Most weeks in Berlin are big, but this one is absolutely huge. After much delay, Berlin welcomes the Humboldt Forum into its already huge repertoire of cultural institutions, and this weekend the city celebrates its LGBTQ+ community with Berlin Pride and the CSD parade. Not to mention the huge amount of music, performances, art installations, and film screenings happening this week. We hope you caught up on sleep on Monday.
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Bad Luck Banging or Loony Porn
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Category: Film
Where: b-ware Ladenkino
When: 20:50
Admission: €5
The winner of Berlinale’s golden bear in 2021, Bad Luck Banging or Loony Porn is Romanian director Radu Jude’s absurdist story of a school teacher living in COVID-torn Romania. The story follows Emi, a teacher, whose professional life comes under fire when one of her personal sex tapes is leaked on the internet. After receiving heavy criticism and pressure to resign from the administration and students’ parents, Emi refuses to back down and leave her position. The film comments on the frustrations inherent in living through the pandemic, the invasive nature of an increasingly blurred line between the private and public as online culture and social media become integral parts of our lives, and the position of women and their sexuality in Romania, as well as globally.
For more information about b-ware Ladenkino’s screening times, visit their website.
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nunofyrbeeswax + Halfsilks + DJ szim
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Category: Live Music
Where: Kesselhaus
When: 20:00
Admission: €12
Berlin-based garage rock and post-punk heroes nunofyrbeeswax are celebrating the release of their new album, Stratotoaster, by throwing a nice party at Kulturbrauerei. nunofyrbeeswax is a duo made up of Angela Etc. and Dave E.D. that “plays pop songs as raw as their hearts.” The evening also features the sounds of Halfsilks, an all-female minimalist post-punk band composed of Karen Thompson, Jana Sotzko, and Marcia Arff. The night will round off with a set by DJ szim. This is an ideal opportunity for you to experience some of the acts in Berlin’s independent music scene.
For more information about the show, visit the event page.
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Under This Skin I Will Have To Rot
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Category: Art
Where: Das Gift
When: 18:00-21:00
Admission: Free
The beloved Neukllön bar and event space, Das Gift, will be hosting a four-day group show, Under This Skin I Will Have To Rot. Inspired by a Foucault quote about the body and the self, the artists explore the freedoms and restrictions inherent in being a corporeal body that exists and moves under the gaze and conditions set forth by society. The exhibition includes a wide variety of mediums, incorporating elements of film, ceramics, zines, photography, and sculpture. The first two days will be focused on the installation or visual artworks and the third and fourth days of the exhibition will feature film screenings by several of the artists.
For more information about the exhibition and future events, visit Das Gift’s website.
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21 Sunsets Open Air Festival
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Category: Art, Literature, Film
Where: Haus der Kulturen der Welt
When: 19:30
Admission : €5
This summer, the HKW is celebrating the arrival of the season and the reopening of event spaces by hosting a 21-day open air festival on its roof terraces. The festival is a celebration of all things cultural: music, literature, art, film, and everything in between. On Thursday, the evening begins with a staged reading and concert, WUNDER / DNA, written by playwright Enis Maci, performed by actors Zeynep Bozbay and Rosa Lembeck, and featuring music by Rosaceae. The play explores the body as a mediator between worlds – the mystical and the mundane, the masses and the individual, and illness and how it’s received. The second part of the evening will be a screening of a series of three short films: Heat Shimmer directed by Arthur and Corinne Cantrill and Kaptia and Matata, both directed by Petna Ndaliko Katondolo.
For more information about the 21 Sunsets programming or July 23rd’s line-up, head to the HKW’s website.
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QWEER Night Market
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Category: Open Air Market
Where: Revier Südost
When: 16:00-22:00
Admission : Free
QWEER Market Berlin and Flanke Bar have organized an open air market at the newly opened Revier Südost the day leading up to the Christopher Street Day parade. The market will consist of about 20 stalls run by local queer artists and small companies who are selling fashion items and accessories, artisanal products, and even some kinky sex toys. There will be a few stands with food and drinks available, and music from the club’s line-up for the evening can also be heard throughout the market. It’s a great warm-up to Berlin Pride weekend and an even better way to support the local queer community.
For more information about the QWEER Night Market, visit the event page.
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Stripper Stories
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Category: Sex Life
Where: 800A Bar and Cabaret
When: 20:00-22:00
Admission : €20
On the fourth Friday of every month, the Berlin Strippers Collective hosts an evening of storytelling and sharing. Combining short stories and pole dance performances, the BSC gives you a glimpse of the challenges, experiences, and insights members of the collective have experienced as sex workers. As artists, feminists, and workers, the BSC will host a striptease that breaks down the stigmas and stereotypes around their craft and gives an intimate and personal glimpse into their work and art form.
For more information about the monthly Stripper Stories series, visit the 800a website.
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SATURDAY 24/07
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CSD Parade | Berlin Pride
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Category: Open-Air Event
Where: Kreuzberg and Schöneberg
When: 12:00 at Leipzigerstr
Admission : Free
The Christopher Street Day is held in memory of the first big uprising of the queer community against police assaults in Greenwich Village in New York, USA on June 27, 1969, which took place in a bar called Stonewall Inn on Christopher Street. Christopher Street Day was first celebrated in Berlin in June of 1979 and it has been an annual protest and march for queer rights and equality ever since. As the tradition has evolved, the march has become a demonstration where millions of people celebrate the LGBTQ+ community and continue to push for equality. A parade filled with colorful floats, music, and demonstrators will march through the streets of Kreuzberg and Schöneberg starting at 12:00 from Leipzigerstr.
For more information about the CSD Parade visit the Berlin.de info page.
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We are T.O.F.U. “Is This The End?”
with Moderna, Local Suicide, and Sean Patrick
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Category: Club Night
Where: Urban Spree
When: 14:00-02:00
Admission : Free
T.O.F.U. (Too Old For Understatement) is back at Urban Spree for another night of perfectly curated DJ sets. The event series is the brainchild of Berlin’s excellent electronic dark disco duo Local Suicide. In pre-pandemic times T.O.F.U. was a regular fixture in the intimate back room of the Bohnengold venue in Kreuzberg, but we have to admit we’re enjoying hearing the dark disco, mexican wave and EBM vibes in an open air setting. This lineup features Moderna, Sean Patrick and of course Local Suicide themselves.
For more information about ‘Is This The End?’ visit the event page.
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SUNDAY 25/07
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Humboldt Forum
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Category: Museum
Where: Humboldt Forum
Opening hours : Tuesday, closed / Friday to Saturday, 10:00-22:00 / Sunday to Thurday, 10:00-20:00
Admission : Free
The Humboldt Forum is finally open as of July 20th, and the public is now able to book free appointments for a visit. Currently showing six exhibitions focused on science, culture, discussion, and debate, the long-awaited inaugural exhibitions are up and ready to be seen. After plenty of delays between its construction and the pandemic, the forum’s impressive architectural design which incorporates the facade of the reconstructed Berlin Palace is finally able to welcome guests. A space dedicated to exploring dialogue, discussion, and difference, the museum hopes to become a place where timelines converge, learning and exchange occur, and a multiplicity of voices are heard.
For more information on the Humboldt Forum’s programming, visit their website.
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