Our projects bring culture to everyone’s doorstep, uniting the traditional vision of a Mediterranean life enriched by close ties to family, friends and neighbours with the island’s growing creative practices. Come to the capital to discover diverse themes at play in and around Valletta’s streets during our Opening Week.
Iljieli Beltin – Sala San Duminku Community Theatre
Għaqda Festi Esterni San Duminku aim to enchant with three vibrant nights of community music and theatre, including the partcipation of local popular alternative bands Brodu and Mistura, comedians Philip Leone-Ganado and Chris Dingli, and traditional Maltese għannejja.
- 17 January – 19:00 (għana)
- 18 January – 19:00 (comedy)
- 19 January – 21:00 (alternative music)
To book your place for these events, kindly email [email protected] or call on 79661689.
Każinata ġo La Vallette – La Valette National Philharmonic Society
On several days throughout the week, the Società Filarmonica Nazionale La Valette will live the festa with us too, with brass band concerts, in-house exhibitions and a lively atmosphere.
Brass band concert:
- 19 January – 20:45-23:45
Exhibition:
- 14 January – 17:00-21:00
- 15-19 January – 09:00-12:00, 17:00-21:00
- 20 January – 09:00-12:00, 17:00-00:00
Mużika ma’ Kull Rokna – around Valletta’s streets
Musicians from adjacent corners along Republic Street join together at the end of the street, after inviting pedestrians to jam along with them, culminating in front of the Court. Produced by Xarulù, this event promises to be a quick, lively medley of popular tunes, packed with modern and traditional instruments.
- 20 January – 11:30-12:30
Il-Ħanut – 81/3, Strait Street
Inspired by a collaborative project with Leeuwarden-Fryslân 2018, Poetry in Potato Bags, this poetry/potato shop will invite visitors to a space where only poetry will be ‘sold’, in four different languages. There will be workshops for kids, in which they will be able to draw and colour, but also learn ways to exchange poetry for more poetry – on the radio, in potato bags, in jars and more…
- 14 January: 19:00-22:00
- 15-19 January: 09:00-12:00, 16:00-19:00
- 20 January: 09:00-12:00, 16:00-22:00
- 21 January: 09:00-12:00, 16:00-19:00
Ħolm Butik
- Pjazza Ħelsien
- Ta’ Ġieżu Church/Sicilia Bar (landing between St Ursola/St John Str)
- Steps Street (Ġewwa Barra terrace)
Ħolm Butik is a contemporary tale about people’s dreams. The performance will use theatrical elements, including satire, to reflect on the diverse nature of people’s dreams, their ways of expression, and their potential to impact and transform the spaces they live in. Throughout these three 30-minute pop-up performances, artists will engage the local community in a process where theatre and movement come together, enabling the audience to become active participants.
- 20 January 2018: 10:00, 11:45, 13:00
Teatru Triptiku
- Valletta City Gate to Courthouse
- Republic Square, in front of the Bibliotheca,
- Valletta-Sliema Ferries area and Mattia Preti Square
Teatru Triptiku, directed and produced by Jacob Piccinino, is a series of short artistic interventions around the streets of Valletta. These will tie in very closely with the Valletta 2018 narrative for the year, and therefore act as a prelude to the Cultural Programme that would kick off on the same day.
- Festa: A few villagers represent competing bands within the cultural fabric of every village with its own band clubs. A brawl takes place during the morning march of the festa – as they face one another from opposite balconies in Republic Street, opponents decide to go head-to-head over who can throw the biggest spectacle and who can sing the best rhymes to ‘San Santu’.
- Tombla: At Pjazza Reġina, Tombla will literally magnify the main objects comprising this game (i.e. the counters, tickets etc.) and create a comic choreography played by a group of buffoons. The game that ensues will gradually transform into a physical race of who will obtain the final sequence of numbers, between the four buffoons, inviting the public to engage in a reflection on gambling, competitiveness and its baroqueness.
- Baħħar: Placed at Mattia Preti Square, this performance will attempt to create a mythos that is inspired by what we already know (e.g. the eyes of Osiris on the Maltese Luzzu etc.) and transpose it onto a more contemporary backdrop. In this case, the walls of the bastions, the walls adjacent to the sea and the walls of Maori will provide the perfect scenery for this spectacle to unfold. The target is to transform this space into an interactive, atmospheric site – one which the audience will be right in the middle of.
- 20 January – 10:30, 11:30, 13:30