Category: All the world’s a stage

Hope springs eternal … 

He sits and prays

For world peace?

A life-changing lottery win?

A crust to eat? 

Or just for the hell of it?

Who really knows?

The Stage

This is part of a continuing series of photos taken of a wall outside the main entrance to Bahnhof Zoo rail station, Berlin.

From “As You Like It” by William Shakespeare

All the world’s a stage,

And all the men and women merely players;

They have their exits and their entrances;

And one man in his time plays many parts.

Image Gallery

Image Quality

Please excuse the quality of the images, but for safety’s sake I’ve started using my iPhone for this project, because despite the belief that they are the world’s most tolerant culture, the people here in Berlin can become quite aggressive if they believe that their rights have been violated.

And despite all appearances to the contrary, this person doesn’t exist.

• Prayer
• Shadow Play
• It’s a dog’s life
• The Stage – Man Waiting – Video
• Behind the Scenes
• The demon drink
• The Stage – Video introduction
• A clean sweep
• Back to reality
• Morbid interest
• The Bicycle and the Bottle
• The Pedestrian
• The Poster
• The Stage

© Andrew James Kirkwood – 2024

Introduction

The stage is empty, having run out of fresh material the headline act has finally left, with the audience gone, peace reigns at last.

But what’s this?

A troupe of wandering urban bit-players has invaded the arena and is putting on an impromptu performance of its latest hit: “Real life is but a shadow of reality”.

It’s a challenging work. dark and mysterious under a contrasting bright sun, a giddying pantomime of movement, posing more questions than it answers.

The Stage

This is part of a continuing series of photos taken of a wall outside the main entrance to Bahnhof Zoo rail station, Berlin.

From “As You Like It” by William Shakespeare

All the world’s a stage,

And all the men and women merely players;

They have their exits and their entrances;

And one man in his time plays many parts.

Image Gallery

And one man in his time plays many parts

They have their exits and their entrances

And all the men and women merely players

Image Quality

Please excuse the dreadful quality of the images, but for safety’s sake I’ve started using my old iPhone for this project, because despite the belief that they are the world’s most tolerant culture, the people here in Berlin can be quite aggressive sometimes if they believe that their rights have been violated.

• Prayer
• Shadow Play
• It’s a dog’s life
• The Stage – Man Waiting – Video
• Behind the Scenes
• The demon drink
• The Stage – Video introduction
• A clean sweep
• Back to reality
• Morbid interest
• The Bicycle and the Bottle
• The Pedestrian
• The Poster
• The Stage

© Andrew James Kirkwood – 2024

Introduction

With all this drama, even man’s best friend tries to get in on the act.

Dragged out for a walk, there’s not much to see or do here for our four legged friend, except maybe to have a good scratch.

The Stage

This is part of a continuing series of photos taken of a wall outside the main entrance to Bahnhof Zoo rail station, Berlin.

From “As You Like It” by William Shakespeare

All the world’s a stage,

And all the men and women merely players;

They have their exits and their entrances;

And one man in his time plays many parts.

Image Gallery

And one man in his time plays many parts

They have their exits and their entrances

And all the men and women merely players

Image Quality

Please excuse the dreadful quality of the images, but for safety’s sake I’ve started using my old iPhone for this project, because despite the belief that they are the world’s most tolerant culture, the people here in Berlin can be quite aggressive sometimes if they believe that their rights have been violated.

• Prayer
• Shadow Play
• It’s a dog’s life
• The Stage – Man Waiting – Video
• Behind the Scenes
• The demon drink
• The Stage – Video introduction
• A clean sweep
• Back to reality
• Morbid interest
• The Bicycle and the Bottle
• The Pedestrian
• The Poster
• The Stage

© Andrew James Kirkwood – 2024

Click on image to watch

Or watch here: https://youtu.be/IobSIctqzGY

The Stage

This is part of a continuing series of photos taken of a wall outside the main entrance to Bahnhof Zoo rail station, Berlin.

This is a video to accompany the The Stage project.

YouTube

Visit channel here . . .

Image Quality

Please excuse the dreadful quality, but for safety’s sake I’ve started using my old iPhone for this project, because despite the belief that they are the world’s most tolerant culture, the people here in Berlin can be quite aggressive sometimes if they believe that their rights have been violated.

• Prayer
• Shadow Play
• It’s a dog’s life
• The Stage – Man Waiting – Video
• Behind the Scenes
• The demon drink
• The Stage – Video introduction
• A clean sweep
• Back to reality
• Morbid interest
• The Bicycle and the Bottle
• The Pedestrian
• The Poster
• The Stage

© Andrew James Kirkwood – 2024

Introduction

The curtain rises, a hush falls over the gathered crowd, from the wings a lone voice can be heard:

All the world’s a stage,

And all the men and women merely players;

They have their exits and their entrances;

And one man in his time plays many parts.

The magic begins . . .

Behind the scenes

Have you ever wondered about the effort that goes into such a production?

The set design, the attention to detail, the constant improvisation.

And yet it all looks so authentic.

This is the stage as it really is.

The Stage

This is part of a continuing series of photos taken of a wall outside the main entrance to Bahnhof Zoo rail station, Berlin.

Image Gallery

As seen from the front row

As seen from the back row

As seen from the wings

• Prayer
• Shadow Play
• It’s a dog’s life
• The Stage – Man Waiting – Video
• Behind the Scenes
• The demon drink
• The Stage – Video introduction
• A clean sweep
• Back to reality
• Morbid interest
• The Bicycle and the Bottle
• The Pedestrian
• The Poster
• The Stage

© Andrew James Kirkwood – 2024

Introduction

Another case for the emergency services.

But it is said that everyone is just one or two personal crises away from living on the street, becoming homeless, and once there it is extremely difficult to escape, and on average homeless people die at just 44 years of age.

Under those circumstances who wouldn’t want to dull the senses with substance abuse?

You can help

Berliner Obdacklosenhilfe
Caritas Berlin

The Stage

This is part of a continuing series of photos taken of a wall outside the main entrance to Bahnhof Zoo rail station, Berlin.

From “As You Like It” by William Shakespeare

All the world’s a stage,

And all the men and women merely players;

They have their exits and their entrances;

And one man in his time plays many parts.

Image Gallery

And one man in his time plays many parts

They have their exits and their entrances

And all the men and women merely players

• Prayer
• Shadow Play
• It’s a dog’s life
• The Stage – Man Waiting – Video
• Behind the Scenes
• The demon drink
• The Stage – Video introduction
• A clean sweep
• Back to reality
• Morbid interest
• The Bicycle and the Bottle
• The Pedestrian
• The Poster
• The Stage

© Andrew James Kirkwood – 2024

Click on image to watch

Or watch here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EoxKRDRKCEQ

The Stage

This is part of a continuing series of photos taken of a wall outside the main entrance to Bahnhof Zoo rail station, Berlin.

This is a video to accompany the The Stage project.

YouTube

Visit channel here . . .

• Prayer
• Shadow Play
• It’s a dog’s life
• The Stage – Man Waiting – Video
• Behind the Scenes
• The demon drink
• The Stage – Video introduction
• A clean sweep
• Back to reality
• Morbid interest
• The Bicycle and the Bottle
• The Pedestrian
• The Poster
• The Stage

© Andrew James Kirkwood – 2024

Introduction

A BVG cleaner symbolically removes all traces of previous events, the ramshackle narrative can now continue anew.

But clouds appear to be gathering, is it the quiet before the storm?

The Stage

This is part of a continuing series of photos taken of a wall outside the main entrance to Bahnhof Zoo rail station, Berlin.

From “As You Like It” by William Shakespeare

All the world’s a stage,

And all the men and women merely players;

They have their exits and their entrances;

And one man in his time plays many parts.

Image Gallery

And all the men and women merely players

They have their exits and their entrances

And one man in his time plays many parts

• Prayer
• Shadow Play
• It’s a dog’s life
• The Stage – Man Waiting – Video
• Behind the Scenes
• The demon drink
• The Stage – Video introduction
• A clean sweep
• Back to reality
• Morbid interest
• The Bicycle and the Bottle
• The Pedestrian
• The Poster
• The Stage

© Andrew James Kirkwood – 2024

Introduction

The poster now gone, together with any interest in the recently deceased, the location slowly returns to normal, a reigning atmosphere of calm, almost as though it were an intermission in proceedings.

The Stage

This is part of a continuing series of photos taken of a wall outside the main entrance to Bahnhof Zoo rail station, Berlin.

From “As You Like It” by William Shakespeare

All the world’s a stage,

And all the men and women merely players;

They have their exits and their entrances;

And one man in his time plays many parts.

Image Gallery

And all the men and women merely players

They have their exits and their entrances

And one man in his time plays many parts

• Prayer
• Shadow Play
• It’s a dog’s life
• The Stage – Man Waiting – Video
• Behind the Scenes
• The demon drink
• The Stage – Video introduction
• A clean sweep
• Back to reality
• Morbid interest
• The Bicycle and the Bottle
• The Pedestrian
• The Poster
• The Stage

© Andrew James Kirkwood – 2024

Introduction

The untimely demise of one of Berlin’s elderly citizens continues to attract interest from passersby and those with time on their hands.

The Stage

This is part of a continuing series of photos taken of a wall outside the main entrance to Bahnhof Zoo rail station, Berlin.

From “As You Like It” by William Shakespeare

All the world’s a stage,

And all the men and women merely players;

They have their exits and their entrances;

And one man in his time plays many parts.

Image Gallery

And all the men and women merely players

They have their exits and their entrances

And one man in his time plays many parts

• Prayer
• Shadow Play
• It’s a dog’s life
• The Stage – Man Waiting – Video
• Behind the Scenes
• The demon drink
• The Stage – Video introduction
• A clean sweep
• Back to reality
• Morbid interest
• The Bicycle and the Bottle
• The Pedestrian
• The Poster
• The Stage

© Andrew James Kirkwood – 2024