best leads the ensemble with his trademark flair for silent cinema, improvising a score that responds moment by moment to the drama on screen. He’s joined by Susannah Simmons, a violinist equally at home in jazz, tango, and the Opera North orchestra pit, and percussionist Jeff Davenport, whose silent film playing has been acclaimed around the UK. Together, they improvise as they watch alongside the audience - this is spontaneous film scoring, a one‑off, unrepeatable performance.
Music: Jonny Best (piano), Susannah Simmons (violin), Jeff Davenport (percussion).
Director: Frank Urson
Year: 1927
Country: USA
Length: 105 mins
Thanks to FPA Classics
