Lange Nacht der Theater und Oper

Robert and I at 2€ pizza on Erkstrasse

David Cassel gave me two free tickets to Lange Nacht der Theater und Oper.  This is a crazy night where you can take special shuttles around to 57 theaters in Berlin and see all types of theater, opera, and performance.  It all starts at the Volksbühne, which is a popular and well funded theater house.  For those of you familiar with the Bay Area, I'd liken it to Berkeley Rep.
There were tables set up outside with guidebooks and maps.  I grabbed one and perused possible shows we could see while I waited for Robert.  I selected 5 or 6 shows that were all on intersecting routes, thinking we would get to see at least 4 of them.  I really wanted to go see something at English Theater Berlin, but it was off the beaten path, and it would cut into travel time immensely, so I decided to forego the option.  Robert arrived and sat on the low, stone wall with me, pouring over the program.  "I really want to see this!"  He pointed to a show that was far off the path of convenience, near the Berlin Zoo.  "And this," it was near the Tiergarten.  They would take forever to get to.  We would have to take public transit instead.  But Robert really wanted to see at least one of these shows, and what my boy wants, my boy gets.  So after seeing CreativeHaus Berlin's theater smorgasboard (an excerpt from the Crucible and two other short scenes.  Everything was in German but since I was familiar with the Arthur Miller piece, I knew what was going on.  Everything else was a bit of a mystery) we took the Route 3 shuttle to the S-Bahn and started our adventure.
The guide on the shuttle had told us to take the S-Bahn to the Zoo, then get the Route 6 shuttle outside the UDK.  On the S-Bahn, there were rude bullies who ridiculed Robert for his laugh.  Robert has a crazy, exuberant laugh that makes anyone around him want to laugh, too.  I hated those rude jerks.  We moved to the front of the train.
At the Berlin Zoo, we made a wrong turn.  I knew we were going the wrong way, but for some reason, I didn't say anything.  Self-doubt?  Half an hour later, I had resigned myself to the fact that I would not be seeing LOFT but at least we had turned around and were heading the right way.  When we finally boarded the shuttle, we learned there had been a program change and the piece that Robert had wanted to see was cancelled because the actress was sick, so instead it was someone doing a solo from Chekhov.  Okay, fine, at least we where on our way.  When we finally got to the theater, we were informed that the next sow was not for half an hour.  At this point, it was almost 23:00, and the last shows at all the theaters were at midnight.  We decided to turn around, get on the U3, make it back to the Volksbühne and at least enjoy the afterparty.
Of course, with disrupted plans and uncertainty, some animosity and grumpiness occurs, and Robert, ever sensitive, starts to look like a whipped dog.  "Just let me be mad!" I snap at him.  "It won't last.  It's not a big deal."
We transfer from the U3 to the U2, where there are some rude and horrible rockabilly types talking shit about foreigners.  Is this the new Nazi uniform, the 50s pinup and greaser look?  Yuck.  The U2 stops at Potsdamerplatz and we have to transfer to a bus for one stop before getting back on the U2.  It's going to be a long ride back to Rosenthalerplatz and Robert and I are both tired, disappointed and made out of nails.  But at Stadtmitte, I realize that we can transfer to the U6!  Woohoo!  English Theater Berlin, here we come!  We'll be just in time to catch the midnight show of 10-minute plays that David Cassel is in!  We get there with time to spare.  The plays are so-so.  The acting is good.  The direction is good.  Both scripts, mmm, a little thin.
After, we hang out with David and his ukulele for a bit before coming back to my place.  Robert and I get home around 2:30 and sleep, finally happy with our Lange Nacht!