Ghost architectures

Abstract

Over the course of four decades, ten street movie theaters were built in Anápolis: Cine Bruno (1924), Cine Goianás (1929), Cine Áurea (1933), Cine Teatro Imperial (1936), Cine Carajá (1950), Cine Teatro Santana (1951), Cine Bom Jesus (1958), Cine Vera Cruz (1958), Cine Santa Maria (1962), and Cine Roxy (1972). The narrative of Anápolis's urban evolution could be constructed, in part, as a history of events, of moving scenes. This characteristic brings us to the very idea of cinema, which has the moving image as its essence, also a characteristic of modernity. Considering that Cine Imperial later became Cine Roxy, only four of the nine buildings erected to house the movie theaters have survived. Of those that have survived, none are still serving their original purpose as cinemas, nor do they have any form of heritage protection. These remnants act, in the landscapes they created, like phantom architectures, haunting, with their image of decay and abandonment, a society that cries out for the new, for progress, for the eternally modern.

It is necessary to better understand the context in which Anápolis's street cinemas were established, the role of this important cultural facility in the city's modernization process and in shaping the landscape of the city's downtown area, as well as the process of decommissioning these cinemas and the consequences for the downtown area