The Forbidden City. The theater of old memories

The abandoned theater of the East German military camp of Wünsdorf, city headquarter to the Nazis and then the Soviets.

25 miles from Brlin, the East German military camp of Wünsdorf, city headquarter to the Nazis and then the Soviets, was once home to 75,000 Soviet men, women and children.

Now ‘Little Moscow’, the biggest Soviet military camp outside the USSR, has been quickly abandoned after the fall of the Berlin Wall in 1989, the reunification of Germany.

Headquarters of the Soviet military forces in Germany, a city in the forest, aka the ‘Forbidden City, was firstly the Nazis’ underground bunker headquarters for the German Wehrmacht and Army's High Command, home to the sophisticated Zeppelin communications bunker that sent commands to German forces during WWII.

But this story is a long one. Six years after the formation of the German Empire in 1871, it was established as a military area of the Imperial German and Prussian Army.

The Red Army arrived here on April 20 1945, taking place until the collapse of the East Germany.

The Little Moscow was provided with every comfort and facilities for the pleasure and relax of the army, including a theater.

Now the site and the backstage have uneven surfaces, broken glass, debris and it is difficult to access.

Nevertheless there is still plenty of life: the echoes of the actors, the austerity of the audience, the creaking of the stage still float in the dusty air of this unique place.

That's why I would like to come back to visit it once again in order to get more involved with all his secret history and relics of life.

© Francesca Pompei - Francesca Pompei-The old theater-The last presentation
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Francesca Pompei-The old theater-The last presentation

© Francesca Pompei - Francesca Pompei-The old theater-In the backstage
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Francesca Pompei-The old theater-In the backstage

© Francesca Pompei - Francesca Pompei-The old theater-Behind the scenes
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Francesca Pompei-The old theater-Behind the scenes

© Francesca Pompei - Francesca Pompei-The old theater-The box office
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Francesca Pompei-The old theater-The box office

© Francesca Pompei - Francesca Pompei-The old theater-To the gallery
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Francesca Pompei-The old theater-To the gallery

© Francesca Pompei - Francesca Pompei-The old theater-Waiting for the show
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Francesca Pompei-The old theater-Waiting for the show

© Francesca Pompei - Francesca Pompei-The old theater-In the light
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Francesca Pompei-The old theater-In the light

© Francesca Pompei - Francesca Pompei-The old theater-Pink flowers
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Francesca Pompei-The old theater-Pink flowers

© Francesca Pompei - Francesca Pompei-The old theater-The last floor
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Francesca Pompei-The old theater-The last floor

© Francesca Pompei - Francesca Pompei-The old theater-Out of the public view
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Francesca Pompei-The old theater-Out of the public view

© Francesca Pompei - Francesca Pompei-The old theater-Rehearsal time
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Francesca Pompei-The old theater-Rehearsal time

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