City Theater (1935)

The building was designed in the style of new construction, erected on a steel frame. The front and rear facades have large areas of yellow-brown brick. These turned out to be stone strips during the 2007 restoration. The front façade has a strip of steel-framed windows on the left, which extends from the awning above the first floor to the roof. Behind that window corridor is a stairwell gallery. To the right of that on the center segment, from top to bottom, are the building's designation "CITY THEATER," an advertising screen for the films being shown, and a horizontal window section, all three executed in a vertical standing rectangle. To its right, a brick surface containing a small and a round window.

To its right, the stage tower made of brick begins at a height of 40 meters. From that tower hangs a circular staircase behind glass again in metal frames. On it was a crown, on which the name "CITY" was written four times. In addition, from the second floor to the roof, there are five strips of lights, closed by decorations. The last section of façade is angled to the building to match the building line of the adjacent building. The rear facade has an even larger area of brick.

The design was also progressive, in particular the tall and austere façade was a striking feature in the classic Amsterdam image of canal houses on the right and the City Theatre on the left. The imposing building volume was composed of two cubist elements. The facade plane was effectively broken by a long, narrow spiral staircase in a glass tower that was illuminated from within at night. 



Description taken from Wikipedia. There you can also see historical pictures of the building.

In the black natural stone receding facade frame is the text "on July 25 of 1935 the first stone was laid by Huib Wilton". The choice of a steel frame allowed the building to be completed in record time. On October 29, 1935, the City Theater opened.Architect Jan Wils had designed a 34 by 37 meter building that could accommodate 1800 visitors. In November 1934, the demolition of the old buildings on the site was still in progress. It was already clear when the theater building was planned that it would take no longer than a year to complete. In December 1934, the tender for the foundation and a reinforced concrete basement took place. Shortly thereafter, the tender for the delivery (and assembly) of the steel skeleton was issued. Around March 14, 1935, the last pile was driven into the ground. The builders were able to start with the concrete basement and the erection of the steel skeleton of the building and its 40-meter tower. Even then, it was estimated that the opening could take place before the end of 1935.The building brought technical advances in the areas of acoustics, soundproofing, heat insulation, ventilation and other climate control avant la lettre. The automatic sprinkler system was also a novelty. The furniture, wall and floor coverings were provided by the well-known Hague furniture factory of Pander and Sons, with a large number of glazed tiles from De Porceleyne Fles of Delft.