Performing Arts
Theatre, undoubtedly, was one of the art forms to endure one of the hardest blows in the past year since the world was engulfed by the pandemic. Spazju Kreattiv continued to partner up with individuals and theatre organisations to support the industry. Although, due to restrictions, the amount of theatrical projects that were on show within our programme was limited, we are proud to have provided a physical and virtual stage to performances which were of a high artistic and high production quality.
Far from straying away from controversy, the theatre pieces within our programme this year challenged their audiences, a proposition which bore fruit through the incredible impact that these works have had both in Malta and beyond. This is especially present in the case of They Blew Her Up, a play written and directed by Herman Grech which tackled one of Malta’s hottest topics which gained attention from beyond Malta’s waters.
Our second theatre commission for the year, Kaxxa Infernali: Explosions, a co-production with the rubberbodies collective by Jimmy Grima, also proved to show our dedication to providing quality theatre. This testament to artistic excellence re-opened our theatre’s doors in June 2021 after two-month forced hiatus.
Apart from these commissioned, Spazju Kreattiv was also at hand to assist producers in staging works in this uncertain times as was the case with the Christmas variety show Storjakanta, featuring new writing by Trevor Zahra, and the fourth edition MalTease showcasing the diversity and versatility of the art of burlesque.
Dance was also featured through the collaboration with ŻfinMalta on the project ŻfinMade featuring seven Maltese based, emerging choreographers who each create six new solo works with one of the company dancers.
As in the case of a great proportion of other pro – ductions, theatrical and dance performances were also streamed online on demand, allowing them to reach a greater demographic.
39
performances
5
PRODUCTIONS
3
Taħdita Teatru
3
Premieres
music
As in the case of theatre, the music industry was dealt one of the heaviest blows during the pandemic. Rather than seeing this as a hurdle, Spazju Kreattiv saw this as a challenge to bolster its support to local musical acts.
Within the 2020|21 programme, Spazju Kreattiv gave a platform to a variety of small local alternative acts which include underground mainstay Brikkuni and Maltese electronic musician and producer JOON. Joining these artists were the popular band The Busker who premiered their latest music repertoire with the new frontman.
hIn order to allow these individuals to reach more of their audiences, Spazju Kreattiv also provided the option for viewers to experience these performances right from the comfort of their own home through the option of the live streaming.
SongCraft, a young singer-songwriters programme produced in collaboration with Aġenzija Żgħażagħ, returned for a second edition with a live concert by six participants, which was live streamed and later aired on the national broadcasting station TVM.
Our ongoing collaboration with Electronic Music Malta further aided in our efforts to support the local music scene through their year-long programme of events which kicked off with the Circuits Festival which took place earlier on within Spazju Kreattiv’s programme.
This year also brought the start of a collaboration with the Malta Philharmonic Orchestra through the Contemporary Music Series, a series of intimate concerts hosted at Spazju Kreattiv showcasing contemporary classical music by members of Malta’s Philharmonic Orchestra.
8
performances
5
concerts
1
festival
Title | Start Date | End Date | Number of Performances | Language | Venue/s | Creative Team | Collaborators |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
September | |||||||
Songcraft 2020 Showcase | 2020-09-18 00:00:00 | 2020-09-18 00:00:00 | 1 | Theatre | Participants: Christina Magrin, Russell, Mireille Borg, Jolene Samhan, Klara Vassallo and Abigail Callus Judges: Alexandra Alden, Matthew James Borg and Alison Galea. | Aġenżija Żgħażagħ | |
October | |||||||
Circuits EMM’s Annual Festival | 2021-10-17 00:00:00 | 2021-10-18 00:00:00 | Main Staircase, Space B, Studio B & the Roof | Edwain Balzan & Luc Houtkamp | Collaborators: Arts Council Malta & the German Maltese Circle. Supported by Arts Council Malta – Investment in Cultural Organisations Funds | ||
November | |||||||
Brikkuni: Il-Ħajja, il-Mewt, In-Nisa | 2020-11-03 00:00:00 | 2020-11-15 00:00:00 | 3 | Maltese | Theatre | Brikkuni: Mario Vella; Alan Vella; Oliver Degabriele; Jimmy Bartolo; Kim Pepe; John Bartolo and Andrew Schembri. Edgar Allan Paul: Michele Benincasa; Mario Petraglia; Nil Ramos; Samwel Grima and Noah Fabri. | |
ŻfinMade | 2020-11-19 00:00:00 | 2020-11-29 00:00:00 | 4 | Theatre | Artistic Director: Paolo Mangiola Choreographer / Dancers: Rochelle Gatt / Felix Deepen Julienne Schembri & Deborah Falzon / Andrea Martin Albert Gaby Davies / Tara Dalli / Maria Concetta Carielllo / Simon Riccardi Zani Diane Portelli / Keith Micallef / Zoe Camilleri / Amber Van Veen Dramaturgs: Rodia Vomvolou & Thomas Schaupp Light design: Moritz Zavan Stoeckle Costumes: Julia Boikova | ŻfinMalta and Valletta Cultural Agency | |
December | |||||||
StorjaKanta tal-Milied | 2020-12-06 00:00:00 | 2020-12-13 00:00:00 | 6 | Maltese | Theatre | Joseph Galea, Trevor Zahra, Corazon Mizzi, Neville Refalo | |
February | |||||||
The Busker – In Transition (Live) | 2021-02-05 00:00:00 | 2021-02-06 00:00:00 | 2 | Theatre | The Busker: Jean Paul Borg, Sean Meachen, David Grech and David Jr. Meilak. Session Musicians: Kersten Graham, Matthew Pellicano an Cherly Camilleri. | ||
Contemporary Music Series Concert 1 | 2021-02-25 00:00:00 | 2021-02-26 00:00:00 | 1 | Space B | Musicians: Jenny Melville Oboe & Cor Anglais Daniele Galletto Clarinet Giacomo Cella Bassoon Daniel Cauchi Percussion | ||
They Blew Her UP | 2021-02-26 00:00:00 | 2021-03-10 00:00:00 | 6 | English | Theatre | Writter and Director: Herman Grech Actors: Alan Paris, Kim Dalli, Jes Camilleri, Charlotte Grech and Joe Azzopardi. | Co-production with Spazju Kreattiv |
June | |||||||
Kaxxa Infernali: Explosions | 2021-06-08 00:00:00 | 2021-06-13 00:00:00 | 8 | Maltese | Theatre | Co-authored by Jimmy Grima and the rubberbodies collective | Co-production with Spazju Kreattiv and the rubberbodies collective |
JOON Live | 2021-06-25 00:00:00 | 2021-06-26 00:00:00 | 2 | Theare | Yasmin Kuymizakis – vocals & electronics Ian Schranz – drums, percussion & electronics Oliver Degabriele – bass Cheryl Camilleri – backing vocals Rebecca Theuma – keys & backing vocals Michael Azzopardi – supporting act | ||
July | |||||||
MalTease | 2021-07-23 00:00:00 | 2021-07-25 00:00:00 | 5 | Theatre | Undine LaVerve, Henk Wolswijk, Gwilym Bugeja, BAM. |