29th Annual
Silents in the
Cathedral
Grace Cathedral
701 SW 8th St. - Topeka, KS
Friday, Oct. 30th, 2026
7:00 pm
Sponsored by
Topeka & Shawnee County Public Library
with the cooperation of the
Kansas Silent Film Festival, Inc.
Free to the Public

Music by Dr. Marvin Faulwell
playing the mighty Cathedral organ
with Bob Keckeisen/Percussion
Introductions by Denise Morrison

Short Subjects:
The Skeleton Dance
(1929) / Disney animation -- 7 min.
This early animated cartoon short created by Walt Disney and his team of artists is one of the studio’s earliest Silly Symphonies. You can tell from the title, it really is a brief tale of skeleton ghosts in a
cemetery rising to celebrate the evening. It was also produced with Sound - a musical score with sound effects. Even though it was made during the Silent era, we are presenting it with its original Soundtrack.

Baron Muchchausen't Dream
(1911) -- 10 min.
This little film was part of French magician Georges Melies’ final series of trick short films produced at his studio in Montreuil. It follows Germany’s legendary figure, Baron Munchausen as he devours a massive meal and then must pay for it with the strangest nightmares!

Forgotten Sweeties
(1927) / Hal Roach -- 20 min.
Another incredible short film starring Charley Chase. This time he’s up to his neck in woman trouble and things won’t get better for him or his bride until the very end!

Feature:
The Student of Prague
(1926) Starring: Conrad Veidt / Werner Krauss / Elizza La Porta / Fritz Alberti
Directed by Henrik Galeen -- 110 min.

Our feature film for the 29th annual ‘Silents in the Cathedral’ is THE STUDENT OF PRAGUE, a 1926 German expressionist film with one of the first and best examples of the ‘Selling One’s Soul to the Devil’ stories. With a screenplay by its director, Henrik Galeen (co-author of F.W. Murnau’s NOSFERATU from 1922), THE STUDENT OF PRAGUE impressed audiences and critics of the time with its story of a moody student named Balduin, known as the finest fencer at the University (Veidt), who strikes a deal
with the Devil - a top-hatted, shady character named Scapinelli (Krauss) – after meeting the girl of his dreams who happens to be wealthy while he is poor. The deal? 600,000 gold coins in exchange for anything in the student’s room. Scapinelli chooses the
student’s reflection in a mirror. This may sound like an easy deal, but when the reflection steps out of the mirror, you will be ‘creeped out!’ This doppelgänger (as the Germans call it) finds ways to be in the right place at the wrong time almost all the time and Balduin
gets the blame again and again. The creature follows and haunts the student mercilessly until Balduin is forced to take drastic measures.

The student is played by noted German actor, Conrad Veidt; he left Germany with his family to escape Nazi-Germany and found success in Hollywood playing mostly Nazi villains. His most famous role is perhaps in 1943’s CASABLANCA. Co-starring with
Veidt is Werner Krauss who appeared with him in THE CABINET OF DR. CALIGARI (1920) and WAXWORKS (1924) both shown at previous Silents events.

THE STUDENT OF PRAGUE is a first for the ’Silents in the Cathedral’ series. Our hostess, Denise Morrison will provide some fascinating background details about this film, its director and the cast. Organist Marvin Faulwell and percussionist Bob Keckeisen
have put together a dazzling music score for this feature and they will be playing it ‘live’ at the Cathedral, which will include a brief intermission.