on december
29th 1911, apostol p papadopol requested a construction permit for
the development of a new theater in galati, on domneasca street, next to cavaliotti.
apostol papadopol was a walthy merchant of galati, owner of several important
buildings in the city and also all around the county, former senate
representative, decorated with “the crown of romania” in 1897 and with “the star
of romania” in 1902. but above all he was a great philanthropist and was known
for donating plenty of his properties and
large amounts of money to the city hall of galati, to the local hospitals and
to the romanian academy.
after his
death in 1914, the property goes into the possession of ioan d. prodrom, a
close relative and a former business partner of papadopol. future mayor of
galati and future head of the county, senator of romania and a prosperous businessman
himself. under his ownership, the building enters the cultural life of galati
as odeon theater and quickly becomes one of the major atractions of the city.
“odeon
theater – the moist elegant theater in galati – can be rented for theater
plays, shows, literary meetings or even balls” , this is how the building is
described in the 1930-1931 “ annuary of the city of galati” edited by radu
volbura. here the major movie productions of those times were played and the
conditions were quite hip for that time: “at the ground floor there were two
stalls and a reserved area, the scene and the area for the orchestra. at the mezzanine
there were the boxes for the very wealthy, separated by walls meant to protect
their privacy and comfort. the balconies were only placed on the eastern side,
while the ceiling , the boxes and the scene area used to have beautiful
decorations with vegetal and antropomorphic motifs. the same motifs decorate
the main façade even now, freshly and beautifully renovated.
after the
communist forced takeover, the theater changed its name to “cinema republica”, the
name that most of the people of today’s galati remember it by.
today the
building still has the original architectural elements, with a a façade that is
fully renovated and an interior that is still waiting to get a new life as a
cinema or theater as it once was, or to be transformed into something totally
new, as a restaurant, events hall or cultural center.
