Visited on a 5 day Italy trip Becci [Ninja Kitten] & Kat [Obscure serenity], this was on the first day of the trip and to look at from the outside the Art Deco building doesn't look like much really. Inside though is different, with a theatre and other rooms over three floors.
Teatro di Valle Mosso is an abandoned movie theatre in the North of Italy. It was built in the 1930s and has been closed for good since 1986.The cinema was still in good condition when we visited with all the chairs still in situ, with the whole building being small and compact -reflecting the size of the village it is in. I imagine in its day this was the hub of the community when people visited the theatre and cinema a lot more. In the basement was a function room which looked like it would have held dances as there is a piano in there and seating area.
In 1960, ENAL bought the property. which was a national worker union helping workers and their families. They organized sports, culture, and summer camps. ENAL replaced an older group, which was started by the fascist government in 1925.
ENAL extended the size of the building adding a bar, a billiard room as well as an ice cream shop. Between 1960 and 1975, Pietro’s son, Ennio Monasso, was given the task of running the place as he had great passion for movies, theater, and the arts. He turned the cinema into a popular meeting place for the people of Valle Mosso. In 1975, ENAL stopped managing the cinema and as a consequence - as funding dried up - the cinema closed for good.
However, that wasn't the end of the story for this theatre as Ennio opened a bar in the basement called the ‘Petit Bar’. A sign at the door reads: You and him together at the Petit Bar. Tavern and disco. A place for people in love. The Petit Bar had a disco, live music, and even strip shows. There were also small rooms with panels for couples. It was a big success at first. But in the late 1980s, the bar closed. Since then, the building has remained dormant - without function.
The Italian State owns the building as of 2018 and is for sale for 114,000 euros.
Many old documents were still inside the theatre stashed away in a dark room along with movie posters and strips of film negatives. It was a fascinating find, a glimpse into the functioning of a theatre back in the inter-war and post war years. A Warner Bros receipt from 1936, a card with audience numbers and money takings from 1939 and letter from 20th century Fox Films to the cinema. Flyers from Tarzan movies lay scattered around, along with movie posters such as one from the 1955 film featuring Diana Dors 'Value for Money' or 'Febbre Bionda' in Italian.
A good couple of hours were spent inside here photographing each room before heading off to the next location of the day and grabbing cold drinks as the heat was building up to quite formidable levels being summer.