“We have to save the Imperial! “It is the most beautiful theater in Montreal from the era of vaudeville and the birth of cinema,” he explained Newspaper Dinu Bumbaru, director of policy at Héritage Montréal, who has been defending the metropolis' heritage for 40 years.
When asked to comment on the threatened closures affecting the theater on Rue de Bleury, he called for a mobilization between the levels of government responsible for preserving historic buildings.
“It is up to Montreal to take matters into its own hands, but Quebec and Ottawa cannot shirk their responsibilities,” he adds, asking Mayor Valérie Plante to personally take care of it, she who has 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 without “sufficient federal funding,” the cinema could close its doors in January 2024.
In 1948 the Imperial Theater presented the films Blood and Sand and The Gay Intruders. Source: Imperial Theatre, Montreal, 1935-[1941]BAnQ Vieux-Montréal, Fonds La Presse, (06M,P833,S3,D1019), Unknown photographer.
Big palace
The Imperial was a rich witness of the “Grand Palaces”, those rooms with 800 to 1000 seats built in the major cities of Canada and the United States from the turn of the 19th to the 20th century until the crisis of the 1930s “atmospheric theaters” , where the ceiling imitated the starry sky. The velvet furniture and the Emmanuel Biffa painted curtain gave the whole thing a touch of luxury.
“Going to the theater was preparation for an experience,” summarizes Mr. Bumbaru, who remembers that back then, performances were accompanied by musicians and barkers on stage. Until the first sound film “Jazz Signer” in 1927, cinema was only part of the program. On these festive evenings we dance, sing and perform plays that terrify the church.
When it opened on April 26, 1913, the Imperial had 2,300 seats. The capacity will then be reduced to 819 seats. Source: Cinema Treasures
Classified since 2012
Built in 1913 by the Philadelphia firm of Tognarelli and Voigt, the Imperial has been classified by the Quebec Ministry of Culture and Communications since 2012. The Renaissance-inspired building “represents, by virtue of its architectural value, a historical interest in” the great era of the beginnings of cinema.
There were other “super palaces” of this type in Montreal, such as the Outremont, the Rialto and the Snowdon, but this one is the best preserved, especially inside. Its proscenium arch, its side arches, its oak and wrought iron staircase “as well as the relief decoration of arabesques, garlands and mythological figures”, as the ministry mentions, have preserved the spirit of the time.
Located in the heart of the entertainment district, this architectural gem has witnessed important moments in Montreal's cultural life. “I understand that the maintenance costs of renovating the roof and windows can be high, but why shouldn't the developers of neighboring buildings converted into condominiums contribute to the financing of heritage buildings?” asks Mr Bumbaru. This type of financing is becoming increasingly common in New York, among other places, he argues.
The “great palaces” were characterized by their exotic aesthetics. The Empress on Sherbrooke Street was inspired by the Egypt of the Pharaohs. Operations ceased in 1992 after 65 years of operation. Heritage Montreal