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FRANKFURT

What’s on in Germany: April 12 – 18

This Week's Highlights: Short films in Dresden, art in Cologne, Middle Eastern culture in Hamburg, and a festival of light in Frankfurt.

Published: 12 April 2012 16:24 CEST
What's on in Germany: April 12 - 18
Photo: DPA

BERLIN

Comedy

30 Mosques in 30 Days: Tales from an American Ramadan Roadtrip

Aman Ali is a Muslim storyteller and stand-up comedian from New York. A couple years ago he embarked on the great American road trip. But instead of heading for sites like Mount Rushmore and Niagara Falls, he and his buddy Bassam Tariq stopped at 30 different mosques, one for every night of Ramadan. Hear about his adventures Monday at Babylon.

Price: €10

Location: Babylon, Rosa-Luxemburg-Strasse 30

Times: Monday, April 16, 7:30pm

Tickets: 030 24 25 969

More Information: www.babylonberlin.de

Galleries/Museums

Architects of the Revolution: Soviet Art and Architecture 1915-1935

One of the coolest things about the Soviets is their architecture. In the years after the Russian Revolution of 1917, artists and architects started obsessing over form, space, and texture. A new exhibition at the Martin-Gropius-Bau presents an overview of avant-garde art and architecture from the Soviet Union. See drawings and photographs of workers’ clubs, trade union houses, communal apartments, state-owned department stores, and other monumental structures like Vladimir Shukhov’s Shabolovka Radio Tower.

Price: €10

Location: Martin-Gropius-Bau,
Niederkirchnerstrasse 7

Times: Wednesday – Monday, 10am-7pm; through July 9

Phone: 030 254 860

More Information: www.berlinerfestspiele.de

COLOGNE

Music/Concerts

Sinead O’Connor

It has been 25 years since the Irish songstress released her seminal debut disc. Nine albums later, she’s keeping alive her message of personal strength and individuality with How About I Be Me (And You Be You). This week, Ms. O’Connor hits up three cities in Germany. Catch her Wednesday in Cologne, because nothing compares to her.

Price: €33

Location: Kulturkirche, Siebachstrasse 85

Times: Thursday, April 18, 8pm

More Information: mct.tickets.de

Events

Art Cologne

Got a budget for original art? Blow it this weekend in Cologne. About 200 galleries will be showing works from the 20th and 21st centuries at this mega annual art fair. New and emerging artists can be found among the more established. Hit up the vernissage on Tuesday and hang with the cool kids.

Price: €25 (Day Ticket); €35 (2-Day Ticket); €20 (Evening Ticket); €55 (Vernissage Ticket)

Location: Kulturkirche, Siebachstrasse 85

Times: Wednesday, April 18 – Sunday, April 22, noon – 8pm; Tuesday, April 17, 5-9pm (vernissage)

Phone: 0180 501 8550

More Information: www.artcologne.com

DRESDEN

Film

Filmfest Dresden – International Short Film Festival

Toast the filmmakers Tuesday at Filmfest Dresden’s opening party. Five days of short films follow, including about 70 little movies from 20 countries. This year’s program features flicks based on R.E.M.’s last album, as well as a series devoted to Eastern European short films from the 1960s.

Price: €6 (Single Ticket); €24 (Five-Ticket Block); €50 (Festival Ticket)

Location: Various

Times: Tuesday, April 17 – Sunday, April 22

More Information: www.filmfest-dresden.de

Galleries/Museums

Gerhard Richter – Atlas

It’s a nice idea – collecting beautiful, inspiring images, gathering them together, organizing them by theme, framing them, and painting them. Gerhard Richter’s “Atlas” project began to take shape in 1964 when the Dresden-born artist first started collecting source materials. Go this week to see the Dresden State Art Collection’s exhibition, because it ends April 22.

Price: €6

Location: Kunsthalle im Lipsiusbau
Brühlsche Terrasse

Times: Tuesday – Sunday, 10am-6pm; through April 22

Phone: 0351 4914 2000

More Information: www.skd.museum

FRANKFURT

Events

Luminale 2012

The train station is blue, the city hall is red, and Frankfurt’s old town is awash in all the colors of the rainbow. Every two years Frankfurt becomes a city of light during Luminale, a six-day extravaganza that merges art with light. Ride the bus around the city at night and take in all the luminous splendour.

Price: Free

Location: Various

Times: Sunday, April 15 – Friday, April 20

More Information: light-building.messefrankfurt.com

HAMBURG

Events

Middle East Culture Weeks

It’s springtime in Hamburg and everybody’s talking about the Arab Spring. From Egyptian films, to an evening of Arabic poetry and European piano music, and an Oriental Orthodox prayer service, Middle East Culture Weeks offers a diverse program of events centered around the Arab Spring theme. A handful of discussions with journalists and scholars focus on hot topics like freedom of religion and women in post-revolution Egypt.

Price: Various

Times: April 10 – 30

Location: Various

More Information: www.kulturwochen-mittlerer-osten.de

Film

Buddha Mountain

The recipient of a pair of awards at the Tokyo International Film Festival where it premiered in 2010, Buddha Mountain is a film about young love and the joys and sorrows of life. See how the acclaimed Chinese director Li Yu’s cinematic romance unfurls on the big screen Friday in Hamburg.

Price: Free

Times: Friday, April 13, 6pm

Location: Konfuzius-Institut Hamburg, Schlüterstrasse 64


Phone: 0428 38 7978

More Information: www.ki-hh.de

MUNICH

Events

Short Waves – Polish Short Film Festival

Movies, art, and dancing, all with a Polish beat. Check out the 10 mini flicks selected for this year’s Short Waves festival in Munich then dance the night away with DJ Jonas Z. Artist and visual DJ Jarek Danilenko segues from movie time to party time with “Short Waves: ANIMIx,” an audiovisual piece that combines a video collage with live electronics.

Price: €6

Location: Import Export, Goethestrasse 30

Times: Saturday, April 14, 8pm

More Information: www.ahojnachbarn.eu

Music/Concerts

Lunasa – Celtic Super Night

The Irish Voice called them “the hottest traditional Irish group on the planet.” Tap your feet along to Lunasa’s sprightly melodies Wednesday at Prinzregententheater. Irish eyes will be smiling and Irish hearts will be flying.

Price: €29-50

Location: Prinzregententheater, Prinzregentenplatz 12


Times: Wednesday, April 18, 8pm

Phone: 089 2185 2899

More Information: www.prinzregententheater.de

For members

BERLIN

EXPLAINED: Berlin’s latest Covid rules

In response to rapidly rising Covid-19 infection rates, the Berlin Senate has introduced stricter rules, which came into force on Saturday, November 27th. Here's what you need to know.

Published: 27 November 2021 16:16 CET
Updated: 29 November 2021 14:17 CET
A sign in front of a waxing studio in Berlin indicates the rule of the 2G system
A sign in front of a waxing studio indicates the rule of the 2G system with access only for fully vaccinated people and those who can show proof of recovery from Covid-19 as restrictions tighten in Berlin. STEFANIE LOOS / AFP

The Senate agreed on the tougher restrictions on Tuesday, November 23rd with the goal of reducing contacts and mobility, according to State Secretary of Health Martin Matz (SPD).

He explained after the meeting that these measures should slow the increase in Covid-19 infection rates, which was important as “the situation had, unfortunately, deteriorated over the past weeks”, according to media reports.

READ ALSO: Tougher Covid measures needed to stop 100,000 more deaths, warns top German virologist

Essentially, the new rules exclude from much of public life anyone who cannot show proof of vaccination or recovery from Covid-19. You’ll find more details of how different sectors are affected below.

Shops
If you haven’t been vaccinated or recovered (2G – geimpft (vaccinated) or genesen (recovered)) from Covid-19, then you can only go into shops for essential supplies, i.e. food shopping in supermarkets or to drugstores and pharmacies.

Many – but not all – of the rules for shopping are the same as those passed in the neighbouring state of Brandenburg in order to avoid promoting ‘shopping tourism’ with different restrictions in different states.

Leisure
2G applies here, too, as well as the requirement to wear a mask with most places now no longer accepting a negative test for entry. Only minors are exempt from this requirement.

Sport, culture, clubs
Indoor sports halls will off-limits to anyone who hasn’t  been vaccinated or can’t show proof of recovery from Covid-19. 2G is also in force for cultural events, such as plays and concerts, where there’s also a requirement to wear a mask. 

In places where mask-wearing isn’t possible, such as dance clubs, then a negative test and social distancing are required (capacity is capped at 50 percent of the maximum).

Restaurants, bars, pubs (indoors)
You have to wear a mask in all of these places when you come in, leave or move around. You can only take your mask off while you’re sat down. 2G rules also apply here.

Hotels and other types of accommodation 
Restrictions are tougher here, too, with 2G now in force. This means that unvaccinated people can no longer get a room, even if they have a negative test.

Hairdressers
For close-contact services, such as hairdressers and beauticians, it’s up to the service providers themselves to decide whether they require customers to wear masks or a negative test.

Football matches and other large-scale events
Rules have changed here, too. From December 1st, capacity will be limited to 5,000 people plus 50 percent of the total potential stadium or arena capacity. And only those who’ve been vaccinated or have recovered from Covid-19 will be allowed in. Masks are also compulsory.

For the Olympic Stadium, this means capacity will be capped at 42,000 spectators and 16,000 for the Alte Försterei stadium. 

Transport
3G rules – ie vaccinated, recovered or a negative test – still apply on the U-Bahn, S-Bahn, trams and buses in Berlin. It was not possible to tighten restrictions, Matz said, as the regulations were issued at national level.

According to the German Act on the Prevention and Control of Infectious Diseases, people have to wear a surgical mask or an FFP2 mask  on public transport.

Christmas markets
The Senate currently has no plans to cancel the capital’s Christmas markets, some of which have been open since Monday. 

According to Matz, 2G rules apply and wearing a mask is compulsory.

Schools and day-care
Pupils will still have to take Covid tests three times a week and, in classes where there are at least two children who test positive in the rapid antigen tests, then tests should be carried out daily for a week.  

Unlike in Brandenburg, there are currently no plans to move away from face-to-face teaching. The child-friendly ‘lollipop’ Covid tests will be made compulsory in day-care centres and parents will be required to confirm that the tests have been carried out. Day-care staff have to document the results.

What about vaccination centres?
Berlin wants to expand these and set up new ones, according to Matz. A new vaccination centre should open in the Ring centre at the end of the week and 50 soldiers from the German army have been helping at the vaccination centre at the Exhibition Centre each day since last week.

The capacity in the new vaccination centre in the Lindencenter in Lichtenberg is expected to be doubled. There are also additional vaccination appointments so that people can get their jabs more quickly. Currently, all appointments are fully booked well into the new year.

 

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