Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/1141804
THIS WEEK THEATRE maltatoday | SUNDAY • 14 JULY 2019 4 Could you tell us a little bit about your trajectory as a writer up to this point? How did you first get into writing, and what would you say were your main motivations going in? Tyrone Grima: Ever since I was a child, I had always dreamt of becom- ing a writer. I actually 'invented' nar- ratives with the intention of writing them up when I grow up. Somehow this dream was shelved. I actually ended up in a position where I had to put pen to paper in my initial at- tempts as a director in school pro- ductions. From there, I moved to writing my first plays for a more 'professional' setting. The first few plays I wrote were essentially an interweaving of different texts to create a new piece. I think the one in this phase that is mostly at heart is In Search of Simone in 2007, which dealt with the writings and life of Simone De Beauvoir, and which I directed for St James Cavalier in Valletta. The shift to writing entirely 'origi- nal' plays happened the year after, where I penned and directed the first LGBT play in Maltese, Michel. In the same timeframe (more or less), I published my first novel in Maltese called Celibacy and followed it with two publications of short stories, co- written with Justin Schembri. In 2013 I wrote Bep, one of the first LGBT novels in Maltese. Socio-po- litical issues, and their interface with spirituality, have always been my main interest. It was the need bub- bling up within me to express myself about these dynamics through narra- tives, some of which were addressed through theatrical writings, and oth- ers through the writing of novels/ short stories, which motivated me to write. What attracted you to Zayden, and what was the process of embodying such a particular character like? Jacob Piccinino: When Tyrone first described some of the events that this character has experienced, it was hard not to be attracted to him. Per- Playwright-director Tyrone Grima and actor Jacob Piccinino speak to TEODOR RELJIC about Zayden, an upcoming theatrical production dealing with homelessness in Malta An unfiltered look at "Working on Zayden made me realise how ignorant I was about what was happening just a few kilometres away from where I live" - Jacob Piccinino Teodor Reljic Jacob Piccinino plays the title character in Zayden, an upcoming drama dealing with homelessness in Malta and staged at The Splendid in Valletta