I refer to the editorial entitled ‘Smell of dead cat at opera house’ (June 14). The Arts Council Malta feels duty bound to clarify a fair number of inaccuracies in the editorial.
The editorial stated that the government “suddenly touted the possibility of ‘roofing’ the site of the old opera house”.
One can hardly refer to this news as a “sudden” announcement by the government since the possibility of roofing the site of the old opera house has been on the government’s agenda for a number of years.
References to this proposal were also published in the party-in-government’s 2017 and 2022 election manifestos. Furthermore, the media reported extensively on the public consultation held on this matter.
The editorial also claims that Pjazza Teatru Rjal “does not reflect nor satisfy the needs of performers neither their patrons”. Pjazza Teatru Rjal is one of the best-equipped theatres on the islands, boasting a seating capacity of 897 (plus up to six fully-accessible wheelchair spaces in specifically designated areas); the largest stage on Malta (measuring 19.45m x 11.80m); two height-adjustable platforms situated in front of the stage that can be used either as an extension of the main stage (when raised) or as an orchestra pit (when lowered); three fully air-conditioned and equipped dressing rooms; a fully air-conditioned green room that can be used as a lobby or as an additional dressing room; a mechanised fly system on stage; plus a state of the art sound system.
As to the needs of patrons, this requires little – if any – justification as the thousands of theatregoers that fill the venue every summer speaks for itself.
Furthermore, the editorial claims that “the government has thrown millions of euros into the venue to keep it alive for just four to five months of the year. Most of the productions held there are either sponsored by the PTR itself or come with heavy government or diplomatic sponsorship.”
Again, this information is not correct since, over the five-year period 2017-2022 (omitting 2020 during which no events took place due to COVID restrictions), Pjazza Teatru Rjal hosted 69 different productions (for a total of 118 performance nights) by 33 different producers, as opposed to 25 productions (for a total of 25 performance nights) produced by PTR over the same period.
As the editorial seems to imply that the Malta Philharmonic Orchestra has never performed at Pjazza Teatru Rjal, it is pertinent to point out that the Malta Philharmonic Orchestra (and its affiliate Malta Youth Orchestra) has performed 16 times at Pjazza Teatru Rjal over the same period.
While an open-air theatre can never replace a proper concert hall for a professional orchestra, the MPO performs regular open-air concerts during the summer months and Pjazza Teatru Rjal has been a regular venue for such MPO events.
Pjazza Teatru Rjal’s remit goes beyond productions in the theatre itself. Over the same period, Pjazza Teatru Rjal organised a total of 17 Iljieli fit-Teatru events (free musico-literary events held during the winter months in the theatre’s Green Room); five Pjazza fi Pjazza concerts (free rock concerts in squares around Malta); six charitable events by the Malta Concert Orchestra (the theatre’s own orchestra); two free Jazz nights in Gozo; and is currently carrying out a Young Composers’ Mentoring Programme (in collaboration with Aġenzija Żgħażagħ) as part of its corporate social responsibility.
The editorial adds: “The current set-up with its green plastic chairs and its worse-for-wear wooden soundboards are a far cry from the elegant white sails of Piano.”
Both the “current” set-up of green plastic chairs and the wooden soundboards are as set out by RPBW (Renzo Piano Building Workshop) architects and their acoustic consultants. The editorial missed the fact, however, that the “worse-for-wear” wooden soundboards are regularly maintained.
In conclusion, it is worth mentioning that the Arts Council Malta, together with the PTR, will be organising a series of fora in order to reach a consensus with all the stakeholders regarding a synergised action plan for the staging of performing arts in all the Valletta theatre venues which include – apart from Pjazza Teatru Rjal – Teatru Manoel, Valletta Campus Theatre, City Theatre, Ċentru Kreattività and the Mediterranean Conference Centre.
Christopher Muscat is the director of Pjazza Teatru Rjal.