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HISTORY

From the legendary REX Theatre to art and culture centre REXKL — and now, REXPERIENCE marks a new chapter in this evolution as an immersive digital art gallery in downtown Kuala Lumpur.

MILESTONES

1947
One of the first few cinemas in Malaysia, the original REX Theatre officially opened its doors on 28th July 1947. It was designed by architect James Robert Vethavanam and back then, it was operated by the Shaw Brothers.
1972
The cinema caught fire for the first time in 1972 and the building burned down. 
1976
Golden Communications (now known as Golden Screen Cinemas or GSC) took over its reign in 1976 and rebuilt the cinema into a single-screen theatre with a 1,100 seat capacity. This newer auditorium was much more spacious and even had a balcony!
1993
REX Theatre became the first cinema in Malaysia to have a digital sound processor (DTS) system in 1993, with the release of ‘Jurassic Park’.
1995
The front foyer of REX was refurbished in 1995 and computerised ticketing was installed.
2002

For over two decades, REX Theatre remained as one of the popular, larger cinemas of its time. But the building was destroyed by another fire and it finally ceased operations on 5 November 2002.

2007
The iconic cinema was then converted into a backpackers hostel named Red Dragon Hostel in 2007. Unfortunately, history repeated itself and another fire broke out in August that year.
2018
A group of creative entrepreneurs led by Shin Tseng and Shin Chang revived the 60,000 sq ft building as part of the mission to rejuvenate the forgotten part of KL. They reincarnated the space into an art and culture centre known as REXKL, where many community building and creative events have taken place.
2023
REXPERIENCE, an immersive digital art gallery, makes its debut in September 2023. Situated on the first floor of REXKL, the expansive main hall spanning 8,800 sq ft that was once a blank canvas now comes alive through new and immersive cutting-edge art forms that revolutionise the traditional art viewing experience