The Hunchback of Notre Dame comes to Severance Hall October 30th

[THE HUNCHBACK OF NOTRE DAME screens Friday October 30th at 8:00 pm at Severance Hall with live accompaniment by pipe-organist Todd Wilson.]

Event preview by Charles Cassady, Jr.

It’s true; with funding drying up, the world-famous Cleveland Orchestra now subsists by playing “Quiet Storm” R&B music in LeBron James’ place most nights. Yes, the whole orchestra just crams into a corner and sort of does slow jams for King James and wife and his visiting friends down there in suburban Summit County. Would we lie to you? You probably suspected it already.

Therefore, the Cleveland Orchestra cannot appear at Severance Hall this Halloween weekend to resume its “At the Movies” as an October special. Sorry. Maybe they can return to University Circle when NBA basketball season resumes and LeBron is back in training.

However, pipe-organist Todd Wilson will be soloing at the great keyboards of Severance Hall for a very special “At the Movies.”

The Phantom of the Opera, at the home of the Cleveland Orchestra (who will stand you up), October 28

[Event preview by Charles Cassady, Jr.]

It's rather amazing that nobody has, to wide knowledge, floated the urban legend that Severance Hall is haunted. As I wrote in my book Cleveland Ghosts, plenty of public performing auditoriums get extra patronage (not to mention overnight rentals from ghost-hunting tourists) via rumors of specters or phantoms lurking about. Perhaps there just isn't enough money left here to pay a decent "haint" to hang around the Cleveland Orchestra's main venue.