This week, the Cleveland Institute of Art Cinematheque (11141 East Blvd., 216.421.7450) kicks off a short series dedicated to Danish filmmaker Carl Theodor Dreyer. While Dreyer is often acknowledged as a groundbreaking filmmaker, 35mm prints of his films are hard to come by. The Cinematheque, however, has procured archival copies of three of his films that are currently touring the country. They include Ordet, a drama about a rural family's crisis of faith (April 30 and May 1); the 1932 horror movie Vampyr (May 8 and 9); and Gertrud, Dreyer's last film (May 8 and 10). The prints are on loan from Copenhagen's Danish Film Institute.
The Cedar Lee Theatre (2163 Lee Rd., 216.321.5411) continues its efforts to promote high-definition screenings with a high-culture series that begins in early May and runs through the end of summer. First up, the theater will screen the Kirov Ballet's Don Quixote (May 6 and 10). Other ballets include Stravinsky and Ballets Russes (June 3 and 7) and Swan Lake (July 1 and 5). Hi-def operas include Das Rheingold (May 13 and 17), Hansel und Gretel (May 27 and 31); Viaggio A Reims (June 10 and 14), Giulio Cesare (June 24 and 28), Eugene Onegin (July 8 and 12), I Puritani (July 22 and 26), Lady Macbeth of the Mtsensk District (August 5 and 9) and Benvenuto Cellini (August 19 and 23). Ballet film tickets will set you back $15; opera tickets are $20.
Former actor (and Cleveland School of the Arts alum) Bill Marinella brings his Acme Casting Co. to town this weekend to host a couple of events at the Agora Ballroom (5000 Euclid Ave., 216.881.2221). Starting at 11 a.m. Saturday, May 2, he'll spend the day looking for castable actors, from kids to SAG members. Then, from 11 a.m.-2 p.m. on Sunday, May 3, he'll hold a casting seminar. Seminar tickets are $50. E-mail [email protected] for details and reservations.
Remember when Bill Murray and Dan Aykroyd were funny? The folks running the Cedar Lee (2163 Lee Rd., 216.321.5411) Cult Film Series do. They're showing Ghostbusters, a box-office smash when it first came out 25 years ago, at 9:30 p.m. and midnight, Saturday, May 2. It'll be accompanied by a marshmallow-eating contest (you have to sign up 30 minutes before each screening), with prizes courtesy of Big Fun and Cleveland Cinemas. Tickets are $5.
