For this year’s edition of Żigużajg, Teatru Malta is presenting a retro futuristic version of the 20th century masterpiece, A Clockwork Orange by Anthony Burgess.

This star-studded spectacle brings together big names like Jamie Cardona, Paul Portelli, Stephen Mintoff, Charlotte Stafrace, Monique Dimech Genius, Benjamin Abela, Mikhail Basmadjian, Isabel Warrington and several others who join forces with director Sean Buhagiar to bring to life a story that doesn’t shy away from pain, violence, disgust, darkness and linguistic acrobatics.

The text has been translated to Maltese by Wayne Flask to keep its original urgency while making it more directly applicable to the here and now of Maltese youth.

Alex is a violent teenager who, together with his gang of troublemakers, commits a series of hate crimes and some unsavoury acts which are quite shocking.

But just how far should we go in terms of education? Should the punishment be as extreme as the crime? How do we deal with such tough-skinned delinquents as Alex and his droogs? Can people become like automata, seeming to be as organic as an orange but actually functioning like a clockwork machine controlled by the State?

Stanley Kubrick’s film version of the novel was nominated for many awards and was duly applauded by critics. The Critics Consensus about the film on the Rotten Tomatoes website is that it is “disturbing and thought-provoking. A Clockwork Orange is a cold, dystopian nightmare with a very dark sense of humour”. However, Burgess himself didn’t like it, as he famously left the cinema during the premiere, saying it is “too violent”.

This classic in Maltese will be presented with a brand new soundtrack designed by Mario Sammut. It’s an exhilarating take on an already controversial novel which was infamously banned and caused a great deal of discussion. Larinġa Mekkanika – A Clockwork Orange is a Teatru Malta and ŻiguŻajg Festival co-production which runs from Thursday to Sunday at the Valletta Campus Theatre. Visit ziguzajg.org or call 2122 0255 to book your €5 tickets.