The news of the Opera Cinema's demolition shocked many who cherished it. Mohamed Farouq, a poet, writer, and literary critic, fondly recalled the movie posters adorning the walls of Al-Thaqafa Square, formerly Al-Uruba Square, where the Opera Cinema stood, adding a touch of beauty to the area. He also missed the vitality the square once radiated, thanks to the morning and evening cinema shows.
At the end of last July, Major General Dr. Abdulfattah Serag, Governor of Sohag, presided over a meeting of the governorate's Economic and Social Council. It was decided to establish a commercial, service, and entertainment complex on the Opera Cinema's site. Officials from the East Sohag District were instructed to issue a decision to demolish the old Opera Cinema building, the last existing cinema in Sohag.
"A great loss..." Dr. Marzouq Al-Adly, Professor of Media at Sohag University, expressed his sadness and surprise at the demolition decision. In his view, the destruction of the Opera Cinema represents a significant loss for culture promotion and social interaction.
Al-Adly emphasized that cinema plays a major role in people's lives, especially young people, serving as a means of entertainment and broadening cultural and social horizons. Cinema also addresses various important issues, helping society understand different perspectives, he noted.
The media professor explained that the decision to demolish the Opera Cinema and replace it with a commercial and service complex is influenced by several factors. The area may need urban development and more commercial spaces, “which could benefit economic growth and meet the population's needs.”
The Opera Cinema had been neglected for years and was closed in 2011 after the screening of "Ant's Scream," having lost much of its audience due to the building's deterioration and failed central air conditioning.
No development took place in the cinema building since 2010 until the demolition decision, aside from 2019, when former Governor Dr. Ahmed Al-Ansari announced plans for its renovation, refusing to demolish the cinema and build a commercial entertainment mall instead.
Samia Abdulhafeez, an assistant professor at Al-Azhar University, expressed her dismay at the demolition decision, telling "Ahl Sohag" that she rejects any decision to remove cultural or artistic landmarks. She explained that demolishing the cinema would negatively affect young people's thinking and awareness, a concept academically known as "drying up the sources," by limiting their interests to material matters.
Cinema holds significance for Samia, who reminisced about her generation in the 1980s, raised on loving the cinema as it was the only outlet during holidays, especially for the latest films not shown on television yet. At that time, the internet was unavailable, and theaters were scarce in Upper Egypt, she added.
Sohag Governorate once had six cinemas, three in Sohag City alone, one in Girga City, and two in Tahta City. Press reports indicate that the "Nasr" Cinema on Al-Warsha Street, off Al-Mahta Street in Sohag City, was the first to open in the governorate in the 1950s. It closed after ten years, replaced by a residential building.
Subsequently, the "Al-Hurriya" Summer Cinema opened, followed by the Opera Cinema on state-owned land, supervised by the Ministry of Culture. Due to its modernity and air-conditioning, Al-Hurriya Cinema closed in 1995. The "Sherif" Cinema in Girga City also closed in the 1980s, becoming a residential tower.
Mohamed Abdulmottaleb, head of the Writers' Union sub-union, lamented the Opera Cinema's demolition, stressing the state's need to preserve cinema buildings. He noted that, “in the royal era before the 1952 revolution, cinema was the second-highest income source after cotton.”
Photographer Ali Ayman concurred, calling the Opera Cinema an important monument for the people of Sohag. Despite being only 25 years old, Ayman said, "my family talks about it the most." He had hoped to see the cinema restored and renovated, but that dream was dashed with the closure of the last existing cinema in Sohag.
