The Star: October 24, 2019

• By Georgia O’Connor-
Harding
BROUGHT UP in a strong
Catholic family, Chris Archer
never celebrated Halloween the
way many Kiwi children do now.
“I love the idea of dressing up
and sharing gifts,” he said. “But
I am not sure within that model
whether kids fully understand
that actually it is a day to
celebrate those who have passed
on.”
His Catholic heritage has not
stopped him from indulging his
fascination with how the festival
is celebrated around the world –
particularly in Mexico.
“I think I have always had an
interest in the bizarre, the strange
and the unexpected.”
As part of the Festival of the
(Un)Dead over Labour weekend,
Archer, an accomplished pianist,
will take audiences back in
time as he accompanies the
silent horror film Nosferatu: A
Symphony of Horror with live
piano music.
The German film will be
screened in The Great Hall at
The Arts Centre of Christchurch.
Archer is the centre’s
programmes and partnerships
manager.
The screening will be a key
feature of the festival, along with
a screening of The Rocky Horror
Picture Show straight after
Nosferatu. The annual Thrill the
World Christchurch global danceoff
at Cathedral Square will also
see residents dance to Michael
Jackson’s Thriller to raise money
for charity.
While Archer plans to
improvise part of the soundtrack
throughout Nosferatu, he has
spent more than 50 hours
selecting mainly German music
to match the mood of each scene.
“Thrown in for good measure, I
am using John Carpenter’s music,
Halloween, which everyone will
recognise just because it seems
appropriate,” Archer said.
One of the most influential
horror films of all time, Nosferatu
was directed by Friedrich
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Wilhelm Murnau and released
in 1922.
“It is a technical feat in
cinematography but there are
also some classic, suspenseful
scenes that have inspired even
contemporary modern horror
movies we see today.”
Archer said Murnau was
very clever, putting scenes of
incredible suspense against
scenes of complete relaxation to
take audiences by surprise.
“There is a creepy element
where you know someone is
following someone else and the
time spent preparing that and
creating the suspense . . . there
are so many horror films with the
same technique,” he said.
Archer first saw the film about
20 years ago as part of a New
Zealand Film Commission
festival at the Isaac Theatre Royal.
As well as playing the piano,
he is an accomplished organist,
accompanist, composer, music
educator and was an organist
at the Catholic Cathedral for 10
years.
•Nosferatu: A Symphony
of Horror will be screened
on Friday, 6.30-8.10pm. To
book tickets, go to https://
www.foundchch.co.nz/
store/p1/nosferatu.html
•For more information
on The Festival of the (Un)
dead go to https://www.
foundchch.co.nz
Thursday October 24 2019 The Star
THEATRE/ARTS 21
Archer to resurrect Nosferatu for festival
SPOOKY: Chris Archer will provide the soundtrack for the
silent film Nosferatu: A Symphony of Horror as part of the
Festival of the (Un)dead.
PHOTO: GEOFF SLOAN
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