Charlottenburg,
Schöneberg,
Wilmersdorf |
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The former Universum Cinema, now the Schaubühne Theatre |
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Index
Hugendubel
at Tauentzien
Ty
Breizh-Savoie Rire
Cadillacs
in Concrete
Church
Hohenzollerndamm
Nature
Reserve Schöneberg
Registry
Office
The
Arabic Book
The
Schildhorn Column
Universum
Cinema
Villa
Harteneck's Garden
Ahmadiyya
Mosque
Heerstraße
Cemetery
Canzone
- World music
Country
House Garden
Plasterworks
Georg
Kolbe Museum
Bookkeeper's
Cellar
Literature
Hotel |
Motor bonnets, ships’ hulls and aircraft wings were the inspira- tion for Erich Mendelsohn’s highly dynamic architectural work. The Universum Cinema, built on the upper Kurfürstendamm in 1927/28 is regarded as a high point in this master of construction’s exciting work.
It was burnt down in the last days of the war. Rebuilt, it gained a reputation in the late sixties as a beatnik hangout and musical theatre. Then speculative development started. The Mendelsohn building was saved, literally at the last minute, by the Schaubühne am Halleschen Ufer who were looking for larger premises. However, the structural changes that the theatre demanded were so extensive that the alterations, which took from 1978 to 1981, came to much the same as demolition and rebuilding.
The Berlin newspaper Der Tagesspiegel made fun of the proceedings by asking: “Has a preserved building been saved by being demolished? Without its new use it was impossible to save and without being demolished, impossible to use.” The building, which looks like a huge advertisement hoarding, and which meets the Kurfür-stendamm at one corner, is one of seven architecturally and politically significant buildings in Berlin that memorialise this great Jewish architect.
Between the booking office and the theatre shop is the unpretentious Café Schaubühne, with its outside seating. It is a peaceful place from which to observe the hustle and bustle of the Kurfür-stendamm. |
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Address: Kurfürstendamm 153, 10709 Berlin
Bus, Tube, Tram: U7 Adenauerplatz; Bus M19, M29 Lehniner Platz |
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