Opera House Süreyya

The Art Deco building on Bahariye Caddesi was built in 1927 on the initiative of Süreyya Paşa Ilmen, one of the influential members of the Istanbul City Council. The idea of building a public building in Kadikoy appeared in 1922, during the occupation of Istanbul by the powers of the Antatna. During this period, funding for municipal organizations was practically zero, including schools on the verge of closure. To help them, the Darüşşafaka charitable association decided to hold a concert, the collection of which would go to the needs of Kadikey schools. The performance was planned to be held at the Apollon Tiyatrosu Theater, but the Greek diaspora, to which it belonged, refused to provide a hall. It is not known how this story ended, but Sureya Ilmen decided to build a modern cinema in order to "satisfy the theatrical needs of the residents of Kadikey." Construction began in 1923, the project was carried out by the architect of Armenian origin Kegham Kavafyan, who studied the experience of building European theaters in the early 20th century. The entrance and foyer repeated the architecture of the theater on the Champs-Elysees in Paris, and the interiors were decorated on the model of classical German theaters. The hall had a capacity of more than 500 people, the ceiling was painted with frescoes by the artist Naci Kalmukoglu, the facade and interiors were decorated with sculptures by Ihsan Özsoy. The theater was officially opened on March 6, 1927. In 1930, sound equipment was installed in the hall and the first sound film in Istanbul, Broadway Melody, was shown. In 2005, reconstruction began, as a result of which the hall was equipped for opera performances. On October 27, 2007, the grand opening of the theater under the name "Opera Sureya of Kadıköy Municipality" (Kadıköy Belediyesi Süreyya Operası) took place.

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