Rome has been around for the best part of the last 3,000 years, and when it comes to historic cultural spaces, the Italian capital definitely knows what it’s doing - just check out this list of the city’s top museums.
However, a vote on whether to allow the potential commercial redevelopment of some of its most iconic cultural venues is scheduled next week, putting plenty of spaces – including 50 cinemas – at risk.
The government of the Lazio region could approve a law that would make these cinemas, many of which are historic and abandoned, fair game to developers looking to build supermarkets and shopping malls.
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And that’s why it’s getting attention from some of Hollywood’s biggest names. Italian architect Renzo Piano (whose most famous works include London’s Shard and Paris’s Pompidou Centre) shared a letter in protest of the vote which has now been endorsed by no less than Martin Scorsese, Willem Dafoe, Isabella Rossillini, Lea Seydoux, JJ Abrams, Mark Ruffalo and Damien Chazelle, to name just a few.
‘Such a transformation would represent an irrevocable loss: a profound sacrilege not only to the city’s rich history but also to the cultural legacy for the future generations,’ said Martin Scorsese, according to IndieWire, ‘We call upon our colleagues across the globe, festival directors and all the cultural operators to sign this letter to save the last chance for redemption of one of the most important cultural and artistic cities worldwide.’
The vote is scheduled to go ahead next week, which begins on March 3. Stay tuned for all the latest updates on whether these changes will go ahead.
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