Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/1540705
1. What's been the most defining moment in your career so far? If we're talking about landlording, it's obviously getting the keys to the business handed to me. I watched Cheers as a kid so often that I fell in love with the romantic ideal of a pub setting, and I've worked in pubs since I was 16. They say do what you love, but I've learned it's just as important to do what you're good at. And I discovered that I'm pretty good at working in the service industry. Being able to run my own business at the age of 26 was a scary prospect but one that I was prepared to face head on. And my success in that field has allowed me the time to do what I want, which is perform. If you want a defining moment there, it is probably accepting a role offered to me by a young company called WhatsTheirNames Theatre, led by Philip Leone Ganado and Joseph Zammit. At the time they were complete strangers, but I had seen them perform once before and was quickly drawn into their vibe. Young actors, doing it all themselves, building sets out of cardboard boxes and transforming student halls into makeshift theatres. We performed ART in 2010 for the first time and some of my closest friendships were solidified during that production. I do have to say though as I write this, the moment both these worlds of mine came together is a contender for most defining moment though. Shortly after I took ownership of The Pub, Philip sidled over to me and said "We should do a play here. I've had Shakespeare in mind for a while. What do you think?" And that one suggestion over a pint has since led to our 10th anniversary production, something I could never have imagined at the time. 2. As a creative, how do you navigate the world and speed of social media? I don't! My presence online is near non-existent, and quite frankly that's just the way I'd like to keep it. Yes, one would argue that a strong online presence is neces- sary for a business, especially in a field like catering where the market is so oversatu- rated and competition so strong. But I've managed a reputation and clientele that doesn't require me to rely on keeping up with trends or churning out content. Instead, I focus on creating memorable experiences that speak for them- selves—word of mouth has always been my best marketing tool. With WhatsTheirNames, we are a team that play to our strengths and I make myself useful elsewhere. With both catering and theatre, my life is so open and people-facing that I enjoy the privacy and quiet when I'm away from it all. 3. Do you consider artificial intelligence a threat to your career, or an opportunity? AI is a tool, and, much like any tool, is only dangerous in the wrong hands. I think AI can be extremely useful for creatives, especially when it comes to doing all the background work that eats into the time we could devote to creative exploration. Last year I was fortunate enough to portray Jason in Ben Power's adaptation of Medea. One prompt into ChatGPT saved me hours of research and provided me with a comprehensive list of references and links to help me explore the relationship between the characters, the themes we were facing, the complexities of the time the play was written versus the time the staging was set. All pertinent information that I was able to bring into the rehearsal room and then dissect with Bettina Paris and Rebecca Camilleri. Actors should have more time to act, writers to write, and directors to direct. If you want to know whether or not AI can replace actors, Betty Gilpin wrote an open letter to the AI actress Tilly Norwood that I think sums it up pretty succinctly (look it up or get Chatgpt to link you). And, as for bar work, I think I'm covered. 4. How do you stay motivated and inspired, especially during tough times or when the work feels hard? Surround yourself with good people. That's a good place to start. In my everyday life, there are a number of people I reach out to who I know will be straight up and honest with me and will help me navigate my issues when I seek guidance or just listen to me rant. Sometimes, we don't want people to solve our problems, but by allowing us to vent and being a safe soundboard, we can let out some of that tension and achieve clarity. I am also a very competitive person and I have learned how to rile myself up to face a challenge. It is unfortunate that I tend to work better under pressure. I sometimes catch myself deliberately—or perhaps subconsciously— creating pressure just to rise to it. 5. How do you balance your creative instincts with the expectations of your audi- ence or collaborators? I'd think our creative instincts are what the audience have come to expect. As for my collaborators, I'd like to think we tend to balance each other out quite well. More often than not, I find myself working with my WhatsTheirNames troupe members and we've developed an understanding of each other's strengths. I would say I'm absolutely a more instinctive actor. I rely on intuition and love to try new things, most of the time over the top but it's easier to tone things down than take them up a notch. I've never had formal train- ing, so I rely heavily on instinct and intuition, and I'm always learning from my castmates. I am also of the firm belief that at the end of the day, the director's word is final. A production isn't just about individual performances, but about how they come together as a whole — and the director is the link that unites it all. 6. How do you approach a new project? Do you have a specific process or routine you follow? I try to limit myself to only one production a year which often happens to be our annual summer Shakespeare production. The roles I tend to play in those shows are pretty cut and dry. Once you truly familiarise yourself with the text, the rest tends to fall into place. When faced with a role with a little more "meat on the bones" however, it occupies my every thought from the day I am cast to the final curtain. I read the script a hundred different ways, I research the setting, I talk my wife's ear off about it, and I try to find as much of myself in the character I'm portraying as possible. I've always said that theatre is a form of therapy for me, where I have to analyse myself as much as the character I'm play- ing. I believe that performances should be rooted in truth, and if we let our own personal experiences permeate through our characters then we don't need to convince our audienc- es of anything—we just need to show them. 7. Can you let us in on some of the future projects, works? I have nothing concrete in the pipeline when it comes to theatre. I usually wait for Philip to organise our inevitable January lunch, where he'll unveil his next mad—and likely brilliant—idea. As for The Pub, well, we have some big things on the way. We've been working with Farsons and Huskie on a project that we'll unveil in due course—one I'm genuinely excited about. Until then, I've got a dozen ideas swirling in my head, books to read, recipes to test, films to watch, and a world still waiting to be explored. maltatoday | SUNDAY • 26 OCTOBER 2025 ART Global talent takes centre stage at second edition of the Malta Biennale 2026 PAGE 2 MUSIC Malta's premier local jazz festival returns for its second edition PAGE 3 ARTS • TV • WHAT'S ON BY LAURA CALLEJA suggestions by email lcalleja@mediatoday.com.mt The Q & A NATHAN BRIMMER 7 questions for... Extra round What's the most memorable or transformative role you've played, and what did you learn from it? It would almost certainly have to be when I played Bottom and Oberon in our 2021 production of A Mid- summer Night's Dream. The stakes were extremely high at the tail end of COVID; we weren't even sure if we would be allowed to go ahead with the show and I had just had emergency abdominal surgery the day before we started rehearsals. But it felt necessary at a time where the arts were dead in the water, and we had to dig very deep to deliver. It was the most frightening and uplifting experience. It reminded me why I fell in love with theatre in the first place—its power to heal, to connect, and to remind us we're still alive. Nathan Brimmer is primarily landlord for the world famous, The Pub in Valletta, but he occasionally treads the boards or graces your tv screens. His experience in either field spans over two decades. MaltaToday is supported by Arts Council Malta