"BALLHAUS" Abandoned ballroom and bygone era in Germania.

Ballhaus abandonné - Scène et salle de danse ALLEMAGNE

Literally "Ballhouses", the "Ballhäuser" played a major social and cultural role in Germany, particularly in Berlin.

The Ballhaus phenomenon originally developed mainly from the end of the 19th century and reached its peak during the German Empire (until 1918) and especially during the Weimar Republic (Berlin's "Roaring Twenties", the 1920s) . Many of these ballrooms were located in the backyards of buildings, especially in Berlin, which gave them a more discreet and popular appearance. They were often richly decorated with stucco or had large mirror rooms . The Ballhäuser had several essential functions in social life, the primary role was as a place for popular dancing , all social classes were accepted, but not even the aristocracy... Popular couple dances were practiced there: waltzes, polkas, tangos, foxtrots, Charleston and, later, swing. Social Meeting Space , They served as a central meeting place, often less formal than theaters or upscale clubs. It was a place for socializing, flirting, and celebration, facilitating the mixing of different social classes. They included restaurants and tea dance bars in the afternoon, and large ballrooms at night, enlivened by Schlager or jazz orchestras. As heritage and historic sites , they have survived wars and regimes, retaining a period patina and serving as living witnesses to 20th-century German history.

Ballhäusers experienced a gradual decline as the Nazi regime (1933–1945) suppressed much of the free and cosmopolitan culture of the 1920s (especially jazz and swing), forcing some venues to close or restrict their programming.

The bombings of World War II also destroyed many historic buildings. The arrival of rock 'n' roll and disco music from the 1950s and 1960s marginalized the traditional dance culture. Young people preferred discos and other formats. In the following decades, many of these buildings, often dilapidated (especially in East Berlin, the former GDR), were abandoned or closed due to lack of profitability or renovation, and urbanization and gentrification replaced them.

"I consider any day wasted that I don't dance."

Friedrich Nietzsche

Magnifique salle de Bal à l'abandon - Allemagne 2021

The current development of Ballhäuser is marked by a trend towards heritage preservation and, to a certain extent, a revival as hybrid places, blending tradition and modernity. Although many have disappeared or been converted, those that remain play an important cultural role.

Faced with the difficulty of living solely from traditional ballrooms, some Ballhäuser have been reinvented, transforming themselves into theaters or performance halls with an emphasis on new and politically engaged programming. Many are rented for private parties, weddings, film shoots or corporate events, as their historic architecture and vast space make them sought-after venues.

There is a small "renaissance" of popular dances, although this does not translate into the mass reopening of old venues. The return of Swing and Tango and a renewed interest in dances from the 1920s to 1950s, notably Lindy Hop and Argentine Tango, are finding refuge in these historic venues.

We therefore enter the concept of Nostalgic Party : Thematic events (often called 20s parties ) recreate the atmosphere of the "Roaring Twenties", often in these preserved settings, helping to maintain the activity of these places.

In short, the Ballhäuser have ceased to be the sole center of nighttime social life, but have found a new vocation as places of memory, theaters of cultural diversity and event spaces, bearing witness to German, and particularly Berlin, popular history.

Souvenirs de bal et époque révolue - Allemagne 2021