THEATRE

Otto Settembre

A group of youths from Xagħra are tonight staging a musical titled Otto Settembre as part of the parish feast celebrations. 

The musical is embellished with original songs by Archpriest Carmelo Refalo and musical arrangements by Philip Vella. 

The story revolves around Rebecca, a Gozitan youth, who discovers the meaning of the eighth of September. 

The event is taking place in Triq il-Mitħna at 9pm. Entrance is free.

FEASTS

The following feasts are being celebrated today:

Our Lady of Loreto in Għajnsielem; St Bartholomew in Għargħur; The Conversion of St Paul in Safi; St Augustine in Valletta; St Dominic in Vittoriosa; St Joseph in Manikata; Marija Regina in Marsa and St Julian in St Julian’s.

FILM

Anime Festival

The Eden Cinemas in St Julian’s is hosting its first-ever Anime Festival, showing feature-length films of some of the most popular anime series of all time, including Dragon Ball Z, Demon Slayer and My Hero Academia.

All films are dubbed in English or are screened in Japanese with English subtitles.

Dragon Ball Super: Super Hero and Demon Slayer: The Movie: Mugen Train are currently showing.

For more information, visit the event’s Facebook page and the Eden Cinemas website.

OTHER EVENTS

An evening at Ta’ Sopu Tower

The fully restored 17th-century knights-era watchtower at Ta’ Sopu in the limits of Nadur will be open to visitors today between 8 and 11pm.

Visitors may also enjoy star-filled dark skies as the area surrounding the tower is one of the least light-polluted on the Maltese islands.

At 8.30, 9.30 and 10.30pm, there will be short talks in English about Maltese bats by a local researcher currently collecting data on bat species and their numbers on Gozo.

The event, organised by Din l-Art Ħelwa − Għawdex, is free of charge.

Summer Carnival

The Summer Carnival is back at St Paul's Bay this evening.

There will be a défilé of 10 floats along the locality’s main roads between 7 and 11pm.

This event is being organised by the St Paul’s Bay local council in collaboration with the Malta Tourism Authority. 

Bioblitz: Aliens Are Among Us!

Malta's first bioblitz, organised by the Interreg Italia-Malta FAST Project team, comes to an end today.

The ongoing EU-funded project aims to combat the introduction, naturalisation and spread of invasive alien species that harm biodiversity, a phenomenon that is particularly important in cross-border areas such as the Maltese islands. 

The goal of this particular interactive citizen science treasure-hunt is, in fact, to spot a number of alien plant species that have spread throughout the Buskett-Girgenti Natura 2000 site, or have the potential to do so in the future.

Observations will then be used to build a distribution map showing the locations of these potentially dangerous aliens. Once a map is finalised, it can be used for subsequent study and removal efforts.

A goodie bag, which includes everything one will need throughout the activity, as well as a few other surprises, will be given to each participant.

Participation is for free, to register click here.

The event is being held in collaboration with Science in the City. For more information, visit the event's Facebook page.

Pinta − Valletta Beer Festival

The first edition of Pinta beer festival ends this evening. 

Various local and international beers are on sale and there are beer workshops, food stalls, a children's play area and performances by various bands.

Gilbert Gauci, Wayne’s World and Muzzle will take to the stage tonight tonight.

The event in Triton Square, Valletta starts at 6pm. It is suggested to use public transport and the ferry services to reach the festival venue. For more information, visit www.pintabeerfestival.com and the event's Facebook page. 

Lunchtime tours at Palazzo Falson Historic House Museum

Palazzo Falson in Mdina is hosting a series of guided lunchtime tours until the end of the month.

The tour highlights objects linked to the Order of St John, but one may also admire the rest of the museum's significant collection that is specifically displayed to capture and reflect the life and taste of Captain Olof Gollcher.

Bookings at a suggested donation of €10 can be made by e-mail on bookings@palazzofalson.com or by calling on 2145 4512. One may also arrive at the museum 10 minutes prior to the tour, which starts at noon.

Gustav Café is open to guests for refreshments on the rooftop terrace of the museum.

Logos Hope in Grand Harbour

The world’s largest floating bookfair is open for one last time to visitors today, from 3 to 9pm.

The entrance fee for individuals aged between 13 and 64 is €1, while adults over 65 may enter for free. Children aged 12 and under may also enter the ship for free, as long as they are accompanied by an adult.

EXHIBITIONS

A Healing Journey: Redefining Environmental Challenges

An art exhibition aiming to promote minorities and the environment in Victoria comes to a close today.

A Healing Journey: Redefining Environmental Challenges forms part of a project which visual and conceptual artist Mary Rose Saliba is conducting with a group of senior citizens in Gozo named SMART.

The study is envisioned towards the self-discovery of dormant talents, as well as enriching the emotional well-being of minorities and marginalised people to help them integrate and gain their voice in society.

The SMART team’s exhibition features mixed media artworks that include samples of earth, soil, rocks, stone, dried leaves and tree trunks which the group have collected during walks in the countryside as part of the project.

One may visit the exhibition at the Banca Giuratale, Independence Square, Victoria, from 9am to noon.

An Experience of Colour Through Different Mediums

Artist Frank Bonnici and his son, photographer Kris Bonnici, are holding a joint exhibition at Gemelli Framing in Ta' Qali until tomorrow, August 29.

For more information about viewing times, visit the Gemelli Framing Facebook page. 

Learn more about the father-son duo in this Times of Malta interview.

Polymorphs

Claire Farrugia is presenting her first solo exhibition at The Palm Court Lounge at The Phoenicia, Floriana.

Consisting of works on paper, panel and canvas, Polymorphs shows the artist's concern with the fact that the online portrayal of imagery that the public consumes is often far from the truth; most of the time, it is actually a made-up form of reality.

The exhibition focuses on ‘human polymorphism’, with the subjects presented in a natural stance and with a filter using a mobile app. 

Curated by Charlene Vella, the exhibition also includes a section featuring the artist’s self-portraits.

Polymorphs is open until the end of August. Entrance is free. For more information, visit the exhibition’s Facebook page.

Read about the exhibition's concept in this Times of Malta interview.

Prehistoric pottery making

An exhibition presenting the results of a scientific investigation of materials and techniques used in pottery making during Maltese prehistory is open at the National Museum of Archaeology. The exhibition runs until the end of the month. Opening hours: Monday to Sunday from 9am to 4.30pm. 

The Gold of Malta

Martine Rigaud-Busuttil is exploring the art of lace-making through a series of oil paintings at the Art Galleries of the Malta Society of Arts in Valletta.

The Gold of Malta features sketches and paintings the artist created during a year she spent with the lace-makers of the society during the time of COVID-19. 

The exhibition runs at Palazzo de La Salle, 219, Republic Street, Valletta, until September 7. Opening hours: Mondays and Fridays: 8am to 7pm; Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Thursdays: 8am to noon and 4 to 7pm; and on Saturdays: 8am to 1pm.

For more information, visit the  Malta Society of Arts website and Facebook page.

Bellum in Mundum

After a seven-year hiatus, artist Tonio Mallia is presenting a new series of works that reimagine a world shaken beyond its tipping point, where the tensions between the human and natural world are no longer at play, nor are they creative or life-giving; they have devolved into a tyrannical order in which mankind becomes subject to its own freedoms.

The exhibition, curated by Giulia Privitelli, runs at MUŻA – Museum of Fine Arts in Valletta until September 11. For more information, visit muza.mt.

One may also read the Times of Malta interview with the artist.

Lost in the Ether

Nicole Sciberras Debono is presenting her first solo exhibition at Il-Kamra Ta' Fuq in Mqabba. She brings forward esoteric narratives of a domestic familiarity, with notes on online and para-social relationships, and the reflections of a young woman in a contemporary society.

The exhibition runs until September 12. Opening hours: Mondays to Saturdays from 6am to noon and on Sundays from 7am to noon. Evening hours are announced weekly on Il-Kamra ta' Fuq Facebook page.

Amelia Saint George works at The Phoenicia

Artist Amelia Saint George is exhibiting a number of her sculptures at The Phoenicia, Floriana.

The sculptures are in clay, bronze and mixed media, and portray animals, which Saint George is particularly well-known for, as well as some humorous sculptures that are more closely associated with her portrait sculptures.

Saint George, who has made Valletta her home, is an established, award-winning contemporary sculptor who has exhibited locally and internationally. She is also the author of several books on diverse subjects and holds sculpting lessons in her Valletta studio.

One may visit the exhibition at The Phoenicia's Deep Nature Spa until the end of August and at the hotel's reception area in September.

Willie Apap – Colour and Light 

A retrospective exhibition of works by Willie Apap (1918-1970), considered one of Malta’s leading exponents of 20th-century art, is currently on at Il-Ħaġar – Heart of Gozo Museum in Victoria.

The 70 works on display feature portraits, landscapes and still-lifes, dancers, human figures, sacred and ethnic works in oils and inks, and are accompanied by a lavish 100-page GEMS # 20 catalogue.

The exhibition, curated by Maria Cassar, runs until October 10. Opening hours are from Monday to Sunday from 9am to 5pm. Entrance is free.

The exhibition is supported by the Malta Tourism Authority and the Gozo Ministry’s Cultural Directorate. For more information, visit the museum’s Facebook page.

Read the Times of Malta interview with the exhibition's curator Maria Cassar here.

whatson@timesofmalta.com