2023-12-20 05:05:00
“We must save the Imperial! It is the most beautiful of Montreal theaters dating from the vaudeville period and the birth of cinema,” declared to Journal Dinu Bumbaru, director of policies at Héritage Montréal who has defended the heritage of the metropolis for 40 years.
Asked to comment on the threats of closure weighing on the rue de Bleury theater, he calls for mobilization between the levels of government which are responsible for the preservation of heritage buildings.
“It is up to Montreal to take matters in hand, but Quebec and Ottawa must not shirk their responsibilities,” he adds, asking Mayor Valérie Plante to take care of it personally, she who combines the functions as mayor of the city and the Ville-Marie district.
On December 11, council president Benoit Clermont told Agence QMI journalist Frédérique de Simone that the cinema might close its doors in January 2024 without “adequate federal funding.”
In 1948, the Imperial Theater presented the films Blood and Sand and The Gay Intruders. Source: Imperial Theater, Montreal, 1935-[1941]BAnQ Vieux-Montréal, Fonds La Presse, (06M,P833,S3,D1019), Unidentified photographer.
Grand Palace
A rich witness to the “Grand Palaces”, these rooms with 800 to 1000 seats built in the major cities of Canada and the United States from the turn of the 19th and 20th centuries until the crisis of the 1930s, the Imperial was one of the “atmospheric theaters” where the ceiling imitated the starry sky. The velvet furniture and the curtain painted by Emmanuel Biffa added an air of luxury to the whole.
“Going to the theater was preparing to live an experience,” summarizes Mr. Bumbaru, who recalls that the screenings were accompanied at the time by musicians and barkers on stage. Until the first talking film, Jazz Signer, in 1927, cinema was only part of the program. We dance, we sing and we perform plays during these festive evenings which horrify the Church.
When it opened on April 26, 1913, the Imperial had 2,300 seats. Capacity will subsequently be reduced to 819 seats. Source: Cinema Treasures
Classified since 2012
Built in 1913 by the firm Tognarelli and Voigt of Philadelphia, the Imperial has been classified by the Ministry of Culture and Communications of Quebec since 2012. Of Renaissance inspiration, the building “presents a heritage interest for its architectural value” of the great era of the beginnings of cinema.
Montreal has had other “super palaces” of this type such as the Outremont, the Rialto and the Snowdon but this is the one that has been best preserved, particularly inside. Its proscenium arch, its side arches, its oak and wrought iron staircase “as well as the relief ornamentation composed of arabesques, garlands and mythological figures” mentions the ministry, have preserved the spirit of the period .
Located in the heart of the entertainment district, this architectural gem has served important moments in Montreal’s cultural life. “I understand that the maintenance costs to renovate the roof and windows can be high, but why wouldn’t the developers of neighboring buildings transformed into condos contribute to the financing of heritage buildings?” asks Mr. Bumbaru. This type of financing is increasingly common in New York, among other places, he argues.
The “grand palaces” were distinguished by their exotic aesthetics. The Empress, on Sherbrooke Street, was inspired by the Egypt of the pharaohs. It ceased operations in 1992 following 65 years of activity. Heritage Montreal
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