Cinema Teatro Lux

Cinema Teatro Lux is a historic cinema and theatre complex located in Pisa, Italy. It occupies the former chapel of the Santissimo Salvatore, a religious building constructed in the early 14th century next to the 13th-century Church of Santa Caterina d'Alessandria. Over the centuries, the site served various religious and civic functions before being converted into a theatre in 1928. After being devastated by fascists in 1931, it was repurposed as a gymnasium. In 1946, it reopened as a cinema under the name Cinema Lux, operating until 1985. A major restoration in 2000–2001 gave the complex its current form. Today, Cinema Teatro Lux functions as a multidisciplinary cultural venue, hosting film screenings, theatrical performances, and educational activities. It is also home to the Compagnia del Teatro Lux, a resident theatre company that produces works based on Tuscan literature and drama. The venue is characterized by its flexible spaces, including an atrium open to Piazza Santa Caterina, designed for information, gatherings, and artistic experimentation. It remains a vibrant centre for cultural exchange and intergenerational dialogue in Pisa.

The site of Cinema Teatro Lux originates from the chapel of the Santissimo Salvatore, built in the early 14th century beside the 13th-century Church of Santa Caterina d'Alessandria to house the Compagnia della Croce. Between the 16th and 17th centuries, the confraternity, by then known as the Compagnia del Crocione, expanded the building to its current dimensions. In 1782, the confraternity was suppressed by decree of Grand Duke Pietro Leopoldo of Lorraine, and the structure passed to civil authorities and later to the Municipality of Pisa. After serving as a storage space for the linen of the luminaria for the feast of San Ranieri, the chapel returned to the ownership of the adjacent Seminary in 1928 and was transformed into a theatre, where the parish company directed by Domenico Sartori performed. In 1931, the theatre was devastated by fascists and subsequently used as a gymnasium for physical education classes of the Santa Caterina school. In 1946, it resumed activity as a cinema under the name Cinema Lux, operating until 1985. The current layout results from a restoration carried out in 2000–2001. The Compagnia del Teatro Lux was established as a stable production entity of the Cinema Teatro Lux, recently revived as a venue for performance, culture, and educational experimentation. It joined TIR, Teatri in Rete Tematica for a Centre for Training and Services for the Performing Arts (2001–2003). The company's three-year project, 'Drammaturgia d'autore: teatro e letteratura in Toscana', involves staging theatrical texts and second-degree dramaturgical adaptations from literary works by 20th-century Tuscan authors or authors who lived in or were inspired by Tuscany. The Cinema Teatro Lux distinguishes itself from traditional theatre spaces as a place of scene, a place of metamorphosis, where one enters an environment that changes according to the performance or event. The atrium, open onto Piazza Santa Caterina, is reserved for information and gathering—a meeting place where one can experience artistic production in all its expressions and languages, understood as the production of experience, transmission of knowledge, and communication between generations.

• 2001

  Compagnia del Teatro Lux joins TIR (Teatri in Rete Tematica) for a training and services centre (2001–2003).

• 2000

  Restoration carried out, giving the complex its current form.

• 1946

  Reopened as Cinema Lux, a cinema, operating until 1985.

• 1931

  Theatre devastated by fascists; later used as a gymnasium.

• 1928

  Chapel returned to the adjacent Seminary and transformed into a theatre.

• 1782

  Confraternity suppressed by decree of Grand Duke Pietro Leopoldo of Lorraine; structure passes to civil authorities.

• Chapel of the Santissimo Salvatore built next to the Church of Santa Caterina d'Alessandria.

A historic and flexible cultural venue in Pisa, blending cinema, theatre, and educational experimentation.

• Film screenings

• Theatrical productions by Compagnia del Teatro Lux

• Cultural events and festivals

• Educational workshops and experimental theatre

1. 1Cinema Teatro Lux official websitecinemateatrolux.it
2. 2Wikidata entry for Cinema Teatro Luxwikidata.org
3. 3Italian Wikipedia article on Cinema Teatro Luxit.wikipedia.org