F.W. Murnau's 1922 silent film Nosferatu, the movie widely credited with creating the cinematic template for vampires, is getting an entirely new voice this fall. Enzian Theater and the Central Florida Composers Forum have organized a one-off screening they're calling Nosferatu: Shadows and Sound, pairing the century-old horror classic with a live original score performed by a string quartet.
The event, part of Enzian's 13+ Films of Halloween program, centers on a new musical score crafted by the Central Florida Composers Forum specifically for the film, according to Enzian Theater. The score was written by 14 members of the forum, and the Fernwood String Quartet will perform it live as the movie runs, per the same listing. Orlando Weekly, which first reported on the pairing, notes that a second afternoon screening is scheduled for 2:45 p.m. on Oct. 25 at Enzian, following an earlier noon showing that Orlando Weekly's report describes as already sold out.
Tickets for the afternoon screening are priced at $35, according to Orlando Weekly's report. Enzian Theater sits at 1300 S. Orlando Ave. in Maitland, a location confirmed by both Enzian's own event page and an arts-season preview from the Orlando Sentinel. That same Sentinel preview notes that the Orlando area has lined up not one but two local screenings of the silent-film classic accompanied by live music this season.
A Community Project Built Around Murnau's Classic
Charlie Griffin, founder of the Central Florida Composers Forum, said the project was designed as a community project, according to a press statement cited in Orlando Weekly's report. That framing lines up with how the forum describes its broader mission: the group says its work combines contemporary art music with community involvement, according to a profile from Orlando Weekly. That same profile describes the forum as functioning as a local platform for collaboration, networking, and performances among composers.
This isn't the first time the forum has paired its composers with professional string players. Back in May 2013, the group reached what Orlando Weekly's profile calls an artistic peak with a collaboration involving a string quartet made up of Orlando Philharmonic musicians. The Fernwood String Quartet itself has previously performed forum members' work too, including Paul August Sanders' piece Elations during one of the group's salon concerts, according to the quartet's own website.
The Film Behind the Music
Nosferatu, directed by F.W. Murnau, is a 1922 German silent film that runs 81 minutes and is widely regarded as having established the visual language later vampire films would borrow from for decades, per Enzian's event listing. The Oct. 25 screening slots it into Enzian's 13+ Films of Halloween lineup, giving Central Florida audiences a rare chance to see the century-old film the way it might have felt in a packed 1920s movie house — except this time, with a brand-new score written just up the road.
