German unity in a European light

The triumphal arch, the centerpiece of the park, was completely covered with a light projection of German flags light during the festivities marking 25 years of reunification. Belgian spectators no doubt approved; after all, the colors also adorn their country's flag.

By day, the arch tells of Belgium's founding in 1830. The 50-meter (165-foot) high structure was built in 1905. In Dutch, as in German, the park around the gate is fittingly called "Jubelpark," or Jubilation Park.

Dutch event manager Martijn Adema, from the agency "Vision Impossible," produced the eight-minute video that was projected onto the arch. "The biggest challenge was the sheer scale of the projection," he said. To ensure success, his agency fired up Europe's strongest video projectors.

Projecting images of Adolf Hitler and World War II atrocities onto a facade in Belgium was a bold move, but artistic director Matthias Zeckert believed it was necessary. The war, the origin of the partitioning of Germany, opened the show.

The Iron Curtain between the West (blue) and the East (red) divided Europe until 1989. The likes of Winston Churchill, John F. Kennedy and Mikhail Gorbachev flashed across the arch in a fast forward summary of a turbulent historical epoch in a divided world.

Later, the triumphal arch was transformed into the Berlin Wall, complete with watchtowers. But the oversized blockade was unable to hold back the "wallpeckers," Trabant cars and happy people that broke through in November 1989. Even Günter Schabowski's famous utterance: "As far as I know - effective immediately," echoed throughout the park.

The light show didn't shy away from showing problems, including the euro crisis and the financial crash of 2008. The message: Germany, and Europe, have only been able to persevere with toil and tenacity, with European Central Bank President Mario Draghi vowing to do everything necessary to save the euro.

The show stayed up-to-date by touching on the pressing topic of Europe's refugee crisis. Many of these refugees want to come to a reunified Germany. The crisis is a challenge for a unified and open Europe, where borders are now once again being closed.

"We didn't want to edit out the crises," says Germany's EU Ambassador Reinhard Silberberg. The goal of the show was to present the triumph over German division in relationship to other developments in Europe. "The celebration is our way of saying thanks to the people of Brussels, because ultimately we are always their guests."

The show didn't end with the light and video installation. International DJs also provided a musical experience for the crowd of around 20,000, with the tunes echoing throughout the European quarter.

With light and three-dimensional projection, even Berlin's Brandenburg Gate was recreated, although the triumphal arch was missing two columns to be completely accurate. For one day, it was Germany's founding that was celebrated in the Parc du Cinquantenaire/Jubelpark, and not that of Belgium. But Belgian spectators seemed to take it in stride.