Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/1513303
maltatoday | SUNDAY • 17 DECEMBER 2023 4 THEATRE How a call for honest entertainment changed theatre in Malta forever ANYONE who has visited Teat- ru Manoel in the city of Valletta is sure to feel enamoured and in awe of the history that the build- ing holds and the beauty of the interior, and of course by the tal- ent on the stage. Teatru Manoel is one of Europe's oldest working theatres that holds a long and rich history that features operas, plagues, restoration, wars, com- edies, and so much more. But do you know just how old it is, really? And how it came to be the icon- ic theatre venue that it is today? Let's dive in. Just under three centuries ago, a deed was signed to have some houses, owned by the Priory of Navarre, purchased and convert- ed into a public theatre. This deci- sion was made by the Grand Mas- ter Antonio Manoel de Vilhena, and over many years, the building has been transformed into what we now know as Teatru Manoel in Valletta. Grand Master Anto- nio Manoel de Vilhena invested significantly in the island of Mal- ta, such as by restoring the city of Mdina and building the iconic Pallazzo Parisio. But of all his con- tributions, arguably his best deci- sion was to have a theatre built in the heart of Valletta. The year was 1731, and the Knights of the Order of St. John were still resident on the islands. Most theatre performances at this time would take place within the grand halls of their auberg- es. These performances were only accessible to men, as many Knights had reportedly been getting themselves into, ahem, "trouble" when mingling with lo- cal women at carnivals and other street theatre events. However, de Vilhena was keen to establish a tradition of theatre-going that was accessible to all members of the Maltese public. The mission statement for the theatre, then named Teatro Pubblico, was "Ad honestam populi oblectationem" which translates roughly to "for the honest recreation of the peo- ple". Believe it or not, the construc- tion of the Teatro Pubblico took just 10 months and was handled by Maltese architects Francesco Zerafa and Antonio Azzopardi. The theatre officially opened on the 19th of January 1732, with a performance of the tragedy Mérope by Italian playwright and art critic Sciopone Maffei. Over the next 50 years, the Teatro Pubblico would host a variety of tragedies, comedies, and operas staged by both local and visiting performers, as well as many pop- ular masked balls and dances. Then towards the end of the 18th Century, the French took control of the Maltese islands. Malta-born French composer Nicolas Isouard became the the- atre's director and used this as an opportunity to have many of his operas premiered there. Short- ly after, Malta was occupied by the British, and this was a period of intense change for the Teatro Pubblico. It was renamed to Real Teatro de Malta, also sometimes referred to as Teatro Real. In the year 1812, Sir George Whitmore raised the theatre's ceiling and proscenium arch, add- ed the gallery and eight additional boxes, and created the iconic 'oval' shape of the theatre's auditorium. Shortly after this, Teatro Reale fell into a period of disuse follow- ing a bout of the Bubonic plague hitting the streets. At this time, people who did not have a home or a place to live could pay a small fee of a few pennies to sleep in one of the theatre's boxes overnight. Some decades later, the Royal Opera House was constructed in Strada Real, Valletta. Because of this, the Real Teatro de Mal- ta's name was finally changed to the Manoel Theatre. During the early 20th Century, the Manoel Theatre was occasionally used as a cinema, and during the Second World War, it served as shelter from several bombings directed at the island. Moving on to the year 1956, the theatre was given a well-needed refurbishment after such a long time in disuse, and it officially re- opened in December of 1960 with a performance of Coppélia by the iconic British company Ballet Rambert. In 1968, The Manoel Theatre Orchestra was formed, eventually rebranding to the Malta Philharmonic Orchestra in 2008. From 1977 to 1980 the Manoel Theatre Academy for the Dramatic Arts (MTADA) offered vocational training for actors on a full-time basis, led by British the- atre practitioner Adrian Rendle. Since the 1980s, Teatru Manoel has been the home to a vast array of performances ranging from music recitals and original plays to Christmas Pantomimes and hit musicals. In recent years, the building has undergone several further restorations and improve- ments, such as the installation of a climate control system, the re-arrangement of the seating to its original arrangement, the rep- lication of De Vilhena's original designs, and the refurbishment of the original Priory of Navarre. Many local and international per- formers have graced the Teatru Manoel stage, and each person has contributed to its long and rich history. To read more about the history of the magnificent Teatru Ma- noel, and to find out more about the events taking place in the 2023/2024 season, you are invited to visit the theatre's newly updat- ed website at https://teatruma- noel.mt.