Capitolfest 17

Description

Capitolfest, now in its 17th edition, is held at the historic 1,788-seat movie palace, the Capitol Theatre, in Rome, New York. The Capitol was built as a movie house and opened December 10, 1928 with an all-movie program including the First National feature, Lilac Time. The Capitol remains the only building in Rome, N.Y. (population c.32,000) constructed for the specific purpose of exhibiting motion pictures. Although the theater received a Modernistic face-lift in 1939, the auditorium is configured exactly as it was in 1928, and much of the original décor remains. Also still in place is the theater's 3-manual, 10-rank Möller theatre organ. Most of the films at the Capitol are shown in 35mm prints on the theater’s carbon-arc, variable-speed projectors, though some are presented digitally. The prints for the movies shown at Capitolfest come from archives such as the Library of Congress, Museum of Modern Art, UCLA Film & Television Archive, and Universal Pictures, as well as from private collections. The festival includes several extremely rare talking films, as well as some equally rare silents. Each of the silent films will be accompanied by some of the world’s foremost exponents of authentic silent movie accompaniment. The goal of the Capitol is not only to show these vintage films, but also to re-create the experience of seeing these movies when they were new. This year's festival tribute stars will be Joel McCrea and Frances Dee, and we will be showcasing the actors in several rare films from the silent and talkie years. Back this year is the Capitolfest dealers room, featuring films, videos, posters, and other memorabilia, which will be open throughout the weekend.