The Bragadiru Coliseum or Bragadiru Brewery is a historic building built in the early twentieth century located on Lăpușneanu Street in Iasi. In the beginning, its perimeter was a promenade for locals and tourists.
At the end of the 19th century, the cemetery of the Banu Church was located on the place where the building exists today. Over time, this space has deteriorated, and in collaboration with Iasi City Hall this environment has been transformed into a public garden with flowers, benches or spaces for breweries, becoming an attraction for artists or singers who offered the public shows full of enthusiasm.
The owner of the Bragadiru brewery, in the summer of 1905, after discussions with the architect Virgil Hălăceanu, decided to build a confectionery-brewery on the street front, on Lăpușneanu, near the park, which will be called the Bragadiru Coliseum. A year later, his wish was fulfilled and this magnificent place was inaugurated. The building soon became a cinema. Unfortunately, in only five years since its opening, the place caught fire, but regained its fame after two years, during which time it was under the administration of Banu Church.
The building had periods of glory, but also a series of unlucky events, as it was repeatedly engulfed in fire, in most cases fires starting from the movie projection booth. Legend has it that the place was haunted because it was built over the graves of the family of the logothete and poet Costachi Conachi. In 1939 the building benefited from repair works and was returned to the public as Cinema Capitol, and later in 1950 it was for a period of more than 50 years known as Cinema Tineretului.
Over time the building has had several names, including "Elysee", "Roxi", "Capitol", "Youth", "Beer Hall," Astoria Brewery "or as everyone knows it today, the Bragadiru Coliseum .
Today, the City Hall of Iasi and the National Athenaeum propose a rehabilitation of the historic building Bragadiru by studying the documentation from the early twentieth century and reconstructing the architecture with the initial elements of stucco, frames, crowns and statuary groups. The destination of the building will be that of cinema and art gallery, but also space for workshops and outdoor performance events.
The old photos are part of Mr. Eduard Ionescu's collection from Cluj. We thank him for the kindness with which he made them available to us!
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