After a break of more than a dozen years , the legendary club in the heart of Gdansk has returned - under a new name. The five floors of the newly renovated tenement house include two cinema halls, a restaurant, a bar, a café and a venue for intimate concerts.
"Rudy Kot" functioned in Gdansk for several decades. The legendary club in a tenement house rebuilt after the war at 18/20 Garncarska Street in downtown Gdansk operated from 1957 to 2007.
a place with a rich past
According to the Gdansk encyclopedia Gedanopedia, it was there, as early as 1955, that the premiere performance of the Gdansk cabaret Rudy Kot took place with its Miniatures program, based entirely on the lyrics of Tadeusz Boy-Zeleński and referring to the Cracow cabaret Zielony Balonik. Among those who performed on the stage were Zbigniew Cybulski (the actor was commemorated in the new interior with a frame from the film "Goodbye, Tomorrow"), the Red Guitars, and the Rudy Cat hosted a competition of young talents to select musicians for the first Polish rock and roll band. The club changed its face several times in the 1980s, and ceased operations in 2007.
Level 0 will be occupied by a food and beverage zone
photo: Bartosz Bańka
The club'sreturn is possible thanks to a thorough modernization of the tenement - the work was financed by the International Gdansk Fair company, whose main shareholder is Gdansk. The cost of the investment was PLN 13 million, of which PLN 8 million came from a revitalization loan. Thorough renovation of the tenement began in 2022, and already on Saturday, June 29, "The Cat" will see its opening. The club will be run by Odessa, a Sopot company selected in a competition - the same company that has been running the SPATIF Creative Environment Club in Sopot since 2000. The contract was signed in August 2021 for 15 years.
The Spektrum cinema hall will accommodate one hundred people
photo: Bartosz Bańka
cinema and music
The reactivation of the club gives hope for the revival of Garncarska Street. The tenement occupied by the "Cat" will house two cinema halls - one for eighteen and the other for one hundred viewers. There is also a food and beverage section: a pub, café, restaurant, bistro and bar with avant-garde furniture from the 1960s.
The cost of the investment was PLN 13 million, of which 8 million came from a revitalization loan
photo: Bartosz Bańka
On the one hand, we are reclaiming a tenement that was indeed already in a very bad condition. Secondly, we are gaining a place that will be alive, that will flourish. This also fits in with our development strategy, one of whose goals is to create an attractive, innovative city. We are also very keen to make it a place where cultural events will take place, there will be cinema and music, " announces Aleksandra Dulkiewicz, mayor of Gdansk.
