This piece is part of the '50/50 Sessions' project - 50 monochrome photos taken with a 50mm lens during the dark hours of the city of Heerlen, South Limburg, the Netherlands. The beauty of the city can also most certainly be found in the dark and it is actually the absence of natural light that allows you to view the city from a completely new perspective.
In this photo you can see part of the facade of the iconic Royal Theatre, which is considered to be the second most beautiful cinema in the Netherlands. Designed by Frits Peutz and J. Bongaerts, construction started in 1937 and was completed in just 20 weeks. The first film was played in 1938 and the theatre also saw performances by bonafide worldwide stars, the great Bob Hope being one of them. It provided some relaxation for the huge number of coal miners working in the region. It actually played a major role in the resistance during WW2, by refusing to play propaganda films, playing prohibited music and openly insulting members of the Nationalist Socialist Movement. The opening of a new mega cinema nearby forced the venue to close its doors, but it has since reopened as a cinema for art house films.