BHSEC Baltimore Year 2 August Blake reflects on his experience this summer as part of the Bard Early College Summer Intensive at Bard College Berlin in Berlin, Germany.

It was the final Sunday, and my friends and I wanted to make the most of it. At this point, we were well acquainted with the public transportation lines. We had spent the last two weeks venturing all over Berlin to different museums, the Berlin Wall, and Teufelsberg (a Cold War site turned artist collective) just to name a few places. Tonight, we were going to see the musical, Cabaret. 

In our screenwriting class, we had explored The Berlin Stories by Christopher Isherwood, an Englishman who lived in Berlin during the revolutionary and tumultuous time of the Weimar Republic (1918-1933). Our focus had been on the story of Sally Bowels as it was the basis of Cabaret. A week prior to tonight, we had screened the film adaptation, featuring Liza Minnelli, since the musical would be in German.

With this in mind, we knew we had to be back at campus by 5pm. It took about an hour of travel to get anywhere from Pankow, so we started the day off at our furthest location, the Alte Nationalgalerie. The line to enter the art gallery streamed out of the door, so we moved on to our next location, which was an indoor flea market. We drank boba tea, browsed through the different shops, and hopped back on the train. To cap off our trip, we headed to Mauerpark, which was home to the largest market in Berlin.

Since the first time we explored the market, we had decided we would go there every Sunday. It was a vivacious spot, a place where one could find nearly anything. Food, drinks, clothes, jewelry, trinkets and other memorabilia, artwork, and live music. This time we were on a mission to find our final pieces for the event of the evening. I hunted for a set of silver jewelry to go with my completely black outfit. Once we all found our items, we bought our last meals from our favorite food spots: mac n cheese sandwiches, octopus fritters, a vegan bao bun dish, and gelato. We hung out for a few hours, devouring delicious food and enjoying the music. Afterward, we rushed back to campus to prepare for a night of the theater–Cabaret!

By 5pm we needed to be at W15—a campus residence building as well as a common gathering area—so my dorm was a tornado. My roommates and I were in and out of the bathroom, dressing hurriedly, fixing our hair, and putting on the finishing touches. Once everyone had everything together, we raced to W15 to meet up with the rest of the group. Almost as soon as we arrived, we departed for the theater.

The city streets were massively crowded since there was a viewing of the Germany vs. Spain soccer match happening nearby. We had no idea what to expect, much less a giant circus-style tent in the middle of a park. The venue at which we were viewing Cabaret was the Tipi Am Kanzleramt Theater. The lights, the red carpet, the glamorous decor–The atmosphere was simply dazzling. My friends and I ordered some drinks and sorbet to partake in before the show. We had already screened the 1972 version of Cabaret some days before, but to see it come to life was unimaginable. The whole venue was utilized as a stage, so the entire experience was astounding.

The ride back in the dead of night was just as lively. Flamboyantly, we waved our complimentary fans from the show and danced on the train. When we returned home after such a glorious evening, we barely managed another hour before we crashed. It was one of my favorite Berlin stories.