Unique – apollo cinema closed forever, Property purchased by the University of Messina
by Enrico Di Giacomo – Now it’s official. There Multiplex Apollo via Cesare Battisti, corner of S. Filippo Bianchi, historical cinema and cultural reference point for the city, will close its doors this summer, Entrepreneurs Fabrizio La Scala and Loredana Polizzi have really raised the white flag. The historic building, designed by architect Filippo Rovigo on commission from Maria La Scala (who was a telegrapher on warships in the 1940s and arrived in Messina after the war), persuaded a bank manager to sell her land on which She wanted to make a cinema. ) on March 19, 1953, 70 years ago, It was sold after a brief negotiation at the University of Messina for a figure that would be approximately two million three hundred thousand euros., The purchase was authorized in the board meeting held on 30 May. Peloritano University under the leadership of rector Salvatore Cuzzocrea continues with its policy of acquiring iconic buildings in the city, above all the former headquarters of the Bank of Italy in Piazza Cavallotti and the former Hotel Riviera. The Messina entrepreneurs will continue to manage the high-end “Cineapolo” residence and the Fasola Auditorium, which will continue to host major meetings and projects. let’s start again June 10 with a meeting with the great master Marco BellocchioIn the city to present his latest film “Kidnapped”, the true story of Edgardo Mortara.
The building purchased by the university is about one thousand square meters. Inside are four rooms which, in the view of the governorship of Piazza Puglipatti, should become, starting in September, the new headquarters of the DAMS of Messina, the three-year degree course for art, music and the subjects of the Performing Arts established at the University of Messina in 2020-2021 .
Reopening of cinemas 27 years ago.
in September 1996 (debut in programming Independence Day with Will Smith and Jeff Goldblum), 27 years ago, reopening after a long period of crisis and years of closure. Then with the exciting experiences of “ApolloSpazioArte”, with the closure of the street in December 2017, the opening of high-end residences such as CineApollo, with thematic rooms dedicated to the Seventh Art, the focus was on a strong relaunch multiplex. Did. But the COVID-19 pandemic and streaming platforms hit the sector hard, with projects and budgets running into more and more losses. Finally, the absence of follow-up initiatives by municipal councils, which could have approved, as has happened in other cities, through special agreements, to allow special so-called “cinema-saving” regulations. The existence of historic theaters such as the ‘Apollo’ had left the two entrepreneurs tired of proclamations, certificates of honor and pats on the back, as well as empty chairs. Cinema is dying and in the end it is only our fault.
photo age