Romanian Government wants to close down Palace Hall, 50-year old concert venue in Bucharest

The Romanian Government is currently looking for solutions to stop losing money via the well known Palace Hall (Sala Palatului), the main concert hall in Bucharest. The Culture Ministry is planing either to close it down, or to find a solution to stop it from bleeding money, and making it efficient instead. The most recent Government meeting agenda included a draft proposal to close down the Palace Hall, but a decision on the document was delayed. The Ministry of Culture and the Government's General Secretary will agree on the topic before the next Government meeting. “The Government's General Secretary will find solutions to bring the hall to a better state,” said vice-prime minister Liviu Dragnea after the Government meeting. Last year in fall, the Palace Hall was moved from under the Culture Ministry supervision to the Government's General Secretary, to promote Romania's image and Government strategies in different areas. The Palace Hall was opened in 1960 and is one of the main cultural venues in Bucharest. Among others, the George Enescu festival takes place here, as well as in other locations, and the next edition of the festival will take place this year. Last year during the local elections a quarrel emerged between the then – Culture Minister Mircea Diaconu and the general manager of the Palace Hall, Catalin Iliescu. The minister asked for Iliescu's resignation, saying the Palace Hall manager, who was also a candidate for the District 2 city hall, had used the concerts venue in his electoral campaign, using the institution's money to print electoral flyers, which also included the upcoming concerts in the hall. editor@romania-insider.com