Thementag „80 Jahre Kriegsende" am 8. Mai 2025

In the organizer's words:

A multifaceted theme day will take place on May 8: The program approaches the historical date from very different perspectives - scientifically, artistically, controversially. Questions will be asked about people's everyday experiences at the end of the Second World War, but also about the significance of commemorative rituals today.

Free admission, no registration required.

12:00 Talk | Final war crimes

Talk about the crimes committed by the Germans and the Allies in the final weeks and days of the Second World War. With Prof. Dr. Johannes Tuchel, Director of the German Resistance Memorial Center. In cooperation with the German Resistance Memorial Center.
To the event: https://kulturprojekte.berlin/festival/programmkalender-80-jahre-kriegsende/?event_slug=kriegsendverbrechen&event_uuid=dc082090-77bf-4255-bdc5-f556c54a25fd

13:00 Reading | Diary entries from the end of the war

Students of the Ernst Busch Academy of Dramatic Arts read authentic experiences from war-torn Berlin that get under your skin.
To the event: https://tinyurl.com/y65m7s97

14:30 Panel discussion | Commemorating the end of the war in a world full of war

Liberation? Capitulation? A new beginning? What is commemorated on May 8? And why commemorative days at all? Discussion about the meaning and function of commemorating public holidays in politically challenging and crisis-ridden times. With Uwe Neumärker, Director of the Foundation Memorial to the Murdered Jews of Europe, Frank Ebert, Berlin Commissioner for the Reappraisal of the SED Dictatorship and Andrea Riedle, German historian and Director of the Topography of Terror Foundation.
To the event: https://tinyurl.com/yc2w64p7

15:30 Book launch | "Berlin in the Nazi era - an outline of the city's history"

Presentation of a special everyday history: A panorama of Berlin during the Nazi era is created using typical public, semi-public and private places - from the bed to the drawing board. With Christoph Kreutzmüller and Bjoern Weigel (authors). In cooperation with BeBra Verlag.
To the event: https://tinyurl.com/e2jp5rrd

17:30 Performance | "Barrack and flower waltz - remember again!"

Choreographer and dancer Johanne Timm retraces the history of her grandparents, who were imprisoned in the Soviet concentration camp Sachsenhausen after the Second World War. Her first artistic treatment of the subject was premiered at the Sachsenhausen Memorial in 2015.
Sound: Martyna Poznańska
Dramaturgy: Rike Flämig
To the event: https://tinyurl.com/3mkeuy85