Old Luxor

Bolidt News

Old LUXOR

Built in 1917, the Luxor on the Kruiskade in Rotterdam has provided a platform for talented newcomers and big names in Dutch comedy, intimate concerts, small musicals, inspiring plays as well as youth & family performances for many years. With its 900 seats, the 100-year-old Old Luxor Theatre is in the ‘medium-sized theatre’ category and is hosting a variety of anniversary performances in 2017. But for all its charm and character, the building also comes with its share of practical inconveniences, such as regular flooding.

Completely ruined

Architect Pieter Vermaas designed the Luxor in 1917 as a luxury cinema, but over time it changed function to become the number one entertainment theatre in Rotterdam. It is one of the few buildings that survived the bombing of Rotterdam in May 1940 intact. In 1974, it was converted into a theatre, which was restored to its former glory four decades later. This restoration and extension, to a design by Antwerp-based architect Aude de Broissia, was completed at the end of 2014. In 2017, however, the carpeting that had been part of the overall design was completely ruined by yet another leakage.

Practical solution 

Technical Manager Willem Nijland: “The Old Luxor has a history when it comes to

leakages and flooding. That is why, after we lost our beautiful carpeting in the most recent leakage of 2017, our main concern initially was to find a practical flooring solution. A comparison of different alternatives led us to decide on a liquid-tight synthetic floor covering. The next step was to look at how we could fit this in with the interior as well and aesthetically as possible. The search for an answer to that question brought us to the liquid-tight Bolidtop^® FiftyFifty flooring system. It was the perfect solution for us, firstly because it allows us to just mop up the floor after a flooding and then continue using it, but certainly also because of its aesthetic possibilities.”

Matching design

Despite the fact that the Old Luxor was looking for a practical flooring solution, Bolidt did everything it could to also offer a suitable solution in terms of design. Nijland: “They have absolutely succeeded in accomplishing this. Bolidt has installed the new synthetic flooring in a design that perfectly matches the interior of our theatre. They did such a good job, in fact, that the new floor finish also combines beautifully with the stairs that do still have the original carpeting on them. Even the people who initially were sceptical about a synthetic flooring system, have now been completely won over!”