Grand Pera
Grand Pera is a shopping center and entertainment complex consisting of two historic buildings, the Emek Movie Theater, a cinema, and the Cercle de l'Orient building, designed by architects Abraham Pasha and Alexandre Vallaury for residential use in 1883. It is located along İstiklal Avenue in the Hüseyinağa neighborhood of Beyoğlu district, Istanbul, Turkey.
History
The movie theater began construction in 1884 under the name "Club des Chasseurs de Constantinople", and first opened in 1924 under the name Melek Sineması because of the Art Nouveau style angel figures on the screen. The inner walls and the top of the movie theater have baroque and rococo style figures. The building has since been known under different names such as The Greek Gym of Strangali in 1909, then as "Nouveau Cirque". In 1918 the building was known as "Yeni Tiyatro", and "Emek Cinema" in the 1940s. Latterly the building had been used as a skating palace.Destruction
In 2010, plans were made to demolish the movie theater as part of a shopping mall construction. Several protests were organized to prevent the demolition from taking place.In 2013, the building was completely demolished.