The Tiro Association for Arts and Istanbul Theater announced the opening date of the historic Coliseum Cinema, after decades of closure on Hamra Street in Beirut.

The theater will be transformed into the Lebanese National Theater.

This event coincides with the launch of the Lebanese International Theater Festival next April in the cities of Beirut, Tripoli, and Tyre, with the participation of an Arab and foreign theater troupe.

The Coliseum Cinema is considered one of the oldest movie theaters, having been built in 1945 and witnessed the golden age of theater and cinema in Lebanon, screening the most important Arab and foreign films.

The founder of the Lebanese National Theatre, actor and director Qassim Istanbouli, confirmed in a statement received by the Yemeni News Agency (Saba), that “the aim of the project is to establish a connection between the south, the north and Beirut, as it is a continuation of our dream that began with the establishment of the Lebanese National Theatre in Tyre, which is the first free theatre and cinema in Lebanon.”