Burevestnik Cinema

Burevestnik Cinema was a historic cinema in Rostov-on-Don, Russia, situated at the intersection of Bolshaya Sadovaya Street and Voroshilovsky Prospekt. Its history was tied to a prominent building known as the Melkonov-Yezekov House. Before the cinema acquired the Burevestnik name, the first floor of the building housed the Kolizey cinema. Following the October Revolution, the venue was renamed Sverdlov. The building also contained a public club and a library, giving the site a broader civic and cultural role than that of a commercial screening venue alone. The location is particularly associated with a poetry reading by Sergei Yesenin on 21 July 1920. Anatoly Marienhof also participated in that event, which was later commemorated by a plaque on the facade facing Bolshaya Sadovaya Street. The original building was destroyed by fire during the Great Patriotic War. It was reconstructed in 1953, after which the premises eventually operated as Burevestnik Cinema. As Burevestnik, the venue served both ordinary cinema audiences and the local film community. Its program included film festivals, advance or sneak previews, and retrospectives. From 2000 through 2008, it hosted 29 film festivals, 16 sneak previews, and 10 retrospectives. The cinema also became a meeting place for filmmakers and film personalities. Individuals associated with events or screenings at the venue included Rustam Khamdamov, Aleksandr Petrov, Zinaida Kirienko, Anatoly Kuznetsov, Ilya Khrzhanovsky, Alexei Popogrebski, and Aleksandr Rastorguev. The cinema's operation ended after the municipal administration decided on 28 September 2008 to close the venue and allocate the building to Southern Federal University. The decision was opposed publicly. The final film screened at Burevestnik was Andrei Tarkovsky's Mirror, a choice that connected the cinema's closure with the repertory and auteur-film tradition for which it had become known. Subsequent use of the building became administratively divided. The university rector, Vladislav Zakharevich, stated that the cinema's deed was transferred to him only in summer 2009, while part of the premises had already been designated as a reception office for the President of the Russian Federation's representative in the Southern Federal District. In February 2010, the representative's sign was installed on the facade and a wall divided the former cinema space into two sections. Southern Federal University expressed an intention to revive film screenings at the site, but the referenced historical account states that this had not been implemented. Burevestnik is therefore best understood as a defunct cultural venue and local cinema brand rather than an operating cinema chain or corporate entertainment company.

Burevestnik Cinema occupied a historically significant site in central Rostov-on-Don, at the intersection of Bolshaya Sadovaya Street and Voroshilovsky Prospekt. The building was the Melkonov-Yezekov House, whose first floor initially contained the Kolizey cinema. After the October Revolution, the cinema was renamed Sverdlov. At different points, the building also accommodated a public club and a library, making it part of the city's wider public and cultural infrastructure. The site gained literary significance on 21 July 1920, when Sergei Yesenin gave a poetry reading there. Anatoly Marienhof also participated. A plaque on the facade facing Bolshaya Sadovaya Street later commemorated the event. The building was destroyed by fire during the Great Patriotic War and reconstructed in 1953. It subsequently became the home of Burevestnik Cinema. During its later period, Burevestnik was more than a routine movie house. It hosted film festivals, sneak previews, and retrospectives, and attracted actors, cinematographers, and directors to screenings and events. The venue's recorded activity from 2000 to 2008 included 29 film festivals, 16 sneak previews, and 10 retrospectives. Associated visitors and participants included Rustam Khamdamov, Aleksandr Petrov, Zinaida Kirienko, Anatoly Kuznetsov, Ilya Khrzhanovsky, Alexei Popogrebski, and Aleksandr Rastorguev. On 28 September 2008, Rostov-on-Don's municipal administration decided to close the cinema and transfer the building to Southern Federal University. The decision was made despite public opposition. Burevestnik's final screening was Andrei Tarkovsky's Mirror. The subsequent administrative history of the premises was complicated. Southern Federal University rector Vladislav Zakharevich stated that the cinema's deed reached him only in summer 2009, while half of the premises had already been allocated as a reception office for the President of the Russian Federation's representative in the Southern Federal District. In February 2010, the representative's sign was installed on the facade, and a wall divided the former cinema into two sections. The university expressed an intention to restore film screenings, but the available account records that this revival had not yet taken place. The Burevestnik cinema brand is therefore defunct, while the building's later institutional use continued independently of cinema operations.

• 2010

  Former cinema space divided

  [1]Burevestnik Cinemaen.wikipedia.org

  The premises were divided into two parts after the installation of a sign for the presidential representative's reception office.

• 2008

  Cinema closes

  [1]Burevestnik Cinemaen.wikipedia.org

  The municipal administration decided to close Burevestnik and assign the building to Southern Federal University. Mirror was the final film screened.

• 1953

  Building reconstructed

  [1]Burevestnik Cinemaen.wikipedia.org

  The building, which had burned during the Great Patriotic War, was reconstructed.

• 1920

  Sergei Yesenin poetry reading

  [1]Burevestnik Cinemaen.wikipedia.org

  Sergei Yesenin performed a poetry reading at the venue on 21 July, with Anatoly Marienhof also taking part.

• Cinema opens at the Melkonov-Yezekov House

  [1]Burevestnik Cinemaen.wikipedia.org

  The first floor of the Melkonov-Yezekov House housed the Kolizey cinema, the predecessor venue associated with the later Burevestnik site.

A historic urban cinema and cultural venue with a strong repertory-film, festival, and filmmaker-event profile.

• Cinema exhibition

  Film screenings

  The cinema's core offering was public film exhibition in a historic central Rostov-on-Don venue. Its repertory included conventional screenings as well as films associated with auteur and repertory programming.

• Cultural programming

  Film festivals and retrospectives

  Burevestnik hosted festivals, sneak previews, and retrospectives. Between 2000 and 2008, the venue held 29 film festivals, 16 sneak previews, and 10 retrospectives, establishing it as a significant local film-culture venue.

• Cultural events

  Literary and cultural events

  The site also had a broader cultural role, having housed a public club and library and hosted Sergei Yesenin's 1920 poetry reading.

• 2008

  Municipal closure and reassignment of the buildingStrategy

  Background

  The municipal administration decided to close Burevestnik Cinema despite public opposition and reassign its building to Southern Federal University.

  Action taken

  Cinema operations were ended, with Mirror identified as the final screening. The property was designated for institutional use rather than continued cinema operation.

  Aftermath

  The former cinema premises were later divided, including space associated with a reception office for the presidential representative in the Southern Federal District. The university expressed an intention to revive screenings, but the referenced account says this had not occurred.

  Source

1. 1Burevestnik Cinemaen.wikipedia.org