The German-Polish Youth Orchestra invites you to a New Year's concert entitled "Musik ohne Grenzen – Muzyka bez Granic" on Saturday, January 17, 2026 at 2.45 pm in the Nikolaisaal Potsdam. The young musicians from Germany and Poland will be performing together under the direction of Kornela Szczepańska and Hannes Metze-Stuyven.

With a joint inaugural lecture, two professors appointed to the Faculty of Cultural Studies at the European University Viadrina in 2025 will introduce themselves to the public: Prof. Dr. Miriam Lind, Professor of Language Practices in Media Cultures, and Prof. Dr. Sarah Speck, Professor of Comparative Cultural Sociology.

The volume "Leopold Rankes Frankfurter Jahre", edited by Prof. Dr. Reinhard Blänkner, offers previously unknown insights into the life and work of Leopold Ranke in Frankfurt (Oder). The Senior Scholar of the European University Viadrina Frankfurt (Oder) and the authors of the volume will present the book, which was recently published by Vergangenheitsverlag, on Tuesday, January 20, at the Frankfurt (Oder) City Archive.

A record number of visitors crowns an extraordinary year at Frankfurt's Kleist Forum theater: 49,543 guests attended performances at the Kleist Forum and guest performances of the theater's own productions in Cottbus, Schwetzingen, Hamburg and Rome. In addition, around 11,000 people took part in workshops and cultural education programs.

The Oder-Spree district is introducing a baby welcome service for families with newborns from 2026. With this new service, the district wants to support families at an early stage and make it easier for them to start life with their child.

IHK Ostbrandenburg, owner of the collective brand "Eberswalder Würstchen", insists on Brandenburg regionality. The Eberswalde sausage factories at the traditional Britz site are to be closed. Against this backdrop, the IHK Ostbrandenburg supports all efforts by the Brandenburg state government to preserve the site.

Brandenburg Chamber of Industry and Commerce: Declining demand for personnel masks ongoing shortage of skilled workers / Targeted strategies to secure skilled workers in Brandenburg form the basis for economic growth – The shortage of skilled workers is currently only in third place among the economic risks for the Brandenburg economy, according to the special evaluation of the autumn economic survey by the Brandenburg Chambers of Industry and Commerce.

The stage is set for "Das NEINhorn" and his friends. On January 17, the theater version of the cult children's book, performed by the ensemble of the Uckermärkische Bühnen Schwedt, can be seen at the Frankfurt Theaterhaus Kleist Forum. The day before, the play will be shown as a morning performance for school classes and daycare groups.

How can freedom of broadcasting be preserved when public service broadcasting is increasingly being criticized - up to and including court proceedings? The 22nd Frankfurt Media Law Days on Wednesday, January 14 and Thursday, January 15, 2026 at the European University Viadrina Frankfurt (Oder) will address this key question.

For the 122nd time, cabaret artist Arnulf Rating and the Maulhelden team will present the weirdest show in town on January 14 at Frankfurt's Kleist Forum: from 7:30 p.m., "Der Blaue Mittwoch" offers an insight into what is raging on the stages of the Berlin and Brandenburg scene or flourishing in secret.