The Music House presents the hilarious Mel Brooks 'Silent Movie' with accompaniment by Fr. Andrew Rogers. In this modern classic Mel Funn (Brooks), a down and out director, attempts to revive his career and save a movie studio but making the first silent film in 40 years. Produced as a silent movie in 1976, Rogers will provide live accompaniment for the film on the Wurlitzer theater organ!

The Music House is very excited about our July silent film on the 22nd and 23rd! It is a classic but not in the sense that our other films in the series are. Mel Brooks' Silent Movie (1976) is a modern classic in the vein of Brooks' other great classics like Young Frankenstein, Space Balls and Blazing Saddles. Fr. Andrew Rogers has chosen this hilarious, raucous Mel Brooksfilm to accompany for our July film.

The film is set in Hollywood, Mel Funn (Brooks), a great film director, is now recovering from a drinking problem and down on his luck. He sets out to Big Picture Studios to pitch a new script to the Chief, aided by his ever-present sidekicks Dom Bell (Dom DeLuise) and Marty Eggs (Marty Feldman). His big idea: the first silent motion picture in forty years. At first the Chief (Sid Caesar), who is in danger of losing the studio to the (literally) rabid and greedy New York conglomerate Engulf & Devour (Harold Gould and Ron Carey), rejects the idea, but Funn convinces him that if he can get Hollywood's biggest stars to be in the film, he could save the studio.

Engulf and Devour worry that Funn will save Big Picture Studios, and they will be unable to buy it. They attempt to "stop Funn with sex", by sending dancer Vilma Kaplan (Bernadette Peters) to seduce Funn, and then pretend to fall in love with him.
In Brooks' typical style, the film is a slapstick rollercoaster ride featuring some of the biggest stars in Hollywood. The ensemble cast includes appearances by Anne Bancroft, Liza Minnelli, Burt Reynolds, James Caan, Marcel Marceau and Paul Newman playing themselves.

You are not going to want to miss this 'Silent Movie'!

Fr. Andrew Rogers is no stranger to the Music House, returning annually to perform concerts and accompany silent films. A resident of Fenton, Michigan, Andrew began his musical studies on the accordion at seven, winning local and National competitions playing transcriptions of classical orchestral music. He later appeared in the orchestra of Broadway productions at Michigan State University where he holds his degree, with honors, in Psychology.

He studied theater organ techniques with the late Fr. James Miller, and then augmented his studies with Dr. Marilyn Mason at the University of Michigan while she was on sabbatical.

He accompanied Fr. Jim on his second tour of Australia and Norfolk Island, appearing both in joint concerts and solo engagements, also, traveling on two Historic Organ Tours led by Dr. Mason covering France, Italy, and Switzerland. He is on staff at the Michigan Theatre in Ann Arbor, and the Detroit Fox. He has also performed for local AGO chapters. A few years ago he quit his 17-year job at a travel agency to focus more on music and scoring silent films.

In addition to his classical and pop concerts, it was in 2003 when Fr. Andrew was invited to play for a public program in Michigan for the Foundation for Global Harmony – Japan. The music so transported its founder, that he asked Andrew to create two meditation CD’s for the Foundation to sell as a fundraiser to help raise funds for orphanages, hospitals, vocational schools, etc. for children in SE Asia.