Years ago, the Warsaw district of Praga-Północ had its own film centre, which was for many local residents the first place of contact with the big screen. The former “Praha” cinema at 24/26 Jagiellońska played a unique role in the life of the district, and when it was no longer functional, it was demolished. After 50 years of operation, a contemporary complex with a three-screen digital cinema appeared in its place, but reminiscent of its iconic predecessor.
Praha” cinema – origins and its role
“Praha” was built between 1948 and 1950 as a major post-war investment to provide the residents of right-bank Warsaw with access to the film repertoire without having to travel to the city centre. The cinema functioned as a local meeting point and centre of cultural life. Premieres, thematic reviews and artistic events attracted a wide audience. In an era before the popularisation of shopping malls and large multiplexes, the venue acted as a place accessible to all. Residents remembered it as a point of connection with emotions, habits and local identity.
Architecture and layout of the building
The design of the building was prepared by Jan Bogusławski and Józef Łowiński. Due to the unstable ground, it was founded on a system of joints, which made the building stand out among the post-war realisations of the capital. The two-storey auditorium seated 580 spectators and the entrance to the building was located on the side of the former Karol Wójcik Street. The side walls were filled with impressive glazing and an outward curving bay window. Its form was complemented by reliefs depicting female and male workers. A catering establishment and a ticket office also functioned nearby. The corridor, foyer, staircase and ramp leading to the balcony created a simple and functional layout. The interior featured bas-reliefs, plafonds and chandeliers by Stanislaw Sikora, giving the space a very elegant aesthetic atmosphere.
The end of an iconic institution
The building served the residents of Prague for more than half a century. It had its best days in the 1970s and early 1980s, being one of the four premiere cinemas in Warsaw. Unfortunately, over the years it became non-functional and lost its importance. The end of the Praha cinema came in 2005, the official reason being its unprofitability. In order to protect the valuable building, it was planned to enter it in the register of historical monuments, but this did not happen in the end. Max Film, the company that owns the site, chose the option of demolishing it and building a new complex. In this way, a cult cinema disappeared from the landscape of the right bank of Warsaw, with all the memories of its inhabitants associated with it. However, it was decided to save the sculptures adorning ‘Praha’ and integrate them into the new development, which was to create a kind of continuity of memory of the building.
Successor: Nove Kino Praha
In 2007, the newly built Nove Kino Praha – the first fully digital cinema in Poland – opened on this site. In a building designed by a team of architects: Krzysztof Tyszkiewicz, Slawomir Stankiewicz and Michal Adamczyk, featured three auditoriums for 555 spectators, also suitable for conferences and concerts. The most distinctive feature of the new architecture was the 12 reliefs portraying Polish actors. The works were designed by Jerzy Dobczański and executed by Piotr Banasik. The interiors of the building, meanwhile, were decorated with black-and-white photographs of actors and several of the aforementioned bas-reliefs preserved from the old building. The functional programme of the new complex was designed so that the service and office activities would complement the cinema activities. After various organisational changes and public protests, the cinema operated here until 2019. Eventually, its space was taken over by the Jan Kiepura Mazovian Musical Theatre.
Praha cinema and the memory of the place
The former ‘Praha’ cinema still has an emotional significance for many residents, despite its physical absence from the neighbourhood space. This timeless value stems from the memory of events, past screenings and informal meetings with friends and relatives. The building was an important point of Prague and its beating heart. The successor to the iconic cinema did not replicate this function to the same extent, but it brought a new form of culture to the district, which was appreciated and started a new chapter of history.
Source: warszawa.fandom.com, mteatr.pl
Read also: Architecture in Poland | Socialist realism | Interesting facts | History | Warsaw
View of the “Praha” cinema in 1954 and today. Source: NAC – National Digital Archive and Adrian Grycuk, CC BY-SA 3.0 PL, via Wikimedia Commons
