Buster Keaton's 'Steamboat Bill Jr.' to screen on Thursday, Aug. 13 at Flying Monkey

PLYMOUTH — He never smiled on camera, earning him the nickname of "The Great Stone Face." But Buster Keaton's comedies rocked Hollywood's silent era with laughter throughout the 1920s.

See a screening of "Steamboat Bill Jr." (1928), one of Keaton's landmark movies, on Thursday, Aug. 13, at 7 p.m. at the Flying Monkey Moviehouse and Performance Center in Plymouth.

The screening, the latest in the Flying Monkey's silent film series, will feature live accompaniment by Jeff Rapsis, a New Hampshire-based composer who specializes in creating music for silent films.

The show is intended to give area movie-goers the opportunity to experience early cinema as it was intended: on the big screen, with live music, and with an audience.

In "Steamboat Bill Jr.," Buster plays the bumbling son of a gruff riverboat captain. When a rival brings a newer boat to the river, the family is forced to face competition, just as Buster is forced to ride out a cyclone threatening to destroy the community. Can Buster save the day and win the hand of his girlfriend, who happens to be the daughter of his father's business rival?

The film includes the famous shot of an entire building front collapsing on Keaton, who is miraculously spared by a conveniently placed second-story window.

Keaton, who grew up performing with the family vaudeville act, was known for never smiling on camera, an important element of his comic identity. A trained acrobat who learned at an early age how to take falls, Keaton did all his own stunts on camera in the era before post-production special effects.

Rapsis too will create the accompaniment on the spot, improvising music as the movie unfolds to enhance the action on the screen as well respond to audience reactions. He will perform the music on a digital synthesizer capable of producing a wide range of theatre organ and orchestral textures.

"Live music was an integral part of the silent film experience," Rapsis said. "Because most films at the time weren't released with sheet music or scores, studios depended on local musicians to come up with an effective score that was different in every theater. At its best, this approach created an energy and a connection that added a great deal to a film's impact. That's what I try to recreate."

Tickets may be purchased online at flyingmonkeynh.com or at the door.