Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/1122280
maltatoday | SUNDAY • 26 MAY 2019 7 THIS WEEK THEATRE their motivations, even if you don't agree; something that has been a challenge in writing this piece. It is easy to understand the motivation of the disillusioned Maltese patriot but harder to understand the Maltese imperialist, the profiteering mer- chant or the soldier who opened fire. As a dramatist I feel it necessary to humanise all the characters, focusing on their humanity in order for the political complexity of the situation to resonate. What was it like to collaborate with Simon Bartolo to translate the piece? What were some of the most interesting and sensitive linguistic and cultural elements that you ended up discussing and unpacking? This was my first experience work- ing with a translator in the theatre and I suspect I have been thoroughly spoiled in Simon Bartolo. The speed at which Simon works and his lin- guistic dexterity is hugely impressive, but it is the creative nature of our col- laboration that I have most enjoyed. He understands how to use language to best serve a Maltese story and be- ing a storyteller himself, he's appre- ciative of what I am trying to achieve from a dramatic perspective, as well as a linguistic one. I find the relationship between na- tionalism and language one of the most fascinating elements of Mal- tese history. It again speaks to me on a personal level, as Scots Gaelic was wiped out and forcibly replaced by English during the Highland Clear- ances. In Scotland, like in Malta, lan- guage can can be a contentious sub- ject because it is directly linked to an individual's sense of cultural identity. Discussing Sette Giugno with anyone in Malta, the significance of the 'lan- guage question' immediately comes about. For that reason, I felt a sense of responsibility (and I'll be honest, also fear) about my choices around how to use language in this piece. The challenge is that if we were to reflect history directly, the characters featured in VII would speak; Maltese, English or Italian, depending on the context and their place in society. Thematically, it was important to represent these perspectives and not shy away from the significance of the 'language problem.' However, I also wanted to ensure the story was ac- cessible and reached the widest pos- sible audience. Working with Simon, we quickly discovered how alienating a lengthy scene in Italian would be for a modern audience and so talked about the how to overcome this. The result is a show in three languages; Maltese, English and what we affec- tionately term, 'Maltalian' a theatri- cal language of Maltese with Italian influences spoken by the educated classes. Another important choice related to language is the character of 'The Multiplier,' who is based on a his- torical figure; the literate member of the village who would read aloud the newspaper in the village square. I was very inspired by the idea of a charac- ter having to tell a story aurally in or- der for it to be spread, or 'multiplied' through the community. Paralleling this, in VII the multiplier is the audi- ence's point of access to the story. He moves between languages, electing to use whichever one best serves the nar- rative. I like to think that this narrator figure speaks the 'theatrical language of the play'. His objective, like my own, is to make the story understood and to give it the breadth of audience it deserves. The multi-lingual nature of this production is just one of the elements that make it so ambitious and so I have been incredibly grateful to have Simon to hold my hand and problem solve along the way. VII (Sette) will be staged at Fort St Elmo, Valletta on June 7-9 and 14- 16, at 9pm. Bookings: https://www. kultura.mt/ Coloniser "I find the relationship between nationalism and language one of the most fascinating elements of Maltese history"