Capitol Cinema

Las Palmas de Gran Canaria · Category: Memory · Subcategory: Memory spaces · Year: 1949 · Authors: Antonio Cardona Aragón, José Luis Jiménez Domínguez

The Capitol Cinema was located on Paseo Tomás Morales, in the heart of the Arenales neighbourhood. The building was designed in 1948 by the architects Antonio Cardona and José Luis Jiménez Domínguez for the owner Fermín Gil González.

It is a building very typical of its era and function, designed with great lightness. On the façade, the openings are regularly arranged, alternating between vernacular elements and others that recall historicist architecture. Inside, the space was divided into three sections: the ground floor, where there was a stalls area along with a set of boxes, orchestra and stage with screen; a first floor with a large lobby, bar and facilities; and from there, access to a balcony divided into two by a wide corridor. The whole complex could accommodate 950 spectators (500 in the lower area and 450 in the upper).

The Capitol Cinema was inaugurated on Saturday 29 November 1949 with the screening of the film The Bells of St. Mary's directed by Leo McCarey, made in 1945.

The Capitol had a long and successful commercial life. It was one of the few cinemas that barely survived the huge crisis of the mid-1980s. The cinema closed permanently on 17 March 2004. Its main façade is still preserved, but the interior was completely renovated to become a building of residences and commercial premises.

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