George Eastman Museum Presents Magic Lantern Show at Rochester Fringe Festival
Rochester, N.Y., September 5, 2023 – The George Eastman Museum is proud to present Nellie Bly Around the World in 72 Days: A Magic Lantern Show as part of the 2023 Rochester Fringe Festival on Thursday, September 21 at 7 p.m. on the museum’s East Lawn. More information about the George Eastman Museum event, including ticket information, is available at eastman.org. Tickets for all Rochester Fringe Festival (Tuesday, Sept. 12 – Saturday, Sept. 23) events are now on sale at rochesterfringe.com, where more information is also available. Tickets will also be available at the front gate on the day of the event. George Eastman Museum members have an opportunity to pay a reduced price prior to the event. For more information about becoming a member, visit eastman.org/membership.
The George Eastman Museum, the world’s oldest photography museum and one of the largest film archives in the United States, is delighted to participate in the twelfth season of the Rochester Fringe Festival, an event that brings the entire community area together to celebrate the performing arts.
Nellie Bly Around the World in 72 Days: A Magic Lantern Show
presented by Elliott & Schlemowitz, Magic Lanternists
Nellie Bly Around the World in 72 Days is an illustrated lecture with magic lantern slides recounting the famed woman reporter’s 1889-90 around-the-world journey, setting out to beat the 80 days of the fictional Phileas Fogg from the popular Jules Verne novel, Around the World in 80 Days. The show is presented with 150 original 19th-century glass magic lantern slides with views of New York, London, Hong Kong, Yokohama, San Francisco, Chicago, and more. Nellie Bly's dramatic account of her race to beat the 80-day record contains many picturesque descriptions of a bygone world, and is an engaging and witty refutation to the skepticism as to whether a woman could make such an intrepid solo journey.
Nellie Bly Around the World in 72 Days is presented with real glass slides shown using an 1890s stereopticon magic lantern projector, manufactured by McIntosh Co. of Chicago. Live sound effects and incidental music accompany this illustrated lecture.
Magic lantern performers Dawn Elliott and Joel Schlemowitz are each well-established in the fields of museum presentation and filmmaking. Elliott & Schlemowitz's magic lantern presentations have received awards from the Victorian Society NY and the Magic Lantern Society UK. To learn more, visit magiclanternexhibition.com.
Thursday, Sept. 21 — 7 p.m.
Tickets: Adults/Seniors $15 | Students with ID $10 | Kids $5
Attendees are encouraged to bring lawn chairs, blankets, snacks, and non-alcoholic beverages
The 12-day Rochester Fringe Festival is the largest multidisciplinary performing arts event in New York State. Since the festival's inception in 2012, nearly 670,000 people have attended more than 4,500 performances by regional, national, and international artists, from emerging to superstar. From drama to dance, comedy to children’s entertainment, music to magic, and so much more, this internationally-known powerhouse encourages creative expression while nurturing the artistic process, all while supplying new audiences to established and emerging arts venues. The Rochester Fringe Festival strives to be diverse and inclusive, and to stimulate downtown Rochester both culturally and economically.
About the George Eastman Museum
Founded in 1947, the George Eastman Museum is the world’s oldest photography museum and one of the largest film archives in the United States, located on the historic Rochester estate of entrepreneur and philanthropist George Eastman, the pioneer of popular photography. Its holdings comprise more than 400,000 photographs, 28,000 motion picture films, the world’s preeminent collection of photographic and cinematographic technology, one of the leading libraries of books related to photography and cinema, and extensive holdings of documents and other objects related to George Eastman. As a research and teaching institution, the Eastman Museum has an active publishing program and, its L. Jeffrey Selznick School of Film Preservation’s graduate program (a collaboration with the University of Rochester) makes critical contributions to film preservation. For more information, visit eastman.org.
