Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/1124848
9 maltatoday | SUNDAY • 2 JUNE 2019 CULTURE ENVIRONMENT Most fish cannot survive big fluctuations in the saltiness of their water – they are either marine or freshwater. With well over 300 species occurring around our shores we are not short of marine fish, but lack of rivers and freshwa- ter lakes means total freshwater fish species = 0. What we have are a few coastal lagoons where rain and seawater mix to form brackish pools, which vary in salinity accord- ing to the amount of rainfall. The largest of these lagoons are at Għadira, Salina and Is-Simar nature reserves, and at all three sites lives a special fish that prefers still waters to choppy seas: the hardy little Mediterranean killifish (M. bużaqq). Our paucity of water bodies means that killifish are very localised in Malta, and for this reason some years ago this largely unknown species was declared our nation- al fish. Thanks to its 'elevated' status, the killifish is today legally protected, as are also the few sites where it occurs. Text & Photo: Victor Falzon 663. MEDITERRANEAN KILLIFISH Visit Friends of the Earth's website for more information about our work, as well as for information about how to join us. You can also support us by sending us a donation - www.foemalta.org/donate GREEN IDEA OF THE WEEK 563: Book your seat at: www.foemalta.org/film MADC will stage The Tempest as this year's summertime outdoor Shakespeare in the Pal- ace gardens. Malta's longest-established theatre company – the MADC – is set to continue its tradition of staging an annual Shakespeare play at San An- ton Gardens with a unique production of The Tempest. In keeping with the playwright's famed obser- vation in the play that 'hell hath no fury like a woman scorned', MADC's production will also feature a woman playing the traditionally male lead role of Prospero – or now, Prospera. "Women have been punished for being pow- erful for many centuries, and I thought that was the remarkable thing about changing Prospero into Prospera: you can bring in that history of female struggle," said the play's director Ste- phen Oliver, whose past recent credits include Amadeus, One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest, and The Memory of Water. "I love the fact that, in making Prospero a woman, we could present that history and those issues." Oliver has opted to take this idea a step fur- ther in this innovative production by making all the play's island inhabitants female, such as Prospera, Miranda, Ariel and Caliban, while the shipwrecked characters are all male. As William Shakespeare's last play, The Tem- pest tells the story of Prospera and her daughter Miranda, who have been stranded on an island for 12 years after Prospera's brother Antonio disposed of her there to become Duke of Milan. Prospera's magical powers, aided by the spirit Ariel, create a tempest that shipwrecks a nearby ship on the island, which included not just only Antonio but also the King Alonso, his brother Sebastian, his adviser Gonzalo and his son Fer- dinand. The play then divides into three adrenalin- fuelled storylines, in which Prospera's dicta- torship of the island is challenged, a romance blossoms, and a plot to usurp King Alonso is attempted. "We are very excited to be staging this new production of The Tempest as our Shakespeare at San Anton Gardens this year," MADC Artis- tic Director Marylu Coppini said. "After more than 80 years of producing Shakespeare plays in this beautiful outdoor set- ting, we are proud to still be bringing fresh and interesting interpretations of these classic tales to Malta's theatre scene." As well as being set against the stunning backdrop of San Anton Gardens, which even includes a water pool for the production, MADC's The Tempest also features a cast of fresh faces together with some of Malta's most well-known and established actors. Joining Kate de Cesare as Prospera will be Philip Leone-Ganado as Antonio, James Camilleri and Victor Debono as Trinculo and Stephano, Julia Camilleri as Ariel, Gabriela Mendez as Caliban, Michela Farrugia as Mi- randa, Matthew Ben Attard as Ferdinand and Edward Thorpe as Alonso. MADC presents THE TEMPEST by William Shakespeare at San Anton Gardens, Attard, on 29, 30 June and 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8 July 2019, with all shows starting at 8.30pm. Opening night tickets at just Euro15! This production is suit- able for general audiences and children aged six and over. Booking is now open, with tickets and more information available at www.madc. com.mt. Last play written by Shakespeare is this year's San Anton production