Roxy-Palast, Art deco movie theater in Friedenau, Germany.
The Roxy-Palast is an office and retail building on Hauptstrasse in Friedenau, originally constructed as a large cinema. Its facade shows curved forms and horizontal bands typical of the Streamline Moderne style, making it stand out along the street.
The architect Martin Punitzer designed the building in 1929 using a steel frame, making it one of the largest cinemas in Berlin at the time. It suffered war damage and was later converted for office and retail use, eventually receiving protection as a listed monument.
During the 1960s and 1970s, several Berlin writers used the building's offices as their regular workplace. This made the site part of the city's literary life, tucked behind the shopfronts of a busy street.
The building sits on Hauptstrasse in Friedenau and is easy to spot from the pavement. The interior now holds offices and shops, so the visit is mostly limited to viewing the facade from outside.
The original cinema hall had an orchestra pit built for around 40 musicians, which was in use when the building opened in 1929. This shows that Berlin cinemas of that era were still designed with live music in mind, just as sound film was beginning to replace it.
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