ROSETTA DEBATTISTA speaks to Lara Zammit about the series of performances and workshops based on Richard Alfieri’s Six Dance Lessons in Six Weeks.
Teatru Salesjan is spearheading their latest initiative SIX with a focus on the elderly community.
The initiative encompasses the performances of Six Dance Lessons in Six Weeks – a play by the American playwright Richard Alfieri, along with a series of dance workshops for people aged 60 and over.
The performances of Six Dance Lessons in Six Weeks will be hosted within the setting of Palazzo Parisio in Naxxar on November 11, 12 and 13 at 7.30pm.
Based on the theatre’s commitment to be ‘at the heart of its community’, the dance workshops will be held every Thursday morning between November and December across community and parish halls, starting November 10, with a new dance style being introduced every week.
“Teatru Salesjan continues to promote the elderly’s rights to enjoy culture, to enhance their quality of life and promote active ageing through projects and events throughout the year,” says Rosette Debattista, Teatru Salesjan’s artistic consultant.
Six Dance Lessons in Six Weeks is a two-hander theatre piece. Directed by Irene Christ, the actors Monica Attard and Joe Azzopardi will take audiences through their journey within the surroundings of Palazzo Parisio.
Joe Azzopardi (Michael Minetti)In the story, an elderly widow (Lily Harrison, played by Attard) hires a dance instructor (Michael Minetti, played by Azzopardi) to give her six dance lessons at home. Coming from very different social backgrounds, their rapport is dynamic and antagonistic at first, soon developing into a rare friendship.
“The piece itself was the inspiration behind the accompanying dance sessions for the older years,” says Debattista.
The piece itself was the inspiration behind the accompanying dance sessions for the older years
“As the protagonist reaches out to a dance coach to offer herself the experience to dance, to hear, to remember, so too do the dance workshops hope to revive the joy of dance, when perhaps these is less opportunity out there for the older generations.”
The elderly community is encouraged to participate in dance workshops alongside dance coach Pamela Kerr and her facilitators. The workshops include selections of music by Neils Plottard.
Monica Attard (Lily Harrison)“These six dance events aim to remind the older generations of the beauty of dance, of movement and joy. Styles move from jazz to swing and the cha-cha – tunes that enliven the soul and waken the body,” she says.
Debattista notes that the theatre remains committed to reaching out to this hardest-hit segment of society, especially in these last few years.
Six Dance Lessons in Six Weeks will take place at Palazzo Parisio in Naxxar on November 11, 12 and 13 at 7.30pm. Special offers are available for Senior Card holders.
Dance workshops are taking place between 9.30 and 11am on November 10 at The Imperial, Sliema; November 17 at the Youth Centre, Vittoriosa; November 24 at the Imperial, Sliema; December 1 at the Ċentru Parrokkjali, Sala San Ġwann Bosco, Mellieħa; December 8 at Sala Santa Rita, Birżebbuġa, and on December 15 at the Youth Centre, Vittoriosa. Participation fee is €6 per workshop.
Tickets for the performances and workshops are available at showshappening.com/Teatru-Salesjan/SIX-Dance-Workshops or by calling 7799 7000.
Teatru Salesjan is supported by the ADRC Trust and the BOV Joseph Calleja Foundation. SIX is organised with the support of Arts Council Malta, the Faculty for Social Wellbeing, Palazzo Parisio and The Imperial, Sliema.