The exhibitions visible this June at the old Cine Payret, located at the corner of Paseo del Prado and San José in Havana, have reignited public opposition to the Cuban regime's plans to turn the space into a luxury hotel, with Cubans expressing a slogan on social media that summarizes their frustration: “Not another hotel”.
The building has been closed to the public for over 15 years after being shut down in 2008 due to functional deterioration and lack of maintenance, and since then it has remained wrapped in scaffolding with no date set for reopening as a cinema.
Behind the project is GAESA, the business conglomerate of the Cuban Armed Forces, which is driving the construction of the Manzana Payret tourist complex with the involvement of the French construction company Bouygues-Bâtiment and an estimated investment of over 300 million dollars.
The plan includes a five-star hotel with around 300 rooms, built on the site where the Kid Chocolate multi-sport arena used to operate, located on the same block as the cinema, which has already been demolished to make way for the project.
Citizen rejection is not new. In September 2022, when the progress of the construction became visible, Cubans expressed their outrage on social media with phrases like "they took down the Payret cinema, sign and all." In February 2023, a crane removed the iconic cinema sign, a gesture that many interpreted as the definitive end of the venue.
Indignation is also fueled by the contradiction between hotel expansion and the crisis that Cubans are experiencing: according to the Minister of Tourism Manuel Marrero, Cuba already has more than 393 hotels and over 72,000 rooms in state facilities.
El Payret is not just any building. Founded by the Catalan immigrant Joaquín Payret in 1877, it was a pioneer in the transition from theater to cinema in Cuba, with a capacity of 2,000 seats and considered the largest cinema in Havana. In 1953, it showcased the first CinemaScope film ever seen on the island, featuring an 18-meter wide screen. By 1958, Havana had more cinemas than New York, and the Payret was the jewel of that cultural industry.
Its walls have witnessed figures such as Sarah Bernhardt, Anna Pavlova, Rita Montaner, and Rosita Fornés. In its lobby stood the sculpture "La Ilusión" and the alto reliefs of the nine Greek muses, works by the Cuban sculptor Rita Longa.
In 2017, media outlets described the interior of the building as "a jumble of iron, rubble, shattered seats, and rats," showcasing the neglect to which the regime had subjected the property for years.
When the controversy erupted in January 2019, the then historian of Havana Eusebio Leal attempted to calm tensions by assuring that “the Payret will continue to be a cinema for Cubans” and that the hotel would contribute to its restoration. Leal passed away in 2020, leaving the heritage of Havana without a key institutional defender, and construction on the tourist complex resumed in February 2022.
GAESA has already transformed the environment of Parque Central with the Gran Hotel Manzana Kempinski and the Hotel Packard, consolidating a pattern of hotel expansion in the historic center of Havana that is progressing at the expense of cultural heritage and amid an unprecedented economic crisis for the population.
"The transformation of a cultural icon into a luxury hotel is not merely an architectural loss. It signifies the erasure of our memory. Therefore, discussing the Payret is not just about nostalgia: it is an act of resistance," summarized a viral post on social media that captures the sentiment of those who once stood in line beneath its marquee.
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