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FRANKFURT

This week’s highlights: March 8 – 13

This Week's Highlights: Short plays in Berlin, new books in Cologne, and a festival for women in Hamburg.

Published: 8 March 2013 06:16 CET
This week's highlights: March 8 – 13
Photo: DPA

BERLIN

Theatre

English Theatre Berlin – Ten Minute Play Contest

Who has the attention span to sit through a full-length play in this day and age? Theatre in ten minutes sounds more on par with the Twitter population. All kidding aside, short theatre, like the short story and the short film is an art form all its own. See five ten-minute plays in Berlin this week when English Theatre Berlin and Shakespeare im Park stage new works by multi-lingual expat playwrights like Claire Delaby and Alberto Di Gennaro.

Price: €13

Location: English Theatre Berlin, Fidicinstrasse 40

Times: Friday, March 8 – Tuesday, March 12, Thursday, March 14, and Saturday, March 16, 8pm

Tickets: 030 691 1211

More Information: www. etberlin.de

Film

Art Film Fest No. 1

We’re all products of our environments. Irish filmmaker Una Quigley ponders how environment affects one woman’s notion about her gender and identity in the short film The Gifted Water. Catch a showing Friday night at the Neukolln art space, Centrum where the 14-minute movie screens as part of a weekly art film series this month.

Price: Free

Location: Centrum, Reuterstrasse 8

Times: Friday, March 8, 8pm

Phone: 0176 49 33 02 50

More Information: www.centrumberlin.com

COLOGNE

Literature

lit.Cologne International Literature Festival

Cologne resounds with the sound of books being read aloud this week as the biggest literature festival in North Rhine-Westphalia swings through town. In addition to the German readings, there are a few in French, Dutch, Russian, and over twenty in English. Be sure to catch McSweeney’s main man Dave Eggers read from his latest novel A Hologram for the King Tuesday, and former United Nations Secretary General Kofi Annan discusses his new book Interventions: A Life in War and Peace next Saturday.

Price: Various

Location: Various

Times: Wednesday, March 6 – Saturday, March 16

More Information: www.litcologne.de

Children’s Activities

Cars for Kids

If your toddlers are like most kids their age, they probably enjoy scooting around in toy cars. So when they see the lot full of plastic jeeps, race cars, and motorcycles at IKEA this weekend there’s bound to be a few squeals of joy rippling through the brisk March air. Bring your two to seven-year-olds over to the four-wheeled extravaganza Saturday.

Price: Free

Location: IKEA, Butzweilerstrasse 51

Times: Saturday, March 9, 10am-6pm

Phone: 0221 258 2585

More Information: www.cars-kids.de

FRANKFURT

Galleries/Museums

The Empty House

American architect Richard Meier designed Frankfurt’s Museum of Applied Arts in 1985. Over the years a few odds and ends were added to the structure, distracting from the original design. But all that clutter has been stripped away, leaving the stunning architectural gem gleaming gloriously in all its naked splendour. See the museum building like it was intended to look when after a three-month renovation the landmark structure shows off its birthday suit. Berlin artist Olaf Nicolai performs in the space Friday, and architects lead guided tours Sunday.

Price: Free; €5 (Olaf Nicolai performance)

Location: Museum Angewandte Kunst
, Schaumainkai 17

Times: Friday, March 8. 10am – Saturday, March 9, 8pm; Sunday, March 10, 10am-6pm

Phone: 069 2123 4037

More Information: www.museumangewandtekunst.de

Music/Concerts

Duo Fado Instrumental – Magic of the Portuguese Guitar

Take one Portuguese guitar, one Spanish guitar, add a pinch of bandoneon (a tango instrument that looks like an accordion), and you’ve got a lovely sound steeped in the tradition of Portuguese fado. Duo Fado Instrumental is Jan Dijker and Oliver Jaeger, a German-Dutch duo that play a program of instrumental fado music Sunday morning in Frankfurt. Have a glass of port before you head to the concert and it will be easier to convince yourself you’re actually in the Algarve.

Price: Free

Location: Frankfurter Künstlerclub, Nebbienschen Gartenhaus, Bockenheimer Anlage

Times: Sunday, March 10, 11am

Phone: 069 235 734

More Information: www.frankfurter-kuenstlerclub.de

HAMBURG

Festivals

International Women’s Festival

From Persian pop singers to Sri Lankan Bollywood dancers, the performers at this festival pack a whole lot of girl power. The month-long event features a vibrant international cultural program that celebrates the diversity, creativity, and strength of women from around the world. See music, theatre, and dance performances, join in on a discussion about sexism, and learn how to make apple crumble at a cooking workshop.

Price: Various

Location: Most events take place at Kulturladen St. Georg,
 Alexanderstrasse 16

Times: Sunday, March 3 – Thursday, April 4

More Information: www.frauenfestival.de

LEIPZIG

Readings

Teta Moehs Reads From “Of Thee I Sing”

United States President Barack Obama likens the children of America to homegrown heroes like Georgia O’Keeffe and Jackie Robinson in his book Of Thee I Sing – A Letter To My Daughters. The point is, we’ve all got the potential to make our dreams a reality. Hear Public Affairs Officer Teta Moehs read from the story in English Wednesday and then go do something with your life, like become a famous artist or baseball player.

Price: Free

Location: Bibliothek Volkmarsdorf, Torgauer Platz 3

Times: Wednesday, March 13, 10am

More Information: www.leipzig-liest.de

MUNICH

Readings

Joey Goebel’s “I Against Osborne”

James wears a suit to high school, he likes black and white movies and considers himself “the last gentleman.” The year is 1999 and the setting is a big high school in small town Kentucky in American author Joey Goebel’s new novel I Against Osborne. On Monday, the German actor Robert Stadlober joins Goebel in a reading at the Munich Literature House. Meet literature’s latest teen hero.

Price: €10

Location: Munich Literature House, Salvatorplatz 1


Times: Monday, March 11, 8pm

Register: 089 29 19 340

More Information: www.literaturhaus-muenchen.de

Music/Concerts

Music For Goals

Is there a better messenger than music? Musicians are gathering at Muffathalle Saturday to deliver a message of racial and religious tolerance through song. A joint venture between musicians and football associations, the goal of the evening is to end racism, xenophobia, and anti-semitism, not only within society, but also on the football field. Set your mind free Sunday night when Nneka, Moop Mama, Nomfusi, Adriano Prestel, and Roger Rekless and Boshi San take the stage.

Price: €25

Location: Muffathalle, Muffatwerk, Zellstrasse 4

Times: Sunday, March 10, 8pm

Phone: 089 458 750 10

More Information: www.musicforgoals.com

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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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