Georges Méliès! A ciné-concert for four hands
Did you know that Georges Méliès, was a magician before becoming the cinematographic genius of the late 19th century? This son of a shoe manufacturer discovered magic in London and directed his own shows, until the magic of his "illusions" led him to buy a camera.
Turned producer, director, designer, actor, stagehand, he produced nearly 600 films that are small wonders of humor and poetry. With the help of Serge Bromberg, the audience discovers treasures of short films based on the illusion of theater, carnival or the science fiction of Jules Verne. Pianists Laurent Grynszpan and Betsy Schlesinger magnify this burlesque fantasy at the keyboard.
Hélène Kuttner Premiere.fr
Who is Georges Méliès?
Le Voyage dans la lune
Quite simply, the inventor of trick photography as of 1896, later called “special effects” as well as film editing.
Méliès was a magician and a man of the theater, and drew ample inspiration from his theatrical productions for his films. You will see that Méliès often “bows” to the audience at the end of his films, just as he did in the theater. Méliès was not only a brilliant inventor of cinema but also an engaged artist: during the Dreyfus Affair, Méliès sided with Dreyfus to combat racism and anti-Semitism by re-enacting the second Dreyfus trial in eleven one-minute tableaux each.
Following their work with the Théâtre à Bretelles on Méliès! Cabaret Magique, Betsy and Laurent created this ciné-concert out of a desire to pay tribute to a singular and engaged artist with boundless creative energy.
Betsy Schlesinger & Laurent Grynszpan, piano
She is American, he is French. Partners in life and in music, their duo captivates: four hands and twenty fingers dancing across the keys, drawing the full spectrum of rich textures from a single piano. Their music is sparkling, colorful, lyrical, and sensitive.
Betsy Schlesinger is a pianist passionate about creation and live performance. A musician full of energy, spontaneity, and vivacity, her infectious enthusiasm and ever-inquisitive mind continually seeks new musical discoveries.
Betsy follows an original path both in terms of her musical choices and her musical activities, with a varied discography, musical theater, musical direction, chamber music, and accompaniment.
Laurent Grynszpan is a pianist, composer, and dedicated teacher whose career is defined by his passion for sharing music. His exceptional talent for improvisation infuses his compositions with distinctive originality, weaving diverse musical traditions into a rich blend of sound. His published works appear in the catalogues of Universal Music, Ocora Radio France, PennyBank Tunes, Taklit, and Frédéric Leibovitz Editions.
The duo has performed in France at l'Archipel, Château de Chaumont, Château de Morsang sur Orge, Théâtre National du Chaillot (18 performances), Festival Classique au Vert (Parc Floral de Paris), Atelier de la Main d'Or, Théâtre de la rue de Broca, Centre Culturel de Moulin d'Andé, Avignon (Off) and have toured in France, Israel and Germany, as well as performing for radio and television.