Cowboys and Indians, together with a larger-than-life mouse, are taking over a community theatre this weekend as Teatru Malta stages its own take on the panto.
Titled Ħax-Xjuħ: Il-pantomima 60+, the two-hour show which opened yesterday at Teatru Metanoia in Luqa, is slightly different than more traditional panto fare as it is not an adaptation of a popular fairy tale. Besides, most of the cast and crew are over 60 years of age!
The production, however, rigidly follows the rules that regulate this theatre genre, with plenty of song and dance numbers and a dialogue that is replete with irony, sarcasm and double entendres.
“These elements are spluttered throughout… this production goes for a laugh a minute,” writer Tony Cassar Darien says.
And despite its title and mature cast, the show is aimed at all the family.
Philip Vella and Veronica Farrugia
The show features numerous song and dance numbers.
Ray Calleja (left)
“That’s the spirit of panto. We don’t have much of a family theatre tradition, so thank heavens for the panto!” he exclaims.
Mr Cassar Darien is no newcomer to this entertaining spectacle. During his time at the Manoel Theatre (he was first its principal and then its artistic director), he ghost-wrote four pantomimes but this is the first time he is putting his name to such a show.
The writer opted for themes related to the preservation of the environment and the “Christmassy values” of love and charity.
His story takes the audience to Ħax-Xjuħ, an old Western town which is going to the dogs. All the young inhabitants move elsewhere as they come of age, leaving behind the elderly community. The town’s fortunes seem to change when a famous Hollywood producer arrives in town to shoot a movie. But the old folk soon realise that the guy is an impostor. Soon enough, the Cowboys and Indians unite to fight off this “contemporary evil”.
Among the quirky protagonists are Fredu d-Dedu (Philip Vella), Xerriff (Emanuel Barbara), Chief Wirt Artna (Ray Calleja), Lola Lovey-Davvy (Veronica Farrugia), Feliċ l-Inforra (Guido Fenech), Sullu s-Sakranazz (Charles Vella) and Muċċu l-Ġgant, a role which sees comedy veteran Narcy Calamatta wearing a mouse costume.
No panto would, of course, be complete without a dame. Here the role of the colourful Rita Kalamita Dame is played by the ever-amusing Joe ‘id-Dulli’ Farrugia.
Mr Cassar Darien describes the cast as “a formidable lot”.
“They’re all household names skilled in stand-up comedy and possessing that confidence… they all carry that special charisma, required when you talk directly to people and get them to participate,” he said, adding that a strong audience participation is one of the musts of panto.
He also praises them for their dancing skills and stamina.
The show, directed by Josette Ciappara, includes some 25 song and dance numbers in Maltese under the musical direction of Paul Abela and with choreography by Alison White. Mr Cassar Darien notes that these routines require “massive energy” but all the cast members stood up to the challenge.
This production goes for a laugh a minute
Ħax-Xjuħ pays tribute to one of the oldest theatrical genres, which was inspired by the Commedia dell’arte and which emerged from the music halls in the early part of the 17th century.
“Panto has provided lots of boys and girls with their first taste of the thespian scene. Ħax-Xjuħ is a tribute to the genre that is so very old and so very evergreen. It has survived because it is very relevant to the true spirit of Christmas with its heart-warming winsome message urging us one and all: to be nice to each other,” Mr Cassar Darien concludes.
Ħax-Xjuħ is being produced in partnership with the Parliamentary Secretariat for Persons with Disability and Active Ageing. It will be staged again today and tomorrow at 6.30pm and on Sunday at 4pm.
For tickets and more information, visit www.teatrumalta.org.mt.