Kino-Klub Eldar

Kino-Klub Eldar (also known as the Eldar Cinema-Concert Hall) is a state-owned cultural venue in Moscow, Russia, located at Leninsky Prospekt 105 near the Novatorskaya metro station. It occupies the building of the former Kazakhstan cinema, which was built in 1971 with a single 1,200-seat auditorium. In the 1990s the cinema fell on hard times and the building was leased out, at one point housing car and furniture showrooms. On 19 July 1993 a shootout occurred near the cinema in which five members of opposing criminal groups were killed. Around this time, film director and People's Artist of the USSR Eldar Ryazanov pursued his long-held idea of creating a cinema-concert centre. He approached Moscow mayor Yuri Luzhkov, who ordered the building to be handed over for this purpose. After the lease with a furniture store expired, a three-year reconstruction began. Ryazanov took a direct part in the reconstruction and enlisted friends and renowned artists, including Zurab Tsereteli, who donated several sculptures of film directors, and Alexander Borisov, production designer of many Ryazanov films. The Kino-Klub Eldar was solemnly opened on 25 January 2005 with a theatrical kapustnik featuring friends and colleagues such as Nonna Mordyukova, Georgy Daneliya, Marlen Khutsiev, Alexander Shirvindt, Lyudmila Gurchenko, Oleg Basilashvili, Sergei Solovyov, Dmitry Kharatyan and Maxim Dunayevsky. Moscow mayor Yuri Luzhkov and head of the Federal Agency for Culture and Cinematography Mikhail Shvydkoy attended; Shvydkoy presented a Blüthner grand piano. The evening was filmed for Channel One. Contrary to popular belief, Kino-Klub Eldar was not Ryazanov's property; he worked as a hired employee of a state cultural institution. From the outset, the club's principle was to offer the cheapest cinema tickets in all of Moscow, and many artists performed for symbolic fees out of friendship with Ryazanov. The venue has three halls: the Grand Hall (520 seats), the Musical Hall (119 seats) and the Greek Hall (89 seats). A cafe-museum called 'Beware of the Car' opened on the ground floor, with spaces honouring directors Leonid Gaidai, Georgy Daneliya, Alla Surikova and Eldar Ryazanov. On 18 November 2005, Ryazanov's birthday, the restaurant 'A Cruel Romance' opened next to the cafe-museum, designed with the participation of Alexander Borisov, production designer of the film of the same name. The foyer features bronze sculptures of Ryazanov, Gaidai and Daneliya, as well as a portrait of Charlie Chaplin by Zurab Tsereteli. Exhibits from Russian films are displayed around the venue, including a miniature train created for the film 'Promised Heaven', a 1912 Ford Roadster from 'The Key to the Bedroom', and one of the 12 chairs used in Leonid Gaidai's adaptation. There is also a mini-museum dedicated to Ryazanov's last feature film, 'Andersen. Life Without Love'. After Eldar Ryazanov's death on 30 November 2015, his wife Emma Abaidullina became artistic director. To preserve the director's legacy, the venue was granted museum status and became known as 'Kino-Klub-Museum Eldar'. On 2 March 2021, Oleg Mityaev, a close friend of Ryazanov and People's Artist of the Russian Federation, became the new artistic director. Under Mityaev, official documents renamed the institution 'Eldar Cinema-Concert Hall', while the concise name 'Kino-Klub Eldar' returned as a trading name. Mityaev served as artistic director until April 2024. In autumn 2024, the Eldar Cinema-Concert Hall came under the management of Mosconcert. Today the venue hosts concerts, performances, children's shows and film screenings, continuing its mission as a cultural and museum space dedicated to Russian cinema.

The history of Kino-Klub Eldar begins with the building itself, constructed in 1971 to house the standard Kazakhstan cinema with a single 1,200-seat auditorium. In the 1990s, like many Russian cinemas, it faced difficult times: the building was leased out and at one point housed car and furniture showrooms. On 19 July 1993, a shootout occurred near the cinema in which five members of opposing criminal groups were killed. During this period, film director and People's Artist of the USSR Eldar Ryazanov was obsessed with the idea of creating a cinema-concert centre. He approached Moscow mayor Yuri Luzhkov with this proposal, and Luzhkov ordered the building of the Kazakhstan cinema to be handed over for this purpose. However, they had to wait until the lease with the furniture store owner expired. Once the building was almost fully transferred for the creation of the Kino-Klub, a three-year reconstruction began. Ryazanov took a direct part in the reconstruction. He involved his friends and renowned artists in the design, including Zurab Tsereteli, who donated several sculptures of film directors, and Alexander Borisov, production designer of many Ryazanov films. The final works were completed in a matter of days before the opening. On 25 January 2005, Kino-Klub Eldar was solemnly opened. The opening began with a theatrical kapustnik. Ryazanov's friends and colleagues performed on stage: Nonna Mordyukova, Georgy Daneliya, Marlen Khutsiev, Alexander Shirvindt, Lyudmila Gurchenko, Oleg Basilashvili, Sergei Solovyov, Dmitry Kharatyan, Maxim Dunayevsky and many others. Moscow mayor Yuri Luzhkov and head of the Federal Agency for Culture and Cinematography Mikhail Shvydkoy also attended; Shvydkoy presented a Blüthner grand piano. The evening was filmed for broadcast on Channel One. Contrary to popular belief, Kino-Klub Eldar was not the property of Eldar Ryazanov: the film director acted as a hired employee of a state cultural institution. From the very beginning, the club established the principle of offering the cheapest cinema tickets in all of Moscow. This democratic pricing also applied to creative evenings and concerts, and many artists performed for symbolic fees out of friendship with Ryazanov. The Kino-Klub Eldar housed three halls: the Grand Hall (520 seats), the Musical Hall (119 seats) and the Greek Hall (89 seats). Simultaneously with the Kino-Klub, a cafe-museum called 'Beware of the Car' opened on the ground floor, with spaces honouring directors Leonid Gaidai, Georgy Daneliya, Alla Surikova and, of course, Eldar Ryazanov. On 18 November 2005, Ryazanov's birthday, the restaurant 'A Cruel Romance' opened next to the cafe-museum, designed with the participation of Alexander Borisov, production designer of the film of the same name. The foyer of the Kino-Klub features bronze sculptures of Ryazanov, Gaidai and Daneliya, as well as a portrait of Charlie Chaplin by Zurab Tsereteli. In various corners of the Kino-Klub, one can see exhibits from Russian films, including a miniature train created for the film 'Promised Heaven', a 1912 Ford Roadster from the film 'The Key to the Bedroom', and one of the 12 chairs used in Leonid Gaidai's adaptation. In addition, the Kino-Klub has a mini-museum of Ryazanov's last feature film, 'Andersen. Life Without Love'. After the death of Eldar Ryazanov on 30 November 2015, his wife Emma Abaidullina became the artistic director of the Kino-Klub. To preserve the legacy of the film director, Eldar was granted museum status, and in connection with this it became known as 'Kino-Klub-Museum Eldar'. On 2 March 2021, Oleg Mityaev, a close friend of Eldar Ryazanov and People's Artist of the Russian Federation, became the new artistic director of the Kino-Klub. After Mityaev's appointment, official documents renamed the institution 'Eldar Cinema-Concert Hall'. The concise name 'Kino-Klub Eldar' returned as a trading name. Mityaev served as artistic director until April 2024. In autumn 2024, the Eldar Cinema-Concert Hall came under the management of Mosconcert.

• Building constructed as the Kazakhstan cinema with a single 1,200-seat auditorium.

• Shootout near the cinema kills five members of opposing criminal groups.

• Kino-Klub Eldar solemnly opened with a theatrical kapustnik.

• Restaurant 'A Cruel Romance' opens next to the cafe-museum 'Beware of the Car'.

• Eldar Ryazanov dies; Emma Abaidullina becomes artistic director and the venue receives museum status.

• Oleg Mityaev becomes artistic director; institution renamed 'Eldar Cinema-Concert Hall'.

• Oleg Mityaev ends his term as artistic director.

• Venue comes under the management of Mosconcert.

Affordable, democratic cultural venue and museum dedicated to Russian cinema heritage, founded by Eldar Ryazanov.

• Film screenings

  Regular cinema screenings, historically at the cheapest prices in Moscow.

• Concerts

  Musical performances and creative evenings.

• Theatrical performances

  Stage productions including musicals and plays.

• Children's shows

  Interactive and musical performances for young audiences.

• Museum exhibitions

  Exhibits from Russian films and a mini-museum of Ryazanov's last film.

1. 1Official websitekinoklub-eldar.ru
2. 2Wikidatawikidata.org
3. 3Wikipedia (Russian)ru.wikipedia.org