The first film screenings in Yerevan took place in 1898 in a small wooden shed located in the courtyard of the city police building. It can be said that it became the first Yerevan “cinema hall”. Then they started building cinemas in Armenia: “Apollo”, “Illusion”, and the Avanesov and Khachaturov summer wooden Cinema. Later, in Soviet Yerevan, the number of cinemas increased along with the growth of the city. In 1923, the Astkh cinema of the Soviet Armenian Military Department was opened in the building of the Red Army House in Yerevan (now the Abovyan School No. 2 is located there), which also hosted film screenings. At the same time, a Petkino summer cinema was built on the territory of one of the parks provided by the city Council on Abovyan Street.
Nairi Cinema
The Nairi Cinema was originally opened in 1920 and was located on Amiryan Street. The new one was opened at Mashtots 50, a house from the late 1940s. The house was built as a departmental building for employees of the Electric Lamp Factory at the suggestion of Yakov Sargsyan, who held the position of director of the Yerevan Electric Lamp Factory. The architect is G. Tamanyan, son of Alexander Tamanyan. After the construction was completed, Yakov Sargsyan was invited to choose which to place in the corner of the building — a store or a cinema? Sargsyan chose a cinema. The cinema lobby was circular, turning into a square hall with marble stairs leading to a semicircular cinema hall. In the evenings, an orchestra played here — 40 minutes before the start of the session, and the townspeople came early to listen to the music. The buffet was particularly popular: a saleswoman with a box of ice cream on a string walked around the hall before the show. The cinema operated until August 2021 and now has the status of “temporarily closed”. Today, you can go to the Globbing office, which is located on the cinema site – the columns and stucco molding of the cinema lobby have been preserved inside. Fragments can also be seen on the lower floor of Tashir Pizza in the same building.
The David Sasunsky Cinema
At one time, the forecourt was a single completed ensemble. To the right of the station building was the David Sasunsky cinema, to the left was the Railway Workers’ Cultural Center. The David Sasunsky cinema was built in the late 1940s, in accordance with the decision of the Armenian Ministry of Culture to create “cultural zones” in the districts of the capital. The architect of the building is Anna Ter-Avetikyan.
The cinema closed in the early 80s, and a few years later the building was demolished. It is said that the reason for the demolition was the personal hostility of some officials towards the author of the building. Construction of a hotel complex began on the site of the former cinema, which remained unfinished.
Cinema “Russia”
1968 project, 1971-1974, Artur Tarkhanyan, Spartak Khachikyan, Hrachya Poghosyan.
The roof of the Rossiya cinema, made up of cable-stayed ceilings, became the first structure of its kind in Armenia. In the part of the cinema that faces Tigran Metz Street, the overlap is 40 meters wide and 60 meters long. The authors of the project wanted to name the cinema “Ararat” or “Noah’s Ark”. However, their vote was not decisive, and the cinema was named “Russia”. The best sculptors who created sculptures for the cinema halls were invited to decorate the space. Among them were Yervand Kodabashyan, Henrikh Elibekyan, Ohan Petrosyan, Amayak Bdeyan and others. Unfortunately, many of the sculptures were later destroyed. The opening of the Rossiya cinema took place in December 1974 at a meeting of the plenum of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of Armenia, which was held by First Secretary Karen Demirchyan, who recently took up this post. The next day, a film screening began in the cinema.
Hayrenik cinema
Hayrenik, built in Yerevan in 1951 in the Yerord Mas factory quarter.
The opening of the cinema was timed to coincide with the celebration of Workers’ Day on May 1, 1951. The architect of the building, Grigory Gareginovich Aghababyan, executed the project in the medieval oriental style. There was a buffet and ticket offices on the ground floor. The 500-seat auditorium was located on the second floor, accessible via stairs located on both sides of the foyer.
There was a stable monopoly on Indian films at Irenica, although they could also be viewed at other cinemas far from the city center.
Typical cinemas: Komitas, Aragats, Ani
The standard design of the cinema was commissioned in 1961, and is considered one of the early works of the famous architectural trio: A. Tarkhanyan, G. Poghosyan, S. Khachikyan.
“Aragats” was located in Achapnyak, it was the first cinema implemented according to a standard design (Alabyan St., 18, commissioned by Tumo), it opened on December 21, 1961 with a screening of Frunzik Dovlatyan’s thesis “Morning Trains”. The cinema quickly became the cultural center of the young Achapnyak district, a place where young people gather and where the whole family goes.
Shiraz, a classic of Armenian poetry, actors and directors such as Vahram Papazyan and Frunze Dovlatyan were regular guests of the Aragats cinema, and Sergei Paradzhanov watched The Umbrellas of Cherbourg for the 18th time here. Aragats was one of the first to close in the early 1990s, and now it is replaced by a car dealership.
The Komitas Cinema (47 Komitas Ave.) was built in 1963. It was originally a one-story building, built later. Komitas Avenue at that time was a small street in a sparsely populated residential area. Over time, the area grew, and residential buildings grew next to Komitas. Resourceful residents of the street adapted one of the walls of house No. 45 and the courtyard of the cinema for an outdoor summer cinema. Since it was an improvisation by the residents, the condition for entering the hall was to have a chair or stool with them.
The cinema “Pioneer”
The cinema “Pioneer” was on the street.Teryana, 19, where Paulaner Beerhouse is now, the building was built at the same time as Nairi.
Schoolchildren liked the cinema’s repertoire: from the very morning until the end of the working day, they played films with Indians and cowboys, though not Hollywood ones. For example, students from the school named afterChkalov ran away from lessons to watch a movie. Rafik Hakobjanyan and the Aslanyan brothers lived in this house, and the violinist Aharonian lived there.
Moscow Summer Cinema
Moscow Summer Cinema – 1967, Architects Spartak Knechtsyan and Telman Gevorgyan were awarded the prize.Alexander Tamanyan. The summer cinema hall of the Moscow Cinema is one of the exceptional examples of modern Armenian architecture and also has historical significance: a revolutionary building was created in the harsh atmosphere of the Soviet era. The hall is completely built of monolithic concrete, has no cladding, which was an innovation for those years. The hall was built behind the existing main building (winter hall) of the cinema, on the side of Tumanyan Street. Previously, the cinema had a summer hall, the first one that has not been preserved (architect Sahakanush Manusajyan). The first level is located below the street level (0.6 m), there is a cash register and a summer cafe. From here, a staircase leads to the second level, where there is a unique foyer, a spectator’s stand and a cinema screen. The pillars holding this level have an interesting solution. In February 2010, by a decision of the Armenian government, the summer hall of the Moscow Cinema was removed from the list of protected monuments, and its territory was granted to the Mother See of St. Echmiadzin, who intended to build a church there similar to the church of St. Poghos-Petros (demolished in the 1930s). Thanks to a number of public initiatives, the collection of signatures (over 24 thousand were collected!) and appeals to the administration, the demolition of the cinema was avoided. Despite the fact that on July 12, 2018, the K/i Moscow Summer Hall received the status of a monument of national significance, it still stands surrounded by a fence and is not in use. But just before the new year, the news appeared that the Mayor of Yerevan promises that the Summer Cinema will be restored to its original form!
A list of the above-mentioned and other closed cinemas in Yerevan:
“Ayrenik” (Arshakunyats street. 38)
“Aragats” (Alabyan St., 18)
Abovyan (7 Kanaker Street)
“Ani” (6 Sebastia street)
“Yerevan” (Marshal Babajanyan, 18/13, Avan Recreation Center)
Zvartnots
“Komitas” (Komitas, 45)
“Mink” (1st district of Mink)
“October”
Pioneer (Teryan St., 19)
“Russia” (Tigran Metz St., 14)
Hrazdan (Kievyan St., 8)
“Sasunzi David” (Square in front of the train station)
Sevan (Tamantsiner St., 19)
Urartu
“Usanokh” (4 David Anakhta St.)
Source: engineer-history.com (https://www.instagram.com/engineer_history.am?igsh=Z2hsY2NncGo0OWp4)
