Berlin’s famed DIY arts district is facing another wave of change. After eight years of operating on a vacant plot near Prenzlauer Berg, the developer who allowed the alternative circus troupe Zirkus Mond to use the land has decided to take it back. Director Max Mohr said the group will move to a new location, noting, “It’s sad but we knew it was coming, and we found another place.”
From abandoned warehouses to a new home
Founded in the early 2010s, Zirkus Mond began performing in abandoned buildings before settling on the open‑air site known as “die Greife.” Over the past decade, the troupe, along with collectives such as Kollage Kollektiv, Jonny Knueppel and Mucha, transformed the once‑empty space into a lively mix of bars, open‑air discos and performance venues. “Here is where the magic happens, where you interact, where you can talk and feel at home,” Mohr explained.
Rising rents reshape Berlin’s cultural landscape
Berlin’s rapid growth since reunification has driven residential property prices up more than threefold in the last 15 years, squeezing out the cheap, raw spaces that once nurtured the city’s underground culture. The recent victory of a far‑left party in the Berlin state election, which campaigned on taking housing from corporate landlords and capping rents, underscores the political tension surrounding the city’s housing market.
Elva Lebrun of the Mucha association warned that losing spaces like die Greife threatens an essential part of Berlin’s identity – “raw and DIY.” Yet Spanish‑born artistic director Juan Migama remains hopeful, describing Berlin as “a very tolerant city, really open‑minded,” even as housing costs push many artists away.
Rules and resilience
Berlin’s often complex bureaucracy can paradoxically aid alternative groups. Interim usage rules allowed the association diskoBabel to set up on the land initially, despite relying on generators for electricity and lacking running water. “Germans have a lot of rules, it’s true. And because they have so many rules, they have rules that make these things possible,” Migama said. “You can be in a kind of grey area, but as soon as you follow those rules, they let you be.”
Mohr added that the lifestyle demands dedication: “If you want this lifestyle, you have to be very driven. It’s maybe a lot of work, but it is possible to do this.” The troupe’s relocation highlights the broader challenge faced by Berlin’s underground community as the city’s property market continues to tighten.
Original reporting: Appleton, WI News Feed (HLL/CB) — read the source article.
