5 unusual Berlin venues in Berlin

Clärchens Ballhaus is an immensely popular place with tourists and locals alike. But it does hide a secret, and that’s its Spiegelsaal (mirror hall). It wasn’t used for 60 years and bears all the traces of war and the passing of time. It’s not always open to the public, but sometimes there are chamber music performances here: check the website.

This non-traditional concert hall opened in March 2017 and is part of the Barenboim-Said-Akademie. It was designed by American architect Frank Gehry, a friend of both Daniel Barenboim and Pierre Boulez. The venue can be configured in different ways and the sensual, elliptical shape gives the guests an intimate feeling. Fabulous acoustics.

The German Opera was designed by Fritz Bornemann in 1961, in an ultra modernist style. For some people the look of this building might be too cold, but you can’t say it hasn’t got style. The sound quality is superb here, and the same goes for the plays that are staged.

Just near the house of the Berliner Festspiele lies the glamorous Bar jeder Vernunft, known as a venue for old-time cabaret, comedy and good food. The wonderful atmosphere and the fantastic glittering mirror tent make this place absolutely worth a visit.

Marlene Dietrich and Fritz Lang are known to have walked along this street with its many cinemas in the 1920s. The Delphi theatre was one of the biggest and miraculously survived WWII, the GDR and the post-wall madness. It’s one of the finest remaining witnesses of the glamour and flair of the heyday of German silent film. It’s now used as a location for events.