Return to a time when audiences were expected to participate, and talking back  to the movies was not a crime! See what movies were like when they were  shown with live vaudeville acts, lavishly illustrated songs, novelty lectures, and  musical accompaniment—in this case by the extraordinary Frederick Hodges. The Great Nickelodeon Show comes to BAMPFA after performances at the Telluride Film Festival, the Pordenone Silent Film Festival, and beyond. But this is an all-new production with new films—most of them hand-colored—and new songs. Reed Rahlman as Professor Blockhead performs new feats of magic, Lori Leigh Gieleghem and Sean Sharp  sing songs, and Greg Tiede startles with the dramatic tale of President McKinley’s assassination and the electrocution of his assassin under the spell of the notorious Emma Goldman. Short films include rarely seen gems from Georges Méliès, Edwin S. Porter, and D.W. Griffith.

Produced by Russell Merritt. Music by Frederick Hodges. With Reed Rahlman, Lori Leigh Gieleghem, Sean Sharp, and Greg Tiede.