What’s on in Malta and Gozo this week: January 5 to 11, 2026
Highlights of events in the coming days
Valletta Baroque Festival
Organised by Festivals Malta, under the artistic direction of Kenneth Zammit Tabona, the Valletta Baroque Festival is back at the Manoel Theatre from January 8 to 25.
Highlights from this year’s programme include Wonder Women, a tribute to the pioneering women of modern theatre in 18th-century Spain performed by Forma Antiqva; A Vivaldi Celebration, a selection of Vivaldi concertos featuring performances by Charlie Siem and Carmine Lauri, Anna Kosinska and Samuel Cutajar and cellist Maximilian Hornung, on January 17; and The Roots & Branches of Neapolitan Music, performed by the Arianna Art Ensemble, directed by Giacomo Biagi on January 24.
The main event will be Pelopida: a recently rediscovered baroque opera by Italo-Maltese composer Girolamo Abos. This piece will be under the baton of Giulio Prandi and will be accompanied by a Maltese creative team with Luke Azzopardi as costume designer and Anthony Bonnici as set designer.
Inspired by the life of the Theban general Pelopidas, charting his rise from exile to revolutionary hero, the opera is set against the backdrop of political turmoil in ancient Greece. It follows the general’s courageous fight to overthrow tyranny and restore freedom to his city. With themes of loyalty, sacrifice and justice, Pelopida captures the spirit of resistance in the face of oppression.
For more information and tickets, visit www.festivals.mt/vbf.
Piano recital by Sarah Vella
Pianist Sarah Vella is presenting works by Scriabin, Beethoven, Debussy and Ginastera at the Malta Society of Arts in Valletta, on January 6 at 7pm.
All proceeds from the concert will be donated to Puttinu Cares.
For more information and tickets, visit artsmalta.org.
Sarah VellaBeethoven & Mahler
Austrian soprano Elisabeth Breuer will join the Malta Philharmonic Orchestra, led by Michael Laus, in a concert at the Mediterranean Conference Centre, in Valletta, on January 11 at 11am.
The programme will feature Beethoven’s Ah! Perfido and Mahler’s Symphony No. 4.
Tickets from showshappening.com.
Soprano Elisabeth Breuer. Photo: Antje WolmFILM
Irish Film Days: Mrs Robinson
Spazju Kreativ is screening the 2024 biopic Mrs Robinson on January 9 at 7.30pm, as part of the Irish Film Days cycle of films.
The film, certified 15+, tells the inspirational life story of change-maker Mary Robinson: Ireland’s first female president, a pioneering UN High Commissioner for human rights and the co-founder of Project Dandelion, a women-led global campaign for climate justice.
The event is being held in collaboration with the Embassy of Ireland in Malta.
Tickets from spazjukreattiv.org.
MET Live in HD: I Puritani (Bellini)
The first new Met production of Vincenco Bellini’s final masterpiece in nearly 50 years is being screened by Spazju Kreattiv on January 10 at 7pm.
The Met assembled a world-beating quartet of stars, conducted by Marco Armiliato, for the demanding principal roles. Soprano Lisette Oropesa and tenor Lawrence Brownlee are Elvira and Arturo, brought together by love and torn apart by the political rifts of the English Civil War, with baritone Artur Ruciński as Riccardo, betrothed to Elvira against her will, and bass-baritone Christian Van Horn as Elvira’s sympathetic uncle, Giorgio.
The opera features striking staging by Charles Edwards, who makes his company directorial debut after many successes as a set designer.
The screening, which will have English subtitles, is certified 12+. Tickets from spazjukreattiv.org.
Soprano Lisette Oropesa as Elvira in the Met Opera's production of I Puritani. Photo: Met OperaSunset Boulevard 4K restoration
On January 11, Spazju Kreattiv is showing a new 4K restoration of Billy Wilder’s multi-Academy Award-winning film Sunset Boulevard, which celebrated its 75th anniversary in 2025.
In this ode to the silver screen, a screenwriter who develops a dangerous relationship with a faded film star is determined to make a triumphant return. It stars William Holden, Gloria Swanson and Nancy Olson.
The screening, certified 12A, starts at 7.30pm. Tickets from spazjukreattiv.org.
Gloria Swanson and William Holden in the 1950 film Sunset Boulevard.MISCELLANEOUS
English Comedy Special Malta: Tom Houghton − Deep
Netflix, Comedy Central and social media star Tom Houghton is bringing his new show to the Malta Society of Arts on January 6 at 8pm.
In a world full of relentless clickbait, online distractions and brain-rotting content, Houghton’s racing brain finally become too much for him. Leaving the Western world behind, Tom travels to Indonesia, where he plunges into a journey of self-discovery. He submerges himself as far down in the ocean as possible, while asking the most profound questions of what truly makes someone who they are.
For more information and tickets, visit artsmalta.org.
Tom Houghton. Photo: FacebookKutri u Kotba
Various writers will read excerpts from their unfinished, unpublished or lesser-known works at Kutri u Kotba, an event organised by the Jesuits’ Church Foundation and Klabb Kotba Maltin at the Jesuits’ oratories in Valletta on January 8 at 7.30pm.
Participants include Immanuel Mifsud, Rita Saliba, Nicholas Attard, Rowena Grech, Murad Shubert and Adrian Stivala.
Admission is free, but donations are welcome. Access from Archbishop Street.
For more information, click here.
Stand-Up Comedy in Broken English by Victor Pãtrãşcan & Radu Isac
The event's posterRadu Isac and Victor Pãtrãşcan, two of the most experienced and widely travelled comedians on the European comedy circuit are presenting a show at the Malta Society of Arts, in Valletta, from January 10 to 13.
Together, they deliver sharp, bold and funny stand-up that explores politics, culture, religion, identity and the absurdities of modern life − the topics people argue about online, but still laugh about together in real life. Their comedy doesn’t provoke just for shock value; instead, it asks questions, challenges ideas and finds humour in the chaos of the world around us.
Isac is known for his calm delivery, dry charm and perfectly timed punchlines, while Pãtrãşcan brings bold ideas, cheeky observations and occasional audience interaction.
The show is suitable for an audience aged 16+. More information and tickets from artsmalta.org.