MUSIC
The Three Palaces Festival
This year’s edition of the festival is being held from October 30 to November 3 across some of Malta’s most beautiful and historical buildings.
The programme, dedicated to Vivaldi, includes The Four Seasons of Buenos Aires − with Works by Piazzolla and Tchaikovsky at the Grandmaster’s Palace, Valletta, on October 30 at 7.30pm; Come & Sing featuring the Amadeus Chamber Choir and St Paul’s Choral Society among other singers at St John’s Co-Cathedral, Valletta, on October 31 at 7.30pm; Max Richter (1966-) Vivaldi: The Four Seasons Recomposed at the National Museum of Archaeology, Valletta, on November 1 at 8pm; and Antonio Vivaldi – The Four Seasons at Verdala Palace, Siġġiewi, featuring the Valletta Baroque Ensemble and soloist Stefan Calleja, on November 2 at 8pm.
The festival also includes a traditional mask-making session and a masked ball at Palazzo Parisio in Naxxar on November 3. For more information, visit www.festivals.mt/ttp.
Iljieli fit-Teatru: Keyboard Fiesta
Pjazza Teatru Rjal’s Iljieli fit-Teatru Keyboard Fiesta resumes tomorrow, October 28, with the most recent addition to the keyboard family, the synthesiser, in an evening led by one of Malta’s leading exponents of electronic music, Edwin Balzan.
The event starts at 7.30pm. Tickets from ticketline.com.mt.
Edwin Balzan. Photo: Facebook/Edwin BalzanKarl Fiorini’s piano sonatas
Pianist Christine Zerafa will perform Karl Fiorini’s two piano sonatas, from 2017 and 2021, at the Malta Society of Arts in Valletta on October 29 at 8pm.
The audience will have the opportunity to experience and understand these works from a structural and performance practice perspective through a series of demonstrations and brief explanations delivered by the pianist.
This will be followed by a concert performance of the two sonatas in their entirety.
This is the first event of a series of three concerts/lecture recitals as part of a performance research project funded by Arts Council Malta, which focuses on Fiorini’s solo piano works.
Tickets from teatrumanoel.mt.
Philip Johann Thimm live
Following a performance in March, BLANK is once again hosting Philipp Johann Thimm for an intimate gathering at Hideout in Pembroke on November 1.
Over the past decade, Thimm has abetted and instigated numerous musical explorations with various musicians in and around his home base of Berlin. He has displayed his talents as a multi-instrumentalist, composer and producer on projects ranging from his first band ABBY, his ongoing collaboration with Sascha Ring under the Apparat banner, various theatre projects, music for art installations, as well as big- and small-screen soundtracking.
The event includes a warm-up by local artist Fabricka and a DJ closing set.
Tickets from showshappening.com.
Philip Johann Trimm. Photo: FacebookSPMO Musical Moods
The SPMO Clarinet, Oboe and Strings Trio is presenting a concert at the Girolamo Cassar Hall, Mediterranean Conference Centre, in Valletta, on November 2 at 7.30pm.
It will feature musicians Alfred Fenech (oboe), Noel Beck (clarinet), James Zammit (violin), Mikaela Baluyat (viola) and Gilmour Peplow (cello).
Bookings from showshappening.com. Tickets will also be available at the door.
Teatru Rock: Journeying Through Time
A concert celebrating the 1970s is being held at the Salesian Theatre in Sliema on November 2 at 8pm.
With a line-up featuring Chris Grech, Lisa Gauci, Petra, Keith Zammit Mintoff, Jolene Samhan and Paul Bezzina, the show will bring the timeless hits of the decade to life together with a live band, led by musical director Edward Mifsud. The songs performed, inspired by or reflective of the era, will include iconic tracks from Pink Floyd, Metallica, Queen, The Beatles, Aretha Franklin, David Bowie, and more.
The narrative of the concert will be further enhanced through projections that will visually weave in themes that stood out in that decade.
For tickets and more information, visit https://tsmalta.com/events/teatru-rock/.
Teatru Rock is a Revamp MT production and is supported by Festivals Malta, Rock ‘N Malta, Visit Malta and the Salesian Theatre.
Lisa Gauci and Chris Grech are two of the artists performing in Teatru Rock. Photos: Lindsey BahiaTisbit
The fourth edition of the concert is taking place at the Aurora Theatre in Victoria on November 2.
Tisbit is all about bringing together young drummers with talented musicians and artists for an unforgettable collaboration. Under the artistic direction of Michael Camilleri, over 30 student drummers will perform alongside a full band featuring some of Malta’s top musicians, with special guest singers. These include Lara from Lara and the Jukeboys and former Eurovision Song Malta winner Michela.
Doors open at 7pm and free tickets are available from www.teatruaurora.com.
The event's posterBeethoven’s Ninth
To mark the anniversary of its first performance, Malta Philharmonic Orchestra resident conductor Michael Laus is leading the MPO and members from the Malta Youth Orchestra in Beethoven’s Symphony No. 9 at the Mediterranean Conference Centre in Valletta on November 3 at 11am.
The composer’s final symphony, featuring vocal soloists and chorus, was the first of its kind. Based on Schiller’s Ode to Joy, it celebrates universal brotherhood.
The musicians will be joined by the New Choral Singers, the Goldberg Ensemble and international soloists, including German mezzo-soprano Theresa Kronthaler.
Tickets from showshappening.com.
THEATRE
Min hi?: She, Revealed
As part of its 'Bring It Back' programme, Teatru Malta is staging a show which first bewitched audiences in 2019, selling out its initial run and earning a nomination for a Premju għall-Arti.
The eerie production Min hi?, starring playrwright Lee-N Abela and dancer Nicole Chetcuti, blurs the lines between theatre and dance
Following its original run, the show was selected and produced for Dance Festival Malta, where author Trevor Zahra further explored the piece’s physicality by translating its dark dramaturgy into choreographic movement.
The bilingual (Maltese and English) show will be staged at Theatre Next Door in Magħtab from October 31 to November 3 at 8.30pm. Tickets from here.
Lee-N Abela in Min hi? She, Revealed. Photo: Teatru MaltaGħażiż Francis
Francis EbejerThe Manoel Theatre is paying tribute to Francis Ebejer with a production dedicated to him on November 1 and 2.
The show is, however, not a biography of Ebejer, but it weaves a series of memories and thoughts about the playwright and novelist of the post-war period until his death in 1993.
The play features Davide Tucci and Sean Borg in the main roles, and some of Malta’s finest actors.
Peter Busuttil directs the production. Research, adaptation and script is by Marco Galea, based on Ebejer’s plays and novels, while music is by Aldo Spiteri and Mark Spiteri.
Għażiż Francis was first staged in 2007 as part of the Malta International Arts Festival and is being revived to commemorate the centenary of Ebejer’s birth in 1925, with the production touring various localities in Malta next year.
The production is dedicated to all those who knew, worked and argued with Francis: his actors, his directors, his translators and his students.
Tickets from teatrumanoel.mt.
FILM
Derek Deane’s Swan Lake in the Round
The Eden Cinemas in St Julian’s is celebrating the 75th season of the English National Ballet with a screening of their breathtaking production of Swan Lake on October 30 at 8.30pm and on November 3 at 3pm.
Derek Deane’s production offers a 360° view of one of the most popular ballets of all time, featuring 60 swans, exquisite choreography and Tchaikovsky’s score played live by the English National Ballet Philharmonic.
Filmed live at the Royal Albert Hall, the special cinema event includes never-seen-before overhead angles, giving the audience an aerial view of the genius choreography.
For tickets, visit edencinemas.com.mt.
Carrie (4K restoration)
Brian De Palma’s critically acclaimed adaptation of Stephen King’s terrifying novel will re-release only at the Spazju Kreattiv Cinema in a new 4K restoration on October 31 at 7.30pm.
The 1976 film is about a shy and socially awkward teenager who is constantly tormented by her classmates and dominated by her overbearing, religiously fanatic mother. When Carrie discovers she has telekinetic powers, her emotions spiral out of control, and after a cruel prank at prom pushes her to the brink, she unleashes her newfound abilities in a devastating act of revenge.
The film is certified 15+. For tickets, visit kreattivita.org.
A production still from CarrieYoung Audience Film Day Award 2024
Spazju Kreattiv is hosting a special event that brings young people together across Europe through film on November 3.
The day will feature simultaneous screenings of Young Audience Award-winning film Scrapper in cinemas in more than 30 countries, with a live stream and Q&A session from Lucerne, Switzerland, hosted by young people from the European Film Club.
The comedy Scrapper follows Georgie, a dreamy 12-year-old girl who lives happily alone in her London flat, filling it with magic. Out of nowhere, her estranged father turns up and forces her to confront reality.
A highlight of the day will be the exclusive reveal of the three nominated films for this year’s European Young Audience Award and everyone attending will have the chance to apply to join the jury of 99 young people to choose the winning film.
The event is open strictly to 12- to 19-year-olds. For more information and how to attend, visit kreattivita.org.
MISCELLANEOUS
Rabat Sacrum
A weekend of activities celebrating culture and history in Rabat is being held on November 2 and 3.
The event will kick off on November 2 at 6.30pm with an opening ceremony and a march by the 1st Rabat Scout Group and Rabat Girl Guides. It will be followed by various concerts in various chapels, churches and at landmarks around the town.
Activities on November 3 start at 9am, and will include historical re-enactments, a treasure hunt, folklore singing and various concerts.
Rabat Sacrum will come to an end with a funeral re-enactment which will start at St Francis church at 5pm.
For all the details, visit the event's Facebook page.