A spectacular opening night for City Lights in Tokyo!

24 Oct 2026

On 23 October 2026, the world premiere of Alastair Marriott’s ballet adaptation of Charlie Chaplin’s film City Lights at the New National Theatre, Tokyo, was met with a standing ovation and seven curtain calls — a wonderful celebration of Chaplin’s timeless artistry.

With Chaplin’s exquisite music, beautifully arranged by Timothy Brock and performed by the Tokyo Philharmonic Orchestra, Marriott’s inventive choreography, stunning designs by Dick Bird and evocative lighting by Ellen Ruge, the magic of City Lights found a beautiful new expression through ballet.

At the heart of it all is the beloved story of the Little Tramp and the Blind Flower Girl — full of humour, tenderness and that extraordinary ability Chaplin had to make us laugh one moment and move us to tears the next.

Congratulations to the National Ballet of Japan, the entire creative team and everyone at the New National Theatre, Tokyo, on such a memorable premiere.

More than 90 years after the film first touched audiences, Chaplin’s world continues to inspire artists and move hearts across generations and around the globe.

City Lights runs at the New National Theatre, Tokyo, until 1 November. If you’re in Tokyo, don’t miss it!

Photos by Takashi Shikama

Help Save the Cinema Museum: £500,000 to Buy Its Home

01 Oct 2026

The Cinema Museum in London, housed in the Grade II listed former Lambeth Workhouse, where a young Charlie Chaplin was sent as a boy with his stepbrother and mother, needs to raise £500,000 by December to buy the building it has occupied for decades. It’s a once-in-a-generation opportunity to bring 40 years of uncertainty to an end.

The Cinema Museum is dedicated to the experience of going to the cinema. It is entirely volunteer-run and receives no public funding.

Its collection includes art deco cinema seats, vintage projectors, ushers’ uniforms and classic film posters. The museum also hosts independent screenings, local events and educational tours, and provides free or subsidised space to local charities and community groups.

According to the Cinema Museum, for years, property developers and changes of ownership have put the museum at risk of closure or eviction. It has now secured an option to buy its buildings, but only if it can raise the money in time. As the organisers put it, the finish line is in sight; they just need to cross it.

If you’d like to help, you can:

Donate via the campaign page.

Share the campaign with friends, family, film clubs and anyone who loves cinema.

Spread the word on social media. Even a single repost could help the campaign reach someone who can make a difference.

Any funds raised beyond the target would go towards long-overdue repairs and development, opening the museum to the public daily, and expanding its wellbeing, environmental and education work.

Places like this are rare. Once a collection is scattered and a building like this is lost, it can be very difficult to bring them back together. If you’ve ever loved a night at the pictures, please consider chipping in.

Disclosure: We are not affiliated with The Cinema Museum or its fundraising campaign. We simply want to see the museum succeed and are sharing the campaign because we truly believe it is worth supporting.

Support The Cinema Museum’s campaign.

Chaplin socks by MuseARTa

29 Sep 2026

New, fun, high-quality knit socks from MuseARTa, licensed by Bubbles Inc. Just right for this fall.

New publication from the Archives de Montreux

23 Sep 2026

The Archives de Montreux have published Montreux au rythme de la musique, the fourth volume in their Empreintes du Temps collection (in French).

The publication traces more than 150 years of the Swiss city’s musical history, from Tchaikovsky and Stravinsky to David Bowie and Queen, and from the Casino-Kursaal to Mountain Studios… and of course, to Charlie Chaplin!

Among its contributions is an article by Arnold Lozano, Director of the Chaplin Office, introducing a recent addition to the Chaplin archives: the papers of Raymond “Ray” Rasch, Chaplin’s musical associate on Limelight.

The Ray Rasch collection brings together new material relating to the film’s pre-production and production, as well as documents concerning Rasch’s own life and career. It offers a personal perspective on the making of Limelight, as well as a glimpse into Rasch’s views of Chaplin and their professional relationship.

The volume also includes an article on Mountain Studios, with recollections from Eugene Chaplin, who worked there from 1975 to 1978.

The Chaplin Office is especially grateful to the Archives de Montreux and their wonderful staff for the care they continue to give to the Chaplin archives, preserved in Montreux on behalf of our rights-holding companies, and for the generosity and collaboration they have shown over the years.

Montreux au rythme de la musique is available at Librairie Payot (Montreux), Librairie La Fontaine (Vevey), the Montreux Museum, and the Montreux Jazz Festival shop.

New book: Late Style in Film by Collin Brinkmann

01 Sep 2026

Drawing on existing literature and archival documents, and brimming with anecdotes, Late Style in Film is an in-depth study of the later works of filmmakers Howard Hawks, Alfred Hitchcock, and Charlie Chaplin by cinephile and writer Collin Brinkmann, published by Sticking Place Books.

From Monsieur Verdoux (1947) to Chaplin’s unfinished project, The Freak, Brinkmann examines the tension between the production and reception of Chaplin’s later works, as well as his artistic resilience, self-awareness and ever-keen perception of the major upheavals of the postwar era—arguably the most tumultuous period of his adult career, and a time when he had to start anew in exile.

Late Style in Film is a nuanced tribute to creative longevity, delving into the later works of Chaplin—a reminder of his defiance of norms and his refusal to let his work stop evolving.

In the words of Chaplin himself, at the age of 87: To work is to live—and I love to live.

Chaplin Under the Stars: A Dog's Life and Shoulder Arms

02 Jul 2026

On 27 June, Cineteca di Bologna’s Il Cinema Ritrovato festival celebrated two milestones in Charlie Chaplin’s career with a programme devoted to his first two First National films, A Dog’s Life and Shoulder Arms (both 1918).

The day began with a panel exploring the new 4K restorations of both films from their original A-negative versions, presented at their original silent speeds. Arnold Lozano (Chaplin Office), Dave Kehr (MoMA), and conductor and restorer Timothy Brock discussed the collaborative work behind the restorations, undertaken by MoMA in partnership with Cineteca di Bologna, under the aegis of Association Chaplin and Roy Export S.A.S. Brock also offered insight into his meticulous restoration and adaptation of Chaplin’s own 1959 orchestral scores, commissioned by Roy Export S.A.S., to accompany the newly restored films.

The discussions found their perfect culmination that evening in Bologna’s Piazza Maggiore, where thousands gathered for the world premiere of the new restorations with Brock’s restored scores, performed live by Orchestra Senzaspine under his direction.

One particularly memorable moment came during A Dog’s Life, when Maestro Brock played the musical saw as part of the live performance.

The screening was introduced by Arnold Lozano and Dave Kehr.

Our thanks to photographer Lorenzo Burlando for capturing some wonderful moments from an exceptional day at Il Cinema Ritrovato. See more of his photographs of the evening on Facebook.

Machi no Hi – a Bunraku adaptation of “City Lights!

30 Jun 2026

We’re delighted to share the news of a brand-new licensed Bunraku production in Japan inspired by Charlie Chaplin’s timeless masterpiece, City Lights.

These are the first promotional photos of the puppet portraying the iconic Tramp.

The production is unmistakably Chaplin while remaining quintessentially Bunraku—a remarkable meeting of the world’s “King of Comedy” and one of Japan’s greatest classical performing arts.

If you’re in Japan this summer, don’t miss the opportunity to experience this unique production at the National Bunraku Theatre in Osaka from July 18 to August 9.

Details here

Very special thanks to Japanese Chaplin specialist Ono Hiroyuki of The Chaplin Society of Japan!