What's on in Berlin: film, theatre, dance and more

Films out of Iran and France provide a glimpse into the international scene, two beloved childhood tales get new spins, and birds of a feather dance together...

This week's events: 30 Nov-7 Dec 2011

Birds with Sky Mirrors

Haus der Berliner Festspiele, Thur 1 Dec, 8pm

We all have an opinion on global warming, but Lemi Ponifasio, a High Chief on the island of Samoa, has witnessed climate change and the havoc wrought on nature by humans first-hand. This intensely moving dance piece is his attempt as a choreographer and head of the production company MAU to come to grips with the sadness and frustration he felt at seeing “birds with sky mirrors” (really, birds carrying reflective bits of waste from a nearby garbage dump) on the Pacific island of Tarawa. As the international group of performers, many of them wearing bird masks, chant, stomp, and glide their way across a dark stage, viewers are reminded of the troubled relationship we have with our natural surroundings. Clearly Ponifasio's aim, as an activist as well as a choreographer, is to inspire his audience members to leave the theater ready to fight for environmental change.

Haus der Berliner Festspiele, Schaperstr 24, 10719 Berlin (030 254 890, www.berlinerfestspiele.de). U9 Spichernstr. Date 8pm Thur 1 Dec; Fri 2 Dec; Sat 3 Dec. Admission from €12.

15 Jahre Theater im ACUD, Der Sturm von William Shakespeare [15 Years of Theater in ACUD, The Tempest by William Shakespeare]

ACUD, Fri 2 Dec, 8pm

Starting this week, this multimedia art collective on the border between Mitte and Prenzlauer Berg celebrates its fifteenth year. Kicking off the festivities is this production of “The Tempest” by the Berlin-based German-Polish-Hungarian ensemble Zygmunt Wolski Theater, well known for creating surprising adaptations of contemporary Eastern European and occasionally German work. While the play keeps the storyline surprisingly straightforward, it does have one big twist: the vengeful and manipulative character of Prospero is played by a woman, hence becoming Prospera, the Duchess of Milan. For a play that has revolved around this strong and frightful male character for centuries, it should be interesting to see what happens when a woman takes the lead.

ACUD-Theater, Veteranenstr. 21, 10119 Berlin (030 443 59 497, www.acud.de). U8 Rosenthaler Platz. Date 8pm, Fri 2 Dec. Admission €10.

Die Französische Filmwoche Berlin, Le Chat du Rabbin [Berlin French Film Week, The Rabbi's Cat]

Filmtheater am Friedrichshain, Fri 2 Dec 10am, 8:30pm

This annual film festival entices Francophiles with a week of the year's best French-language films. Offering a full range of genres in five cinemas citywide, including the Institut Francais and the Cinema Paris on Ku'damm, this festival gives Germans a chance to see what their neighbouring countries (including Belgium and Switzerland) have been up to. Fans of 2003's grotesquely charming “Triplets of Belleville” will want to check out “Le Chat du Rabbin” (The Rabbi's Cat), an animated film that embraces the beauty of the absurd in much the same way. Set in Algeria in the 1920s, the film follows the story of the rabbi, his daughter, and of course his cat, all of whom set out on an Indiana Jones-like journey to find a legendary city in Africa. The film is shown twice, but the evening screening is followed by a question and answer session with the filmmakers. [French with German subtitles]

Filmtheater am Friedrichshain, Bötzowstr. 1, 10407 Berlin (030 428 451 88, www.yorck.de www.franzoesische-filmwoche.de). M4 Am Friedrichshain. Date 10am, 8:30pm Fri 2 Dec. Admission €8.

Around the World in 14 Films, Bé omid é didar [Good Bye]

Babylon Mitte, Sat 3 Dec, 8pm

A smaller precursor, if you will, to the madness of the Berlinale in just two months, this one-week film festival does exactly what it promises: it gives viewers a glimpse at 14 different international locales through local films made in the past year. “Good Bye” might not be everyone's cup of tea, but it's worth seeing (in fact, it might just be your political duty to see it) because of the circumstances of its release. Iranian director Mohammad Rasoulof was sentenced to six years in prison in 2010 alongside Jafar Panahi, whose conspicuous absence at the Berlinale last year made headlines. The film, smuggled out of Iran for screening at the Cannes Film Festival (where it subsequently won the award for best director), takes a hard and eye-opening look at living conditions for women in Tehran. [English subtitles]

Babylon Mitte, Rosa-Luxemburg-Str. 30, 10178 Berlin (030 24 25 969, www.babylonberlin.de) U2 Rosa-Luxemburg-Platz. Date 8pm Thur 1 Dec; Fri 2 Dec; Sat 3 Dec. Admission €6,50.

Mourning Becomes Electra

Deutsches Theater, Sun 4 Dec 7:30pm

An American play based on a Greek myth performed by a German theater company? Only in Berlin. This adaptation of Eugene O'Neill's modern take on Oresteia trilogy by Aeschylus has enough important literary names to entice any theatre geek, but its wider themes of post-war trauma, loyalty and betrayal and family neuroses still seem relevant in the 21st century. The tale, of course, is a well-known one: husband comes home from war and is promptly murdered by scheming wife and lover. Son and daughter, left behind, plot together to avenge the death. In O'Neill's take, the story is set during the American Civil War, and with the award-winning director Stephan Kimmig at the helm, this production is in good hands. [German with English subtitles]

Deutsches Theater, Schumannstr. 13A, 10117 Berlin (030 284 410, www.deutschestheater.de) U6 Oranienburger Tor, Friedrichstr. S-bahn Friedrichstr. Date 7:30pm Sun 4 Dec; Mon 12 Dec; Sun 25 Dec. Admission from €12.

Der Kleine Prinz [The Little Prince]

Admiralspalast, Mon 5 Dec, 9:30pm

With its dreamlike drawings, colorful characters, and sweetly simple aphorisms, “The Little Prince,” in whatever form or language, continues to be irresistible after nearly seventy years. Both children and young-at-heart adults will appreciate this multimedia stage production, which utilizes elements of theater, puppetry, film, and music to create a loving tribute to the classic tale of a lonely aviator and a singular little boy. Lending their talents to the show (although unfortunately not lending their continued presence) are a number of well-known German actors, who appear in video form as the inhabitants of various planets visited by the prince, including Bruno Ganz as the Geographer. Arabic and Eastern music may be an odd choice for the live soundtrack but, along with the German-Arab lead Nanda Ben Chaabane, it furthers the image of this production as one fitting a globalized and modern Berlin.

Admiralspalast, Friedrichstr. 101, 10117 Berlin (030 32 53 31 30, www.admiralspalast.de). U6, S-bahn Friedrichstr. Date 9:30pm Mon 5 Dec and daily through Sun 15 Jan. Admission from €18,30.

Rusalka [The Little Mermaid]

Komische Oper, Weds 7 Dec, 7:30pm

Anyone under 30 who claims to be a fan of “The Little Mermaid” is probably referring to the Disney version, but this stark and sorrowful opera restores the Hans Christian Andersen story to all its frightening glory, leaving you to wonder how it could have ever been anything other than an opera. This famous Dvořák piece is based on a couple of Czech legends which sprung up around the same time as Andersen's tale; consequently this “Rusalka” is a water sprite from Czech mythology, and the opera's music is characterized by the richly expressive sounds of Dvořák's late 19th-century romanticism. The story, however, is just as sad; the heroine just as doomed, and it may inspire you to rethink the themes of beauty, loyalty, deception and suspicion that are hiding just beneath the surface of a classic fairytale.

Komische Oper Berlin, Behrenstr. 55-57, 10117 Berlin (030 47 99 74 00, www.komische-oper-berlin.de). S-bahn Unter den Linden, U6 Französischer Str., U55 Brandenburger Tor. Date 7:30pm Weds 7 Dec, Tues 13 Dec, Mon 19 Dec Admission from €11.

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