Ten Nights in a Bar Room

The 1926 melodrama Ten Nights in a Bar Room follows a down-on-his-luck man, cheated out of his business, who runs for mayor after his daughter dies during a bar brawl. It is one of two remaining films by the Colored Players Film Corporation of Philadelphia, which produced silent films with all-African American casts. True to the silent film era, this Duck Soup Cinema screening includes live organ accompaniment by Jelani Eddington and vaudeville-style performances by The House Inc.

media release: Overture’s Duck Soup Cinema silent film series, nationally known for providing an authentic silent film experience in the historic Capitol Theater, wraps up its 2022/23 season with “Ten Nights in a Bar Room” on Saturday, June 3. Shows begin at 2 p.m. and 7 p.m. and include vaudeville entertainment with an emcee, door prizes and classic feature film with live organ accompaniment by a skilled organist who mirrors the actors’ emotions, just as it was done in 1928. Tickets ($9 for adults, $3 for ages 12 and under) are available at overture.org.

Jelani Eddington will accompany the film on the Grand Barton Organ. Joe Thompson will return to emcee the series, complete with vaudeville acts, including a performance by The House Inc. (see description below) and prizes.

In “Ten Nights in a Bar Room,” a 1926 melodrama, a man is swindled out of his mill business and turns to drink. After losing his daughter who is hit in the head by a glass during a bar brawl, he is reborn and runs for mayor a couple years later. Based on the popular temperance poem by Timothy Shay Arthur, this rarely-seen version was performed by an African-American cast and features an especially compelling performance by Charles Gilpin. It is the only surviving film produced by the Colored Players Film Corporation of Philadelphia and was mastered from 35mm film elements preserved by the George Eastman House. Starring Charles Gilpin and Myra Burwell.

An example of a “race film” made for and by Black audiences of the time, these performances will feature special events for ticket holders, including a pre-show virtual workshop with Dr. James Spinks (Department of Afro American Research, Arts and Culture's Archive) exploring Early Afro-American Cinema. Additionally, Dr. Allyson Nadia Field (University of Chicago) will join the performances as a special guest and lead post-performance talkbacks.

The Grant Barton Organ is one of only a few historic theater organs still in its original home and one of three unaltered Barton Organs still in existence. It has been delighting audience members in Capitol Theater since 1928.

ABOUT DR. FIELD: Dr. Allyson Nadia Field is associate professor of cinema and media studies at the University of Chicago, where she serves as director of the Film Studies Center. She is the author of “Uplift Cinema: The Emergence of African American Film & The Possibility of Black Modernity” (Duke University Press, 2015). Field is also, with Marsha Gordon, co-editor of “Screening Race in American Nontheatrical Film” (Duke University Press, 2019) and, with Jan-Christopher Horak and Jacqueline Stewart, co-editor of “L.A. Rebellion: Creating a New Black Cinema” (University of California Press, 2015). She is currently writing a book on the rediscovery and afterlives of “Something Good—Negro Kiss” (Selig, 1898) and working on another project tentatively titled “The Speculative Archive.” Field was named a 2019 Academy Film Scholar by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences and is a member of the National Film Preservation Board. Most recently, she co-curated the Sojourner Truth Festival of the Arts 2023, a celebration of the work and legacy of Black women filmmakers.

The House Inc. (THI) was founded on Jan. 3, 2003. Since then, THI has performed on many stages—from Overture Center for the Arts to Barack Obama’s campaign trail and even to New York City, performing on BET's 106&Park LIVE dance competition, winning first place for Wisconsin in 2007. On April 6, 2018, THI opened The House Urban Arts Initiative Incorporated. THI is made up of 50+ black and brown youth ages 5-18 years old from the greater Madison and surrounding areas. THI’s mission is to continuously spread freedom, fine arts, love and acceptance in our community.

Duck Soup Cinema is sponsored by Capitol Lakes Retirement Center. Overture is grateful for this community support that helps make these experiences possible.

OVERTURE CENTER FOR THE ARTS in Madison, Wis., is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit arts organization that features seven state-of-the-art performance spaces and four galleries where national and international touring artists, nine resident companies and hundreds of local artists engage people in nearly 700,000 educational and artistic experiences each year. With the vision to provide “Extraordinary Experiences for All,” Overture’s mission is to support and elevate our community’s creative culture, economy and quality of life through the arts. overture.or