Cinema Impero

Cinema Impero stands on Harnet Avenue, Asmara's main street, a 1937 building with a facade of three tall vertical bands of glass and the original lettering still in place, and it is named directly in the UNESCO inscription as one of the city's cinemas. The auditorium seats around eighteen hundred with its original fittings largely intact, which for a cinema of that age is unusual anywhere. Asmara has several surviving cinemas of the same period, and the inscription names Roma, Odeon, Capitol and Hamasien alongside this one.

What you actually see

• The facade - three vertical glass bands and the original lettering.
• The auditorium - around eighteen hundred seats with original fittings.
• The 1937 date - the height of the city's rationalist building programme.
• The named inscription - one of the cinemas listed by UNESCO.

When to go

Year round. Interior access depends on screenings and on whether the cinema is operating. Evening light on the facade is best.

Honest expectations

The cinema has operated intermittently and interior access is not guaranteed. Photography restrictions in Asmara are real and permits are required for many subjects. Maintenance has been limited.

Nearby

Fiat Tagliero is nearby, and Enda Mariam is north.