#ARCTIC. #SIBERIA. THIS IS TAIMYR. It was planned to place a whole complex of cultural and sports facilities on the square – a new drama theater, a cinema, a museum, a Pioneer House, a swimming pool.
Competitions were announced, projects were proposed, ‘spears were broken’, but none of the options satisfied the architectural community and the authorities, and, apparently, that’s why it was never implemented.
For ten years, while the debate was going on, Metallurgists square stayed empty. In 1975, they began to prepare the construction site there.
A new cinema, a ‘super cinema’ construction began. Two years later, it became a gift for the anniversary of the October Revolution, and large-format equipment was installed in it – for 70 mm film.
Before the opening of the cinema, a competition for the best name was announced. The Norilsk people came up with 80 options, including Metallurg, Aurora, Zvezda.
But the round date obliged: this is how the ideological name – 60 Years of October appeared -, or, as the townspeople later simplified, ‘six-zero’.
The widescreen cinema could accommodate up to 800 spectators at a time. The interiors of the new cultural center were developed by designers from the Norilsk art and production workshops, including the well-known Norilsk artist and architect Boris Paley.
The first films on the posters of the new cinema were Soldiers of Liberty, Red Requiem and Mysterious Abduction.
In 2003, after a long renovation, the cinema was renamed Cinema Art Hall. Ten years later, the Arena sports and entertainment complex was built next to it.
In the History Spot photo project previous publication, we told that the local Norilsk beer was a very popular drink: there were several beer bars and pavilions in the city.
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Text: Svetlana Ferapontova, Photo: Nornickel Polar Branch archive
