Smoke members reunite for The Passion of Joan of Arc

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At dusk on Saturday July 25, Opal Gallery in Little Five Points will present an outdoor screening of The Passion of Joan of Arc by Carl Theodor Dreyer. The 1928 silent film, which portrays the tragic final days of the life of Joan of Arc, is considered a cinematic masterpiece for its provocative theme and the groundbreaking use of the actor’s facial expressions as a communicative medium.-

Lost for many years, the film has often been screened with accompanying live music since its rediscovery. At this rare Atlanta showing, the music will be provided by Hubcap City (from Belgium), who will be joined for the event by former Smoke cellist Brian Halloran, who has rarely played since they disbanded.-

Hubcap City (fB) members Bill Taft and Will Fratesi were both part of Smoke, the highly respected avant-garde musical group fronted by the late singer and Atlanta legend Benjamin. Smoke ended following Benjamin’s death from AIDS-related complications in 1999, and Taft and Fratesi eventually formed Hubcap City (fB).-

According to Taft, &-;Hubcap City’s music is actually based a lot on chord progressions I learned from Smoke member Todd Butler. He was able to combine Waylon Jennings and Burt Bacharach, and come up with great sounds.” Any hopes of a more comprehensive Smoke reunion were further diminished by the untimely passing of guitarist Butler in 2004. &-;This is the first time I have ever tried to play music by Smoke since it ended,” says Taft. “I guess I always tried to run away from tragedy in my past.”