The 1920s Berlin Project celebrates its 7th anniversary!

In January 2007 I first joined Second Life, I looked around for a bit, didn’t see anything I liked, didn’t like what I saw and left after a few days.
In February 2009 I decided to run Second Life again, simply to test the ability of my then new computer.
And minutes before I decided that Second Life was not for me and would leave for ever (again) I found the ‘search’ option, tried a few search terms that appealed to me and found the first sim I actually liked; a surreal vintage bar called ‘Flashmans’.
There I suddenly realised that I everything I saw was made by users just like me and that maybe I could create something myself.
And I was doomed lost hooked.
The rest is, as they call it, history.

Within weeks I started working on The 1920s Berlin Project and on May the 30th 2009 I opened the door to a little very basic, noob build bar and let the public in for the first time.
The 1920s Berlin Project was born!

Still a noob who barely knew what she was doing, with no experience whatsoever, I started what would soon grow into a vibrant active community of wonderful people.
In our fantastic neighbourhood people have been extremely creative, active and something great and rare is the result.
I cannot put into words how much the sim and its people means to me and to my delight it means a lot to many of those who live there as well.

On the 30th of May 2016 we’re celebrating the 7th (!) anniversary of our sim and we’re going to celebrate with 7 days of events!

We hope you come and be part of the celebrations, if you don’t want to change your avatar or outfit, don’t worry.
We end our celebrations with a Relaxed Rules day where we have no dress code and everyone (but naked people, Nazis and naked nazis) is welcome.

We also plan to add extra freebies to our teleport area so if you like free stuff… at least check those out!

Below you’ll find the schedule of events.
Please note that certain events, times and dates may still be subject to change.
Feel free to join us in the Berlin group chat to stay up to date.

All times are Second Life time.

Monday, May 30th
13:00 Special dinner at the Nussbaum restaurant.
14:00 SLT – 7th Anniversary Dance at the Pariser Platz (At the foot of the Brandenburger Tor) with a show by Sonatta Moralesta Morales and with DJ Myron Byron.

Tuesday, May 31st
14:00 happy hour at the Volksbad!
Join us at the public baths for a wild party in the pool.
Swimming suits will be provided.
16:00 Little gathering at the exclusive penthouse in the Hotel Adlon for supporters.

Wednesday, June 1st
14:00 Happy Hour at the Biergarten
15:00 Open stage at the Odeon theatre!
Want to sing, read a poem, dance, or do some magic?
This is your chance, step up and earn some tips!
16:00 Special Church service
18:00 Late night extra festive dance at the Hotel Adlon’s ball room.

Thursday, June 2nd
2:00 “Tiki” themed party at the Spree, with a bar in a small park near the Spree behind the department store and with “Floating Ring Race” in the Spree with prize and 1920s submarine toy for everyone.
13:00 Car rally around Berlin!
Prizes for the winner!
14:00 “Tiki” themed Happy Hour with a bar in a small park near the Spree behind the department store.

Friday, June 3rd
14:00 Festive dinner followed by Tango themed dance at the Hotel Adlon’s ball room.
Submissions for photo contest close!
15:00 LIVE performance by musician Joaquin Gustav!
16:00 Several groups representing the Berlin community march through Berlin in a wonderful parade.
17:00 Join us in the wonderful bar in the Hotel Adlon basement for the enjoyment of the best cigarettes, pipes and cigars during Smoking Hour.
18:00 Special festive version of the weekly “Herrenclub” party… 18+ only!

Saturday, June 4th
11:00 Tea dance at the Hotel Adlon with announcement of Photo contest winner.
12:00 Miss Berlin Contest! Who will be Miss Berlin 1929? Amazing prizes by famous designer Sonatta Morales and Herr von Rosenheim of ‘Gustav’s’!
More information can be found by clicking here.
13:15 Soapbox Airplane race for kids!
14:00 Very Special Cabaret show at the Eldorado!
17:00 Extra festive class at the school for all kids.

Sunday, June 5th
All day: Open Door Day & Relaxed rules day
On this day everyone is welcome to visit our sim and take a good look around and see more of the sim than you’re usually allowed to see.
Several of our tenants will also the doors to their private apartments and an ‘Open House’ sign will show you where you can enter and explore how the people in the city live.
We also relax our dress code so you can come in modern clothes or as a non-realistic avatar.
13:00 SLT Sport and Health Class at Hindenburg Schule
14:00 SLT – Special freebie hour at the Biergarten with a free gift for every visitor!
15:00 PM SLTish; We let our hair down! Without dress code we look the other way while the locals go a bit crazy and rez whatever they want.
Don’t be shocked if you see King Kong climb the Brandenburger Gate, space ships flying over Alexanderplatz or people shooting cake at each other.

You can find our sim here;
http://maps.secondlife.com/secondlife/1920s%20Berlin%20Project/242/224/1929

We also have a photo contest!

The theme is; “People of Berlin”.

You can choose any subject you like as long as the person or people, and our city here are in the frame. Use your imagination, show everyone the kind of adventures, fun or just daily chores visitors can experience in our sim.

The rules;
-You can adapt, improve or play with the snapshots in photoshop or with other software.
-No nudity, adult subjects or anything that is against SL rules.
-No modern (post 1920s) subjects, clothes, objects, etc.
-Snapshot must be taken in the 1920s Berlin Project sim.
-Photo may be used by us for PR.

-Contest closes on June 3rd, pictures received after this date will not be judged.
-Winner will be anounced on June 4th at the Adlon Tea Dance.

The first prize is L$1000, second prize is L$500!

• To take part;
  Upload your snapshots to this Flickr Group;
  https://www.flickr.com/groups/20sberlin/
• Make sure you mention ‘People of Berlin’ in the description of the photo.
• Also make sure you ad the correct slurl, people who see your photo may decide to visit Berlin and thus you will be helping the project; http://slurl.com/secondlife/1920s%20Berlin/236/232/751

 

Relaxed Rules Day in 1920s Berlin

On the 30th of December we are organising a so called ‘Relaxed Rules Day’.

As you of course know, Berlin has a dress code, we ask visitors to look realistic and authentic for the theme of our sim.
But a few days in the year we decide to relax these rules to give new people a chance to explore our sim even if they don’t feel like dressing up or changing their avatar.

On Relaxed Rules Day we will NOT be asking people to dress in the 1920s style and we will be welcoming unrealistic looking avatars such as furries, tinies, etc.
The only rules we will be enforcing are that we will not accept public nudity or Nazi related behaviour and dress.
Of course anyone bothering or harassing people will also be send home.

This may be a good day to show Berlin to your friends who have not been here before and may feel a bit intimidated by our rules or roleplay.

For this special day we’re also asking some of our tenants to open their front doors to the general public!
So you can have a look and see how people in our sim live!

For our tenants this is also a special day.
It can be a lot of fun to ‘let your hair down’ in this city and go a bit crazy.
We will allow flying on this day so you can see the city from a whole new angle, but you are will also not be locked up for doing things that are unrealistic or unauthentic.

As soon as Happy Hour is over we have a litte surprise in store and something very weird will happen in the city…
If you already know what…. don’t spoil the surprise for others 😉

See you on the 30th!

Jo Yardley
The naughty niece of Hans Brinker….

Burlesque at the Odeon

Tonight, Saturday 1st September, saw the much awaited debut in Berlin of Herr Scott Rabeni’s burlesque troupe, and the large and expectant audience who gathered at the Odeon Theatre on Unter den Linden were not to be disappointed!

As the curtain drew back for the first number, the visually stunning stage setting drew gasps and huge applause from the assembled Berliners, and one wondered if the standard could be maintained for the duration of the show. But each succeeding number equalled or surpassed its predecessor, culminating in a wonderful finale which will live in the memory for some time to come.

The choice of music was excellent; the dancing, by Frl Maxine Segall and Frau Cleo Rabeni, superb; the costumes dazzling. And watching over it all was the provider of the feast, Herr Scott Rabeni.

The show rattled along at a rare old pace, leaving the wildly applauding audience hungry for more. Berlin loved them, and the good news is that we have Herr Rabeni’s assurance that we have not seen the last of these excellent performers.

Watch this space!

The Flapperettes triumph at The Odeon!

Who in the large audience at The Odeon Theatre tonight would have believed that what they witnessed was only the third performance of the dance troupe who have rapidly become the talk of the town? The Flapperettes produced four numbers of great style, poise, grace and, of course, the beauty that has the young bucks of the city lurking at the stage door with gifts of flowers and chocolate and invitations to take a ride in their shiny new Dixis.

Their numbers ranged from contemporary ’20s to exotic belly dancing, and a highlight in a show full of highlights was a routine backed by that Berlin favourite ‘Masculine Women and Feminine Men’ which saw the girls don evening dress and top hats – except that when our esteemed President von Hindenberg goes out to the theatre, he doesn’t usually accompany such garb with black silk stockings and heels – at least not that we know of. Nice try girls, but there was no disguising the femininity of the Flapperettes!

After the performance was finished, Herr Oskar Edenbaum gave a moving speech for Verfassungstag. Moving as it was, with it’s exhortation for us to honour those who fought and suffered in the Great War, I’ll wager that the majority of the audience still had their minds firmly on Frl Sasa, Frl Tequila, Frau Dora and Frl Luzie…

Lady Lydia Sings Spanish Copla!

For those gathered at the Odeon this evening, Friday the 13th proved anything but unlucky as they witnessed a great performance of Spanish Copla singing from one of Berlin’s favourite visitors, Lady Lydia Yalin.

Lydia told us wonderful stories, taught us about the history of Copla and sang for us evocative songs such as the surreal ‘No Me Llames Dolores, Llamame Lola’; ‘Tatuaje’, about a chance meeting with a sailor and the tattoo of a woman’s name that haunts him; ‘Coplas de Luis Candelas’ concerning the history of a Madrid bandit, and many more intriguing numbers.

This was an emotional concert for Lydia, who leaves her native land soon to settle in England, and that emotion was evident in her wonderful singing. We hope she’ll be visiting us again very soon!

Video about our Winter Masquerade Ball!

Cabaret Americana Returns!

It's huge!

Tonight, an appreciative audience at the Odeon saw the return of our beloved Alice and Vera, also known as Cabaret Americana.

They began by regaling us with tales of their recent visit to Paris, including Alice’s encounter with a man in a public washroom who gave her 50 francs. Along the way, there was the usual assortment of dazzling magic tricks, with Alice as always the hapless victim of Vera’s wizardry. This section included a memorable summoning of spirits from the underworld, the conjuring of a tree root which completely enclosed the blonde half of the act, and finally the producing from a large crate of an enormous elephant which a slightly worse for wear Alice found herself perching precariously atop.

It wouldn’t have been a Cabaret Americana show without the ‘Dirty Lies’ section, a series of scandalous tales involving the misdeeds of various Berliners. Then, to close the show, the girls were joined on stage for a dance by Frau Dora Mills, who hopefully has not allowed herself to believe that her sporting behaviour will spare her from a mention the next time Cabaret Americana is in town.

Let’s hope that’s sooner rather than later!

Famous Margot Lion & Champagne Rain perform, dog sled races rule the streets

Saturdays are always very exciting in Berlin.

Most people don’t have to work or are allowed to go home after only a morning at the office or in the factory.

People go for a walk in the afternoon, have a drink at Cafe Elektric, go shopping and try to be seen while socializing with their neighbours.

Because the city is covered in thick snow and ice, Herr Clarrington, from Clarrington Enterprises, organised a fantastic dog sled race!

Several streets downtown were blocked off from traffic, strong dogs imported from cold Nordic countries and good sturdy sleds were provided to some of Berlin’s more daring citizens who then raced trough our well known streets.

It was a very exciting race, eventually won by Elvina Merricks.

Elvina Merricks receives the prize from Herr Clarrington, photo by Frau Chesnokova.

In the evening the famous frl Champagne Rain performed at a packed Odeon.

Once more many people were absolutely stunned by her amazing voice and musical talents.

A fantastic show of one of SL’s most talented artists.

Unfortunately we have no pictures of this performance as we were too thrilled to remember to bring our camera.

Every saturday evening in Berlin is exciting, it has to be, this is Berlin 1929!

The cultural center of the world!

The best way to celebrate the exciting liberal times we live in is of course the Eldorado.

Where everyone can be who they want to be, where rules and laws are surrendered at the front door and where you can bump into bohemians, artists, the rich, the poor and the famous.

This night the well known Cabaret Singer Margo Lion performed for us.

She sang some fantastic songs and the audience was very excited.

Margo Lion, SL & RL

Champagne Rain to return to Berlin, Saturday 7th January

Anyone who attended Champagne Rain’s first concert in Berlin on 18th September this year will tell you that this is a performer well worth seeing. A professional pianist with many recordings to her name, and a singer of great ability, Champs will return to us on Saturday 7th January at 1pm SLT. Do not miss this event!

The Winter Maskenball, a night to remember!

On december the 30th we had The Winter Maskenball!

A sort of Christmas, end of year and New Years eve party all rolled into one.

It was an amazing night.

For this evening the Odeon management had offered us the use of the majestic theatre and even removed the rows of seats for us.

We managed to book the famous Berliner Mondschein Tanz Orchester who played some of Herr Myron Byron his swingin’ tunes while we danced the night away.

The party lasted till the morning, couples dancing, chatting and enjoying some of the fantastic catering provided by, of course, Herr Clarrington.

Definitely a night to remember, one we will be telling our grandchildren about when they ask us; “What was Berlin like in the 1920s?”

Click here to see our Flickr Photoalbum.

The Berliner Mondschein Tanz Orchester on stage