If you find yourself in the Mariahilf district in Vienna and raring to see a movie, there’s one place where locals go to – the Apollo Kino in Gumpendorfer Strasse. In its heyday it was the second biggest cinema in Austria with a seating capacity for 1,500 viewers. It was built in 1929 on the site where the old Baroque Palais Kaunitz once stood. Before it became a cinema it was known as a major theater for vaudeville performances. It had to close down after World War I as it failed to attract international performers.
It was bought by the Kiba cinema management group and was opened as a silent film theatre. After a few years the Apollo was modernized and was among the “premiere” cinemas in the city for many years. In the early 1960s it was converted from one large cinema to accommodate three screens and then again in 1992 it was expanded further with twelve theatres and a seating capacity for 2,160 viewers where the main theatre accommodates 504 seats. It has also been taken over by the Constantin Group which manages other multiplex theaters both in Austria and Germany (which would probably account for the number of German language films shown in the theater).
Today the Apollo Kino is still regarded as one of the most modern cinema houses in Vienna with theaters for that 3D IMAX experience. It is within walking distance from the popular Naschmarkt and Mariahilferstrasse and close to a number of restaurants, coffeeshops and bars.
