MUSIC
Soul Asylum Live in Concert
American rock band Soul Asylum is performing at the Aria Complex in San Ġwann on January 25.
Best known for Grammy Award-winning hit Runaway Train (1993), the band is performing in Malta as part of their Slowly but Shirley tour.
They will be supported by local act Kym Pepe.
Tickets from showshappening.com.
Valletta Baroque Festival
The final week of the Valletta Baroque Festival will see more varied performances. Highlights include:
A Musician Navigator at Tarxien parish church on January 21 at 7.30pm, featuring The Abos Project & Consort, directed by Bruno Procopio;
L’Estro Intelligente at the Manoel Theatre, Valletta, on January 22 at 7.30pm, featuring the Concerto de’ Cavalieri;
Samuel Mariño − My Voyage to Italy at the Manoel Theatre, on January 23 at 7.30pm, starring the Concerto de’ Cavalieri and Venezuelan sopranista Samuel Mariño;
William Christie’s 80th Birthday Concert at the Manoel Theatre, on January 24 at 7.30pm, featuring Les Arts Florissants; and
32 Foot/The Organ of Bach at the Casino Maltese, Valletta, on January 25 at 4.30pm, featuring saxophone quatet Bl!ndman.
The final event, BaRock, a fusion of rock and baroque classics, is being held at the Salesian Theatre, Sliema, on January 25 at 8.30pm. The Rock Troupers and the ProMużika Ensemble will re-work iconic pieces from Bach to Jon Lord and from Vivaldi to Pink Floyd.
There will also be a number of lunchtime concerts throughout the week. For all the events and tickets, visit www.festivals.mt/vbf.
Iljieli fit-Teatru
Now in its seventh edition, Iljieli fit-Teatru, Pjazza Teatru Rjal’s series of small-scale concerts, continues on January 20, with a flute and guitar recital by the Malta Philharmonic Orchestra sub-principal flute and piccolo player Fiorella Camilleri, who will be joined on stage by Italian guitarist Giampaolo Bandini.
The performers will be offering an eclectic programme that highlights the technical possibilities of both instruments.
The concerts will be held at Pjazza Teatru Rjal’s Green Room at 7.30pm. Tickets from ticketline.com.mt.
Musicians Fiorella Camilleri and Giampaolo Bandini. Photo of Camilleri: Claire Farrugia photographyRachmaninoff 3
The Malta Philharmonic Orchestra, under the direction of Sergey Smbatyan, is holding a concert at the Hilton Malta, St Julian’s, on January 25 at 8pm.
The programme’s highlight will see Uzbek pianist Behzod Abduraimov, known for his exceptional technical skill and expressive interpretations, perform Rachmaninoff’s lyrical and virtuosic Piano Concerto No. 3.
The MPO will also perform Ravel’s Pavane pour une infante défunte, a poignant work originally composed for piano, which evokes a sense of graceful melancholy with its delicate melodies and innovative harmonies, and Prokofiev’s Symphony No. 7, renowned for its reflective nature and characterised by its melodic simplicity and nostalgic tone.
Tickets from showshappening.com.
The Illusionist’s Magic Box
Tricia Dawn Williams is presenting a series of toy piano projects, the second of which will take place at the Malta Society of Arts in Valletta on January 25 at 7pm.
The programme, featuring piano, toy piano, electronic music and video projections, includes three new piano/toy piano works and three videos that will serve as the backdrop to the original music.
The Illusionist’s Magic Box is part of Toy Piano+, supported by Arts Council Malta.
More details about the event are available on artsmalta.org. Tickets from triciadawnwilliams.com.
Tricia Dawn Williams with her toy pianos.Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart: The Return
A recital of classical music by talented young musicians is being organised on the occasion of Mozart’s birth anniversary by the Associazione Mozart Italia Malta (AMIM).
The event will be held at St Patrick’s School foyer, Sliema, on January 25 at 7pm.
Entrance is free but donations will be collected to support AMIM’s activities.
Seats can be reserved on showshappening.com.
Classics and Origins
The St Julian’s Band Club AD 1927 is performing in a classical concert at the Radisson ballroom, in St Julian’s, on January 25 at 8pm.
The programme features works by Camilleri, Wagner and Bizet, among others.
The band will be led by guest conductor Roberto Beltrán-Zavala.
Tickets from ticketline.com.mt.
A Night with Neil Diamond, Adele and the Best of Country
Spiteri Lucas Entertainment is presenting a musical extravaganza featuring numbers by singer-songwriter Neil Diamond, acclaimed singer Adele, and country music, on January 25 and 26 at the Sir Temi Zammit Hall, University of Malta, Msida.
The band will be accompanied by singers Gloriana, Marisa D’Amato, Ludwig Galea, Michela Galea, Laura Bruno, Neville Refalo, Ivan and Krista Spiteri Lucas, Marie Claire, Rachel Grech and Josef Tabone, who will direct a children’s and adolescent choir accompanying some of the performances.
The musical arrangements and direction are in the hands of Mark Spiteri Lucas, with choreography entrusted to Celaine Buhagiar and dancers from Dancel Dance Studio. Ludwig Galea is the artistic director.
A Night with Neil Diamond, Adele and the Best of Country will be held on January 25 at 7.30pm, and on the 26th at 6pm. Tickets from www.bookingoffice.com.mt or by calling 9946 8429.
The singers performing during the show. Photo: Spiteri Lucas EntertainmentTHEATRE
Summer Lovin’
The Giovanni Curmi Higher Secondary School, Naxxar, is presenting its annual soirée, this time based on Grease: The Musical, between January 24 and 26.
Tickets from ticketline.com.mt.
Happy Chinese New Year Gala 2025
The Zhejiang Performing Arts Group from China is presenting a spectacular celebration of culture and artistry at the Mediterranean Conference Centre, in Valletta, on January 24 at 7.30pm.
The event, celebrating the Year of the Snake, will feature Chinese music, dance, acrobatics, magic and more.
It is being organised by the China Cultural Centre in Malta together with the Zhejiang Provincial Department of Culture Radio Television and Tourism.
Tickets from showshappening.com.
The event will include various performances, including acrobatics.Drusilla, Vedova Ingegnosa
The Carlo Gesualdo Da Venosa Conservatorio di Potenza, Italy, is performing the 18th-century work by Giuseppe Sellitto, Drusilla Vedova Ingegnosa (Drusilla e Don Strabone) at the Manoel Theatre, in Valletta, on January 26 at 7.30pm.
The intermezzo in two acts features a libretto by Tomaso Mariani.The protagonists will be interpreted by Gabriella Colecchia (Drusilla), baritone Gerardo Spinelli (Don Strabone), soprano and mime Noemi Sangiacomo (volpino) and bas-baritone and mime Mario Falvella (Sergio).
The Gesualdo Orchestra, directed by Cosimo Prontera, will perform live. Tickets from teatrumanoel.mt.
Mid-Djarju ta’ Student fi Skola tal-Knisja
Jamie Cardona’s one-man play continues its record-breaking run at Theatre Next Door in Magħtab.
Cardona plays himself and other characters in this show about his time as a teen at a Church school. Through his diary, the audience follows his mischievous journey while he questions the existence of God, what is right or wrong, and how to attract girls, among others.
Directed by Vikesh Godhwani and written by Cardona himself, the comedy tackles the insecurities of young Maltese people and the (very slow) process of growth.
The show is being staged until April 27. Tickets from fmt.com.mt/tnd.
Jamie Cardona in Mid-Djarju ta’ Student fi Skola tal-Knisja. Photo: Owen Michael GaleaToi Toi Babies: Around the Fire
The TOI TOI participatory theatre, produced for babies between 0-3 years, presents the second in a four-part series exploring the elements, this time focusing on fire, at the Manoel’s Studio Theatre in Valletta on 26-27 at 9.30 and 11am.
The production aims to ignite a sense of wonder and appreciation for fire, while including the importance of safety around this powerful force of nature.
Newly commissioned music is played live during the show and adults are encouraged to aid their babies’ participation.
Tickets from teatrumanoel.mt.
1881
Teatru Malta is presenting a novel work that blurs the line between theatre and game at Villa Bologna in Attard.
Set in an alternative universe, 1881 unfolds against a dystopian backdrop where the world teeters towards the brink of collapse.
The immersive theatrical experience allows the audience to interact fully with the story and the actors who bring it to life. Wearing robes and masks, the participants come across various storylines and are offered a myriad of options/circumstances that challenge their values and instincts.
1881 also offers a number of quests, further enhancing the sense of gamification. The production, which runs until March 2, is open to an adult audience.
For more details and tickets, visit www.1881.show.
Actors in costume for the show. Photo: Facebook/Teatru MaltaMISCELLANEOUS
On Found
The Victor Pasmore Gallery and Inizjamed are organising the second open mic in a series of three to celebrate poet and visual artist Victor Pasmore, on January 24 at 6pm.
In Burning Waters (1998), Pasmore asks: ‘What is the object over there?’ and ‘By what means can we know?’ This deep curiosity and interest in poetry led him to weave poetic verses into his artwork.
In this open-mic session, authors and creatives are invited to share works – whether created or admired – that are composed of ‘found’ things: observed, collected or experienced.
Glen Calleja is the guest writer for this edition.
All open mic sessions are free and bilingual (Maltese and English). Booking in advance is recommended.
The gallery, located at 275, St Paul Street, Valletta, will be open for visits, and conversations may continue afterwards over a complimentary glass of wine.