Els PortsL'Alt MaestratEl Baix MaestratL'AlcalaténLa Plana AltaLa Plana BaixaL'Alt MillarsL'Alt PalànciaEl Racó d'AdemúsEls SerransEl Camp de TúriaEl Camp de MorvedreL'Horta NordL'Horta de ValènciaL'Horta OestL'Horta SudLa Plana d'Utiel-RequenaLa Foia de BunyolLa Vall de CofrentsLa Ribera AltaLa Ribera BaixaLa Canal de NavarrésLa CosteraLa Vall d'AlbaidaLa SaforEl ComtatL'AlcoiàL'Alt VinalopóEl Vinalopó MitjàLa Marina AltaLa Marina BaixaL'AlacantíEl Baix VinalopóEl Baix SeguraEls PortsL'Alt MaestratEl Baix MaestratL'AlcalaténLa Plana AltaLa Plana BaixaL'Alt MillarsL'Alt PalànciaEl Racó d'AdemúsEls SerransEl Camp de TúriaEl Camp de MorvedreL'Horta NordL'Horta de ValènciaL'Horta OestL'Horta SudLa Plana d'Utiel-RequenaLa Foia de BunyolLa Vall de CofrentsLa Ribera AltaLa Ribera BaixaLa Canal de NavarrésLa CosteraLa Vall d'AlbaidaLa SaforEl ComtatL'AlcoiàL'Alt VinalopóEl Vinalopó MitjàLa Marina AltaLa Marina BaixaL'AlacantíEl Baix VinalopóEl Baix Segura
VA|ES|EN
Diari Valencià logo

Diari Valencià

Modernist march for the cultural future of Alicante's Ideal cinema

Heritage defense associations celebrate the city council's refusal to turn the cinema into a hotel and demand final approval of the Protection Catalog.

Generic image of people in modernist attire protesting in the center of Alicante.
IA

Generic image of people in modernist attire protesting in the center of Alicante.

Around a hundred people in modernist attire marched through the center of Alicante today to advocate for a cultural future for the Ideal cinema, an iconic building of Alicantinian modernist architecture.

The associations Unir Alacant, Salvem l'Ideal, and Salvem el Nostre Patrimoni organized a "modernist march" which also served to celebrate the Alicante City Council's decision to reject the conversion of the former cinema, declared a Local Heritage Asset, into a hotel.
Gonçal Ponç, spokesperson for Salvem l'Ideal, proclaimed to the gathered crowd that "we have saved the Ideal from the demolition of its modernist interior." He highlighted that the building, constructed between 1924 and 1925, "is the only one conceived as modernist from its inception" and broke with the city's construction tradition due to its asymmetrical volumes, which responded to functional criteria.
The march, accompanied by the SCD Carolines Big Band and dance demonstrations from the Lindy Hop The Nest and The Lemon Swing academies, traversed the traditional city center, passing by other emblematic buildings of Alicantinian modernist architecture. The organizers emphasize the need for the definitive approval of Alicante's Protection Catalog, stating that "six years have passed since provisional approval, and until the catalog is definitively approved, heritage will continue to be lost," warned Ponç.
Although the destruction of the interior has been avoided, the Ideal cinema has remained closed since 2002. Ponç recalled that "the citizens have done their part, now it's up to the City Council and the Generalitat to do theirs." He noted that the purchase by the Generalitat was already voted on in participatory budgets, but the funds remained in reserve because the regional administration did not wish to acquire the property.
According to the limited available information, there are three interested parties in giving the building a cultural use, either through rent or purchase. Ponç's priority is for the cinema to have a cultural use again, "even if it's private," as long as the modernist interior is not destroyed and it remains "the best example of Valencian cinematographic architecture," which would benefit the city of Alicante.
At the beginning of the gathering, Ponç also spoke in favor of "democratizing" the mascletás (firecracker shows), moving them to the neighborhoods to "not harm" the fountain in Luceros square, a work by sculptor Vicente Bañuls.

Related News