On Friday evening at the Napa Valley Opera House a large audience was about to be transported back in time to a simpler age, circa 19l0 to 1929. In those years, more than 20,000 cinemas operated across the U.S. and each “Nickelodeon” brought us the silent movies of early film legends, thanks to the genius of Thomas Edison and others who quickly followed.

Audiences demanded sound to accompany the actions of screen favorites and orchestral music quickly became the rage, with strings, drums, winds and brass, along with sound effects accompanying the photoplays in every theater across the US.

At the Opera House Friday, music by the 12-piece Paragon Ragtime Orchestra directed by Rick Benjamin accompanied three silent films by three early movie greats, Buster Keaton, Harold Lloyd and Charlie Chaplin, and the audience, was enthralled by the magic these early artists brought to the screen.

The two-act show opened with Buster Keaton playing almost every part in “The Playhouse” (192l.) Keaton played a young man, an old man, a dowager and you name it, and his deadpan expression no matter the circumstances, had the audience in tears of laughter as did the music that accompanied his every move.

An orchestral interlude featuring “Hiawatha” (190l) allowed Director Rick Benjamin to change reels, and the show continued flawlessly.

Next up was the legendary Harold Lloyd, a plain guy, his trademark heavy horned-rim glasses. In his 1920 film, “Get Out and Get Under,” Lloyd escaped a police chase and farmers with pitchforks as he drove an early day automobile through backyards, fences, houses and even onto a flatbed of a railroad train before he finally arrived at a playhouse just in time to take a final bow.

I’m probably dating myself, but I remember my mom singing “Get Out and Get Under” to me.

The audience ate it up, but there would be more, much more.

Act II opened with the orchestra playing George M. Cohan numbers including “Yankee Doodle Dandy” (19l7) and concluding a set with “Kansas City Blues” (19l5). Then it was on to the main event.

No silent film festival could be complete without the great Charlie Chaplin, and there he was on our silver screen, playing in his greatest silent role in “The Immigrant.”

As the music set the stage, there was Chaplin with his derby, magic cane and far too large shoes pointing east and west as Charlie walked north.

The opening scene, on a rolling boat headed for America with passengers leaning over the railing not caring if the boat sank, was a classic, and Charlie trying to eat a bowl of soup on that rolling ship’s table was film magic.

Charlie made it to the U.S. and in a restaurant, treating his girlfriend Edna Purviance to a meal, he realized he was flat broke. Being served by a thug of a waiter didn’t help. Added to that, he’d seen another diner who came up five cents short on his tab being beaten by four thugs dressed as waiters. Somehow Chaplin came out of the scene alive — a classic in silent film history.

I should note that within the audience was a strong St. Helena presence, as a few of the musicians were home-grown artists. One of the folks from St. Helena, Jo Bollen, sat next to me. Jo had arrived with her friends, Marilyn and Al Albright, and this lady as she watched Keaton, Lloyd and Chaplin would break out with low, but infectious chuckles. I have to admit I caught her fever with chuckles and laughs of my own.

“The Clown Princes of Hollywood” was a show for the ages and if the troupe comes this way again, I’d highly recommend it to young and old alike.

Ev Parker can be reached at evjenpar@mailbug.com or 224-9956