Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/1272935
maltatoday | SUNDAY • 26 JULY 2020 9 CULTURE TEATRU Malta have just pub- lished their first official up- date following the COVID-19 pandemic. You may have no- ticed that the ever busy Na- tional Theatre Company has taken a natural step back over the past couple of months, but that's what happens when one's forced to postpone all that was once programmed to take place throughout 2020 to safeguard the health and well being of their artists and audi- ences alike. "That is not something we are used to," says Artistic Di- rector Sean Buhagiar "In fact, playing safe has a subjective meaning here. Our ethos re- mains. Teatru Malta takes risks, and I don't feel we're playing safe with what we have in store, in terms of ar- tistic content." Teatru Malta insists that this is not the time "to gam- ble with public funds as we don't want to gamble with art- ist's schedules or pockets'' so much so that when it came to programming the rest of 2020, they decided to go for projects that could happen whether the pandemic persisted or not, securing some much needed clarity during a time of con- siderable uncertainty. That doesn't quite mean that Teatru Malta didn't have their hands full over the course of the pandemic, in fact they launched a number of initiatives and campaigns during this time to stay as ac- tive as they possibly could on- line with initiatives like Tele- Teatru, Kwarta Kwarantina, Bezzjoni and Theatre Depozit through which 24 applying artists stood to benefit from this emergency pandemic fund. Seeing a total of four pro- ductions get produced in the coming years, bringing work to over 110 artists and crew members in the industry, with a total of 20% of their annual production budget being in- vested in this initiative. "We focused on supporting artists in a time of need while still being true to our produc- tion-led nature. "The successful applicants are getting a much need- ed cash flow injection while guaranteeing them a job in the next two years. "It would have been easier for us to come out strongly with surprise productions, with the premise of regen- erating the economy or pav- ing the way for live theatre. However, I feel that this is not what our ecosystem needs, nor what our primary role is," Buhagiar said. "Shifting its focus to artists during these trying times for the arts and cultural sector, the National Theatre Company now looks forward to programming the rest of 2020 starting from this August with the return of pop up show Xilallu in Valletta in collaboration with Aġenzija Żgħażagħ and Studio 18. November will see an ex- citing collaboration with ŻiguŻajg Festival in the form of an innovative DIY Theatre production 'Alice in a Won- derless Land', a Maltese trans- lation of the play by legendary Italian writer Franca Rame. December will then mark the return of the beloved A Panto in the Dark series in collabo- ration with Spazju Kreattiv. The panto called 'Ġulbiena' will be transmitted to audi- ences through the radio, mak- ing this pantomime the first radio-play in Teatru Malta's history! There's a lot more left in Te- atru Malta's pipeline. Curious? For more informa- tion visit teatrumalta.org.mt, call 2122 0255 or follow them on Facebook for all the latest updates from our National Theatre Company Teatru Malta publishes first post-COVID update Teatru Malta has published their first official update after the company took a step back over the last couple of months due to the COVID-19 pandemic The cast of the panto 'Gulbiena!'. The show transmitted to audiences through the radio, making this pantomime the first radio-play in Teatru Malta's history Franca Rame