Melina Cultural Centre
Information
- Address: 66 Iraklidon and Thessalonikis sts, Thissio
- Tel.: 210 3452150, 210 3414466
- Opening hours: 09:00-13:00 and 17:00-21:00 daily, except Mondays and Sunday evenings
The centre is home to two permanent exhibitions:
A Journey through Athens, on the first floor, where one can view 19th-century Athens and elements of the 20th century via reproductions of buildings, houses, stores and people.
The Haridimos Shadow Puppet Museum - Theatre which, as of September 2006, hosts a vast collection of items that belonged to the Haridimos family, renowned shadow puppet masters. Over 1,000 exhibits are on display including figures made with leather, cardboard, gelatine and sets drawn on fabric, cloth-bound manuscripts, folk art paintings and photographs dating from the early 20th century until today. Performances are staged for schools free of charge, while puppet figure-making lessons are held for children and adults on a weekly basis.
The centre also has two exhibition spaces. The 220-square metre Melina room, which hosts exhibitions and is suitable for seminars, conferences, speeches, and a 380-square metre (5 metres in height) space which can host large-scale projects.