'The Violinist' offers fresh take on Blessed Solanus through eyes of those who knew him

New documentary from the Augustine Institute available for free on Formed streaming platform starting July 30

DETROIT — Most Detroit-area Catholics are familiar with the story of Blessed Solanus Casey.

The famed “porter of St. Bonaventure” was a struggling seminary student who, under the guidance of the Blessed Virgin Mary, went to Detroit and found a vocation as a simplex priest and humble doorman who gave spiritual counsel to hundreds upon hundreds of people.

But a new documentary is taking a fresh look at Blessed Solanus, through the eyes of the people who knew him best.

“The Violinist: Stories of Solanus Casey,” an Augustine Institute film that premiered July 27 at the Solanus Casey Center in Detroit, tells the story of the holy man — and alleged mediocre violin player — through the perspective of people who knew him best.

“The Violinist” is less a straightforward narrative about Solanus Casey’s life, and more an opportunity to catch a glimpse of Fr. Solanus’ real impact on people’s lives, explained Emily Mentock, executive producer of “The Violinist” and co-founder of Digital Continent.

“The story isn’t about all the incredible things he’s done or a complete biography detailing his life, but insights from people he knew,” Mentock told Detroit Catholic. “It features his friends, family, and people he lived with speaking about what his everyday holiness looked like, and the impact he had on people he met personally, which led to, eventually, so many people wanting to attend his funeral and mourn his passing that the city of Detroit had to declare a day of mourning to celebrate him.”

Mentock, who also serves as associate director of strategy for the Archdiocese of Detroit's Department of Communication, worked on the film along with Edmundo Reyes, co-founder of Digital Continent and director of communications for the Archdiocese of Detroit.

"The Violinist" features stories told through visual multimedia, including illustrations, graphics, photography and even video clips from Fr. Solanus' life, woven together to create a compelling narrative.

People familiar with Fr. Solanus’ story and road to beatification might recognize three interviewees featured in “The Violinist”: Sr. Anne Herkenrath, SNJM, Fr. Solanus' grand-niece; Fr. Dan Crosby, OFM Cap., who lived with Fr. Solanus at St. Bonaventure Monastery; and Bridget Schultz, a secular Franciscan who became friends with Fr. Solanus, each sharing their personal experiences with a man who would become Detroit's saint.

“While each of them told the stories of Fr. Solanus — of how they admired his examples, how it changed their lives — you see their holiness coming though,” Mentock said. “You see how today they live by following Solanus’ example, how he touched their lives in a way that changed the way they lived their lives. I was so inspired by meeting them and learning how Fr. Solanus shaped their lives.”

The documentary’s title stems from Blessed Solanus’ love for the violin — a love that was featured in each of the three interviews and can be seen as an insight into Blessed Solanus’ spirituality, Mentock said.

“Each of them had stories of Fr. Solanus playing the violin,” Mentock said. “We all have heard he played the violin, that he didn’t play it well, but the takeaway from his life is he didn’t care if he played it poorly, he just wanted to share every single gift God had given him with others, and the violin playing was one sort of fun and joyful example of that.”

The premiere of “The Violinist” comes as Detroiters celebrate Blessed Solanus’ July 30 feast day, when people might have an interest in learning more about Fr. Solanus’ life, said Fr. Steve Kropp, OFM Cap., director of the Solanus Casey Center.

Detroit native Bishop Robert J. McClory of Gary, Ind., will celebrate Blessed Solanus' feast day Mass during a 6 p.m. liturgy tonight at St. Bonaventure Monastery in Detroit, where the friar is buried, followed by the first-ever procession with a statue of Blessed Solanus through the streets of Detroit.

“The approach (of the documentary) may be a little different than others, primarily because it’s based on people’s actual experiences with Solanus Casey,” Fr. Kropp said. “There were a number of people who were interviewed, and they got it down to three people who were featured. It’s their experience with who Solanus was and how they interacted with him. I think it will be emotional with that connection and will help people connect themselves to how they experience Solanus in their own hearts and spiritual lives.”

Those who were unable to attend the July 27 premiere or free screening at the Solanus Casey Center can watch “The Violinist” on Formed, the Augustine Institute’s streaming platform, starting July 30.

The documentary comes at a time of renewed interest in Blessed Solanus, said Fr. Kropp, given the increase in foot traffic at the Solanus Casey Center and the building anticipation of a possible canonization.

“We’ve seen the numbers recover from COVID in terms of visitors and prayer requests,” Fr. Kropp said. “There are about 120,000 (a year) people coming into this building and having an encounter with Solanus at the tomb as part of their prayer experience. Beyond that, we have people who contact us via mail, telephone, mailers we send out for development, and emails — almost a million prayer requests have been sent to his tomb.

“People are definitely interested in Solanus, and this documentary will only help,” Fr. Kropp added.

“The Violinist” is the first in an Augustine Institute series called "Based on a True Saint," which plans to chronicle the lives of modern saints, showing audiences that holiness is possible to achieve today.

Mentock felt there was no one better to begin such an initiative than Blessed Solanus Casey, a man who faced many challenges but still strived to “thank God ahead of time,” as his famous saying goes.

“A lot of times holiness can feel out of touch, that it was a practice done by saints from long ago that are on a different plane than where we live today,” Mentock said. “But the saints were human. They were like us — they struggled, they had disappointments. Solanus heard, ‘no,’ a lot of times in his life and made the best of it. We can learn from Solanus and other saints how they took those disappointments and setbacks and offered them up to God.”

When people watch “The Violinist,” Fr. Kropp hopes they will find little pieces of their own lives in the lives of Blessed Solanus and those who knew him.

“My hope is people will be able to identify their own personal experiences with Solanus,” Fr. Kropp said. “The film outlines three people’s lived experiences, but also their spiritual experience of someone they still feel close to in their hearts and in their prayers. They feel the presence of Solanus with them, and I think people through this documentary will develop their sense of who Solanus is and his connection to people’s lives today.”