Alhambra Cinema, Art Deco movie theater in Jaffa, Israel

The Alhambra Cinema is a movie theater in Jaffa featuring Art Deco design with white facades and geometric patterns typical of 1930s architecture along Jerusalem Boulevard. The building originally held over one thousand seats and served various purposes across different decades.

The building was designed by Lebanese architect Elias Al-Mor and opened in 1937 as one of the largest entertainment venues in Palestine at that time. Over the following decades it underwent different uses, including serving as a bank.

The cinema served as a meeting place where Arab and Jewish audiences gathered to watch films and enjoy performances by artists like Umm Kulthum and Farid al-Atrash. These shared experiences shaped Jaffa's cultural life at a time when such interactions were part of everyday society.

The building stands at 39 Jerusalem Boulevard in Jaffa, its main entrance facing the boulevard. The original 1937 hall was gutted in the 1970s, so the interior no longer shows the 1,095-seat auditorium; only the original ceiling and part of the cornice around the stage remain. Look up at the front turret, where light bulbs were fixed as a permanent fixture in 1937.

The building has housed several unexpected tenants throughout its history, including a bank and later a religious organization. This shifting use demonstrates how a former cultural venue found new purposes across different eras.