Where They Watched Films. Theaters in Belarus.
1908–1910
Gomel • Grodno • Orsha • Slutsk
Gomel
Gomel, Millinonnaya street, late XIXth century.
Source: http://tutejszy.ru/vitebskaya/orshanskij/orsha/196-zarozhdenie-goroda-orsha
An article from the social network Vkontakte wrote that “According to some sources, a fellow countryman of the Lumière brothers, a certain Junot, organized one of the first film screenings in Gomel. In 1902, the enterprising Junot built an extension to his store at the beginning of Rumyantsevskaya (now Sovetskaya), where he showed the first films."
The article went on to say that there was a film showing at “the building of the railway school, near the Libau-Romny railway station."1
In January of 1910, Gomel had two theaters, one known as the Stremer (although, as we have seen, any theater with which he was associated was called Stremer, no matter what the name), owned by Mr. Soskarev.2 In November, there was mention of three theaters in Gomel.3
Gomel, Myasnitskaya street, “Savoy” hotel, beginning of the XXth century.
Source: https://orda.of.by/.add/gallery.php?gomel/savoy/sf
The Vkontakte article goes on to say that “…in 1911, in the best hotel in Gomel, the Savoy (on the site of today's old department store), the cinema Theater of Arts was opened. If you believe the advertising, the three-tiered hall of the Artistic for 800 seats was equipped according to the model of the best metropolitan cinemas. The Savoy Hotel and the station in Gomel were among the few places that had electric lighting. On Rumyantsevskaya Street, in the Tsyrlin house (later the building housed the Krugozor store), the "electrotheater" of Stremer was opened. Soon it was called Moulin Rouge — in imitation of the famous Parisian nightclub.”
Later, the writer states that there was also a cinema called Dreams.4
Grodno
Grodno, “Saturn” cinema, 1912.
Source: https://vgr.by/2021/03/19/sinema-sinema-sinema-ot-tebya-myi-bez-uma-istoriya-grodnenskogo-kinematografa/
The website Harodnia gives us some insight to the first cinemas in Grodno. “In provincial Grodno, the first cinema began to operate in 1908 in the so-called Chertka house, which was located on Sobornaya Street (modern Sovetskaya Street). The owner — a certain Yakov Krivoshein — called it quite extravagantly — Electro-Biograph". The article continues: “Some time later, with the permission of the governor, the townsman Roman Zavistovsky rebuilt his own house into the cinema Lux." Around that time, films were “shown” on today’s Telegraphnaya, on Tizengauz Square, which was called Sobornaya at that time.5
Grodno, Sobornaya street, 1904.
Source: https://boudewijnhuijgens.getarchive.net/amp/media/horadnia-vilenskaja-goradnya-vilenskaya-1904-2-9f9463
The Lux was also located on Sovetskaya Street, on the site of the Neman shopping center. The Lux, like many cinemas around the world, supplemented the film showings with “productions of vaudevilles, comedies, and sketches.”6
Another article names the cinema on Tizenguz Square as the Odeon.7
In November 1909 Grodno had an Electro-biograph owned by Volin and Company and the Illusion in a specially built wooden building, owned by Mr. Yermakov.”8 Grodno grew from three to four theaters in 1910. Cine-Phono reported in April 1910 on the February opening of the Lux.9
Kine-Zhurnal wrote that “there are now four electro-theaters” in September of 1910.10
Orsha
Orsha, bridge over the Dnieper, late XIXth century.
Source: http://tutejszy.ru/vitebskaya/orshanskij/orsha/196-zarozhdenie-goroda-orsha
In 1910, Cine-Phono wrote that Orsha has “one Electro-biograph.”11
Slutsk
Slutsk, fair in city square, beginning of the XXth century.
Source: https://nasledie-sluck.by/ru/sluchina/toponim/2609/6001/
"Slutsk. Minsk Province. Here the Edison Theater was opened by the owners of the theater of the same name in Lida, Vilna province.”12 An online article on the site “Old Slutsk” reported that the Edison opened in 1904 in the Bristol Hotel. The building was demolished in the 1980s.13
1 With pianists in the 30s and with fights and stabbings in the 80s. How Gomel cinemas appeared, developed, flourished and died out” 25 Jan. 2023. https://vk.com/@gomeltoday-s-pianistami-v-30-h-i-s-drakami-i-ponozhovschinoi-v-80-h-kak Accessed March 8, 2025.
2 Kine-Zhurnal, November 23, 1910, Issue 8, p. 13.
3 Cine-Phono, April 1, 1910, Issue 13, p. 14.
4 With pianists in the 30s and with fights and stabbings in the 80s. How Gomel cinemas appeared, developed, flourished and died out” 25 Jan. 2023. https://vk.com/@gomeltoday-s-pianistami-v-30-h-i-s-drakami-i-ponozhovschinoi-v-80-h-kak Accessed March 8, 2025.
5 Cinema as a part of everyday urban life in Grodno at the beginning of the 20th century. Kacataya, Tatiana, Harodnia https://harodnia.com/be/uczora/rasijskaja-impieryja/32-kinematograf-grodno%20accessed%20March%208 Citing Yusubova , N. "Eden" in the world of real cinema / Natavan Yusubova // Evening Grodno. - 2001. - December 19. Accessed March 8, 2025.
6 Tarasyuk, Denis, “Cinema , cinema , cinema — we are crazy about you. History of Grodno cinematography,” 19, March 2021. https://vgr.by/2021/03/19/sinema-sinema-sinema-ot-tebya-myi-bez-uma-istoriya-grodnenskogo-kinematografa/ Accessed March 8, 2025.
7 Light of the ‘Red Star.’ History of Grodno Cinematography. ProRegion23 Perspective https://proregion24.by/news/culture/svet-krasnoj-zvezdy-istoriya-grodnenskogo-kinematografa/ Accessed March 8, 2025.
8 Cine-Phono, November 1, 1909, Issue 3, p. 13.
9 Cine-Phono, April 1, 1910, Issue 13, p. 14.
10 Kine-Zhurnal, Sepember 8, 1910, Issue 16, p. 10.
11 Cine-Phono, April 15, 1910, Issue 14, p. 20.
12 Cine-Phono, August 15, 1912, Issue 22, p. 18.
13 Bogdashich Serhiy, “Cinematograph in Slutsk: From “Edison” to “Belarus.” Dec. 18, 2015 https://nasledie-sluck.by/ru/sluchina/History_organizations/5571/ Accessed March 10, 2025.