Administrative Area. The renovated cinema will resemble a glass ship. This is the third project in a series. Kirgiziya Cinema in Novogireyevo and Avrora Cinema in Tyoply Stan districts will be given the same appearance having been approved for upgrades.
According to the Moscow Committee for Architecture and Urban Development, 39 Soviet cinemas will be turned into public centres (malls) with cinema halls, cafes, retail outlets and other kinds of leisure activities for local residents to enjoy. About 20 such projects have been approved. Others are to be reviewed by the Moscow Committee for Architecture and Urban Development.
The projects are based on a concept by the British architecture firm of Amanda Levete. Ms Levete was the designer of the famous Museum of Art, Architecture and Technology in Lisbon. The main distinction of these centres will be transparent glass facades with a streamlined form as well as cafes and roof gardens. In the evening, the buildings will be lit.
The entrance to Pervomaisky Cinema (93 Pervomaiskaya Street), which is not in the front of the building, will resemble a ship’s bow with a wide stained-glass panel and ceramic panels. The roof will provide a summer café and a garden with recreation zones.
“The emerging of public centres in place of outdated Soviet cinemas will be useful for local residents whose life will become more comfortable and their personal time more diverse,” said Chief Architect of Moscow Sergei Kuznetsov.
In addition, the Moscow Committee for Architecture and Urban Development has approved the design of a mall to replace the Neva Cinema in the Northern Administrative Area (16A Belomorskaya Street). It will also feature a glass façade and a roof promenade. Both cinemas will have four aboveground and one underground floor.
In 2014, 39 Soviet-built city-owned district cinemas were put up for tender. All the buildings required renovation and new equipment. The outdated cinemas will be converted into modern cultural centres by private investors.