Scala

The Scala in Berlin was a famous variety theatre that operated from 1920 to 1944. It stood in a building previously known as the Eispalast on Lutherstraße, now Martin-Luther-Straße in Schöneberg. The theatre was founded by nine businesspeople, including Karl Wolffsohn and aircraft industrialist Fokker. Jules Marx, a banker turned entertainment manager, led the Scala during its peak in the 1920s. It became one of Germany’s leading variety venues, drawing international stars like the juggler Enrico Rastelli and the clown Grock. The Scala’s golden years saw it host performances by Erik Jan Hanussen, who drew crowds of 5,000 twice daily in the early 1930s. After the Nazis took power, the Dresdner Bank withdrew support, forcing Jewish owners to sell. The theatre remained successful under new leadership, even performing for SS guards at Sachsenhausen concentration camp. Goebbels banned non-military entertainment in 1944, ending the Scala’s run. The building was destroyed in a 1943 air raid, and later demolished. Today, the site is a car park where the auditorium once stood. A plaque on Martin-Luther-Straße 14 marks the Scala’s history and the theft of its original owners’ property. Nearby, the former Horcher restaurant once hosted figures like Hermann Göring. The area reflects the theatre’s rise and fall, leaving only traces of its former grandeur.