CAARP
Cinema and Audience Research Project

"Built as the Merthyr Picture Palace in 1921, it was remodelled in 1934 as the Astor. This remodelling was said not to be successful, and it was again significantly altered in 1938 by architect George Rae, who produced an auditorium virtually without walls - the arched ceiling curved all the way to the floor, literally, on either sides, and was decorated in an art Deco style... In 1970, the old theatre underwent even more changes, when it was twinned simply by cutting the long auditorium in half. Cinema 1 was known as the Blur Room and seated 555. Cinema 2 was the Purple Room, seating 352." (Tod 2011 , p. 17)

The twin cinemas closed in June 2002.

References
Tod, l. 2011 'Four ladies lost', Dress Circle, vol. 13, no. 2, pp.17-8

Village Twin Cinemas, Cinema Treasures website at
http://cinematreasures.org/theater/22421/, viewed 1 July 2008.