Part of Dundead Halloween 2025.

Director Rupert Julian’s 1925 film version of The Phantom of the Opera starring Lon Chaney ranks among the greatest horror films of the silent era. To celebrate the milestone 100th anniversary of this iconic film, Dundead has commissioned the composition of a brand-new score by Scottish musicians Andrew Wasylyk and Tommy Perman, to be performed live at five screenings across Scotland, including a special Halloween screening at DCA.

This film from Universal Studios was the first film adaptation of Gaston Leroux’s 1910 novel, and one of the first in the iconic series of Universal horror films. Julian’s film is suitably operatic in scope, with Hollywood extravagance, opulent costumes and hundreds of extras. Lon Chaney, ‘the Man of a Thousand faces’, plays Erik, the Phantom, in one of his most celebrated performances. Chaney designed the make-up for this (and many of his other roles), and the Phantom’s appearance, and particularly his unmasking scene, is nothing short of iconic. 

The original 1925 release of the film utilised a variety of colour processes, including tinting and a dazzling early use of Technicolour, and there have been numerous reissues of the original film in the intervening years, including a 1929 version with sound. The version that we will be screening is as close to the original, vibrantly coloured silent version as possible.

Dir. Rupert Julian | USA | 1925 | PG | English intertitles

Running time: 1h 32m 

With: Lon Chaney

Performing live: Andrew Wasylyk and Tommy Perman

Special Multi-Ticket Deal: Pre-book for any three Taste of Silents in-person screenings for just £36 (£30 concession). No booking fees!

This tour is a Dundee Contemporary Arts and Dundead project. Supported by Film Hub Scotland, part of the BFI’s Film Audience Network, awarding funding on behalf of Screen Scotland and the BFI National Lottery.

Get on board!  We have organised a Taste of Silents shuttle bus between Linlithgow train station and the Hippodrome (pre-booking essential, journey time approx. 15 mins.) to help you travel to Bo’ness on public transport.  Tickets £3.50 per person each way.  Under 26-years-old GO FREE (limited availability / proof of age must be shown at the Hippodrome on arrival/departure), please book using code: TOS25BUS.

Pick up:

• Linlithgow Train Station - 18:55
• Hippodrome Cinema - 21:35

About the new live score

Scottish composers Andrew Wasylyk and Tommy Perman are combining forces to create a haunting and dramatic score befitting of this silent era classic. Having released their first collaborative album, Ash Grey and the Gull Glides On, in 2024 to critical acclaim and after writing and performing a live score for silent film The Dark Mirror by Moira Salt (premiered at HippFest 2025), the pair are bringing their skills together once more to celebrate this iconic piece of cinema history through sound.

As is the case for many vintage films, The Phantom of the Opera contains some problematic depictions of disability, so we are particularly pleased that Andrew and Tommy aim to highlight these elements in their score while still celebrating an indelible milestone in cinema culture.