‘Xi Traġedja!’, showing next week at Café Riche in Vittoriosa, is inspired by Ancient Greek theatre. MIGUEL FORMOSA speaks with Lara Zammit about the upcoming production.

Xi Traġedja!, directed by Lee-N Abela and written by Jacob Piccinino, is a tragicomedy inspired by Ancient Greek theatre and informed by current sociocultural dilemmas. It is running at Café Riche, Vittoriosa, from August 11 to 13.

The play centres around the Mallia family – Iben il-Kbir (Eldest Son) and Iben iż-Żgħir (Youngest Son) with their mother Mary – who have gathered as per their deceased father Ġużi’s wishes to hear his last will and testament.

Miguel Formosa, a cast member of the upcoming play, said the socio-political themes that will be explored in Xi Traġedja! at first glance might be seen and felt through the choice of having Maltese characters in the performance.

“The typical Greek chorus in our play is transposed with three old Maltese men, such as those seen at your local village piazza,” he mentioned as an example. “Not to mention that the main subject is a Maltese family, Il-Familja Mallia, with Mary Mallia portrayed by Lee-N Abela as the main character.” 

Formosa maintained the first step for them was to create a sense of familiarisation with the audience through the characters.

“This drives us to question prevailing norms, striving to evade any perception of overt preaching. This will be brought even more into light with Ġużi’s last will and testament, as a crucial decision is to be made on who will inherit the family’s plot of land and what will be done with it once it finds its new owner,” said Formosa.

“Yet, as a personal note, I feel that some sociocultural themes are not just felt through such subjects, but they can be felt through the slight gesturing and layering of what each character believes, akin to Shakespeare’s Iago from Othello, embodying the enigmatic declaration, ‘I am not what I am’,” he continues.

The aesthetics of our production are based on those of the Greeks, not just the theatre texts but also on the sculptures, and even Renaissance paintings recollecting Greek and Roman times- Miguel Formosa

“Our first initial inspiration were Greek tragedies such as Oedipus Rex and Clytemnestra,” said the actor. “There is something very appealing about the fact that these stories were performed some 2,500 years ago, and some are still very relevant to this day.”

Formosa said the element of Greek tragedy on the one hand serves to demonstrate that the producers’ approach was rooted in bringing original work rather than mere imitation of these narratives.

On the other, he continues, Greek tragedy is made up of very strict rules, as Aristotle points out in his Poetics, such as that of the unity of action and unity of time.

“The aesthetics of our production are based on those of the Greeks, not just the theatre texts but also on the sculptures, and even Renaissance paintings recollecting Greek and Roman times,” said Formosa.

“The space itself, Café Riche, even offers us a dynamic platform in order to bring these ideas to life, with its interior mini-piazza facade that for us as performers gives us an ongoing playground and a space for exploration as actors.”

The actor said the choice to explore contemporary social issues through the form of Ancient Greek theatre was more of a stylistic choice.

“We’ve seen various beautiful socio-political works this year, all of them done in their own style and artistic choice. Therefore, through our story, we are able to explore such contemporary issues, but the style we have chosen is able to complement these themes and ultimately bring to our audiences a spectacle in which we hope will not be forgotten that easily,” he concludes.

Xi Traġedja! is running at Café Riche in Vittoriosa from August 11 to 13 at 7.30pm. Tickets from showshappening.com