The first edition of Crickids Children’s Festival brings together theatre, music, storytelling, playtime and myriad other activities together in one venue. Johnathan Cilia speaks to Jon Mallia, the brains behind the event.
It can be really hard to entertain a child sometimes. Sure, sometimes it goes swimmingly and sometimes you just need to use a little bit of enticement/bribery, but the energy and curiosity of youth will always abound when it wants.
What is worse, however, is having a curious child... and nothing for the child to engage with. Inevitably, children will get bored and turn to the internet/video games/television, which will provide all the stimulation they need, at the expense of experiencing anything that is not on a screen.
Some might read books and some might go to Valletta in the evenings, but the options of stimulus can be quite slim at times and entering one’s own head due to boredom becomes an easy habit to acquire as Jon Mallia can tell you.
“I was an impossible child to engage. My impulsive mind raged on in myriad tangents all day long. When it didn’t, it dozed off. I was left with very little to show for my decade long scholastic crucible.
“A couple of ‘O’ levels and a dodgy school leaving certificate that praised my outstanding leadership skills, yet questioned the arenas within which I put them to use. It wasn’t until my late 20s that I discovered that I actually loved nothing more than education.
“However, I wanted to do this in my own way at strange hours and in odd settings. I’ve acquired a lot of business acumen and work ethic by running a tiny rap band for instance, the same rap band that spurred me to engage with literature in ways I could have never foreseen.”
To date, Jon continues to scour and forage the planet for sport, film, ideas, technology, cultures, books and amazing people to feed an insatiable appetite for experience and the knowledge ensconced therein. “If I can, through my work, broaden some children’s perception of education beyond the chalk and talk paradigm, then I’ve succeeded,” he says. Jon is, of course, known for his work as rapper and maestro with No Bling Show, besides being a recent children’s entertainment activist. This he does by taking his own experiences growing up and translating them into a drive to engage children positively. He played a large role in Caqlaq!, an initiative to battle childhood obesity and get kids moving physically. Now, he wants to do it mentally with a different kind of event.
“Crickids Children’s Festival draws together some of our country’s foremost child and family-geared initiatives in the fields of art, theatre, education, sports, science and more,” Jon says.
If I can, through my work, broaden some children’s perception of education beyond the chalk and talk paradigm, then I’ve succeeded
“There is a vast volume of activities one may participate in throughout the day, as well as a large spectrum of varying content. The ethos of informal education through fun, games and the arts resounds throughout, however Crickids expands beyond our usual demographic; we are promising children aged up to 10 and their parents a blast,” Jon says.
The idea is to mix a lot of different interests and tastes in one place, so as to introduce children to something they might seriously find interesting – and the parents as well, for that matter.
“More can always be done, however that doesn’t discount that a lot is already happening. We’ve seen initiatives make gigantic leaps and bounds forward in the field of child development. Żigużajg, Science in the City, the President’s Foundation, Ċaqlaq!, Street Smart… there are many initiatives taking place.”
No-one can argue that, seeing Valletta filled with roaming families during events like Science in the City or Notte Bianca isn’t heart-warming. Crickids, on the other hand, takes place at Tal-Virtu Castle, in Rabat, a location that Jon is particularly excited about.
“The moment the gate was drawn back and I set foot on the cobbled path at the entryway, I became a wide-eyed boy once more. My mind began to race and create images of how the space could be developed, as I grew more enthused simply by being shown around this 14,000 square metre gem of a space.”
The venue, in fact, boasts endless recesses and alcoves that will come in useful as storytelling sanctuaries, and for intimate shows to sprout here and there.
Clearly, Jon and his team have some very particular ideas for the space. “There are many attractions to enjoy at the festival, of course. But we are working with all 40 participants to create a synergetic experience. The President’s Foundation, Żigużajg, More or Less Theatre, reenactment group Anakron Living History, Maltese band Xarulu and a plethora of other great initiatives will be contributing their work to the event to ensure a diversity of activities.
“Adults should definitely feel free to participate in most of the activities available. Well, maybe except for maybe the facepainting,” Jon finishes off with a smile. “Then again, the artist has the Deadpool mask in her repertoire, so you never know, I might be tempted myself…”
Crickids takes place today at Tal-Virtu Castle, Rabat.
http://www.crickids.com