Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/219723
39 maltatoday, THIS WEEK Masquerade Panto rides to the 'hood FOLLOWING hot in the heels of its highly successful pantos Jack and the Beanstalk (2008), Aladdin (2009), and The Curse of Snow White (2012), the inimitable Masquerade is back once again with a hilarious Christmas offering as it brings Little Red Riding Hood & You Know Who to staged at the Manoel Theatre. Set in a snow-blasted Northern landscape, the story follows the adventure of the chief's daughter Little Red Riding Hood who is sent by her mother to check in on her grandmother who lives alone in the middle of an enchanted forest. However, no thanks to the mischievous plans of an evil soothsayer, what starts off as a simple errand soon becomes a deadly adventure by the light of the full moon. Little Red Riding Hood & You Know Who brings traditional pantomime to the Manoel Theatre, Malta's National Theatre. Produced by Masquerade, written by Malcolm Galea and directed by Anthony Bezzina, this magical, fun-filled adventure is presented by a fabulous cast of characters and is bursting with catchy, sing-along songs! The cast includes Malcolm Galea as Dame, Lisa Mifsud as Little Red Riding Hood, Katherine Brown as the granny, Luke Dalli as the Wolf, Marta Vella as the Viking Mama, Steffi Thake as Stinker Bell and Ema Attard, Sean Borg and Becky Brincat as the three pigs. Little Red Riding Hood at the Manoel Theatre runs from Saturday, 22 December to Sunday 5 January with shows at 15:00 and 20:00. Tickets: www.teatrumanoel.com.mt or 21 246619. More information www.masquerademalta.com or 79 793737 380. RED-FLANKED BLUETAIL It's not every day that a new bird is added to a national list, and the latest addition to the Malta list happened a couple of weeks ago. Two licensed BirdLife ringers were ringing at Buskett when a Red-flanked Bluetail landed in one of their mist nets. The bird is roughly the size and shape of a robin, but its lower back and tail are blue. It was a stunning catch because the Red-flanked Bluetail (M: Fjamma Kahla) is a resident of northern Russia and Siberia and very rarely migrates to Western Europe, let alone the Mediterranean. But there it was, sitting snugly in the ringer's hand. The bird was ringed, measured and photographed and - like all birds handled by ringers - released back into the wild. This was the 399th bird species recorded in the Maltese Islands. Not bad for a dry old rock. Have you signed the REFERENDUM PETITION to BAN SPRING HUNTING? Please download a form from www.birdlifemalta.org. Thanks. Text Victor Falzon | Photo Nicholas Galea SUNDAY, 1 DECEMBER 2013 'East Meets West' with flute and guitar ON Thursday, December 5 at 20:00 in Sala Isouard at Teatru Manoel, Maltese flautist Fiorella Camilleri and Italian guitarist Luca Lucini will merge music from the East and West into an exciting recital that will take the audience on an emotional journey through different times and musical styles. The 'Camilleri-Lucini' Flute and Guitar Duo was born out of its members' common passion for classical and world music. Since its formation in 2012, the duo has been building an ever-growing repertoire comprising original works and transcriptions. Maltese-born Fiorella Camilleri now occupies a full-time position as sub-principal flute and piccolo player with the Malta Philharmonic Orchestra, where she has played under the baton of Wayne Marshall, Peter Stark, Charles Olivieri-Monroe, David Campbell, Jonathan Butcher, and Brian Schembri. She features regularly as a soloist, and as a member of chamber-music ensembles alongside members of the orchestra and other soloists. In parallel to her classical music activities, Fiorella is an active player in the Maltese jazz and Latin scene. She has recently also started to commission new works for flute, and flute and guitar duo from several international composers. This has already yielded tangos, and a Concerto for flute, guitar, and orchestra. Luca Lucini from Salo', Italy, is a winner of several music competitions and features regularly as a solo and chamber-music guitarist and collaborates with top musicians such as the violinists Marco Fornaciari (international soloist and soloist of I Solisti Veneti) and Nobuhiko Asaeda (international soloist and ex-leader of the Tokyo City Philharmonic), and Fiorella Camilleri and Luca Lucini conductor Jose Luis Basso. His concerts in Europe and Asia have led to performances in the Tokyo City Philharmonic Orchestra chamber-music season, the Maggio Musicale Fiorentino season, the Torrechiara Festival, the Weekend Mozartiani in Ravello, the International Guitar Festivals in Parma and Friuli Venezia Giulia, and the Festival de Radio France. The programme for the December 5 recital includes works by Astor Piazzolla, Matteo Falloni, Macedonian tune, Serbian tune, Alan Thomas, Enric Granados. Tickets are all €10 with a 50% discount for students, under 25s and kartanzjan. Free for primary school children over 6. To book: www.teatrumanoel.com.mt, bookings@teatrumanoel.com.mt or 21 246389 Biodiversity and the Aichi Targets Biological diversity underpins ecosystem functioning and the provision of ecosystem services essential for human well-being. It provides for food security, human health, the provision of clean air and water; it contributes to local livelihoods, and economic development, and is essential for the achievement of the Millennium Development Goals, including poverty reduction. In addition it is a central component of many belief systems, worldviews and identities. Yet despite its fundamental importance, biodiversity continues to be lost. It is against this backdrop that the Parties to the Convention on Biological Diversity, in 2010 in Nagoya, Japan, adopted the Strategic Plan for Biodiversity 2011-2020 with the purpose of inspiring broad-based action in support of biodiversity over the next decade by all countries and stakeholders. In recognition of the urgent need for action the United Nations General Assembly has also declared 2011-2020 as the United Nations Decade for Biodiversity. The Strategic Plan is comprised of a shared vision, a mission, strategic goals and 20 ambitious yet achievable targets, collectively known as the Aichi Targets. The Strategic Plan serves as a flexible framework for the establishment of national and regional targets and it promotes the coherent and effective implementation of the three objectives of the Convention on Biological Diversity. Visit Friends of the Earth's website for more information about our work, as well as for information about how to join us www.foemalta.org. You can also support us by sending a blank SMS donation on 50618070 (€4.66) or 50619223 (€11.65). GREEN IDEA OF THE WEEK 282 Natural bath recipe – For a natural bath treat to keep your skin soft, put some oats into the foot of a stocking or muslin, tie and plop it in a warm bath. You can also add your favourite essential oil. Don't forget to compost the oats afterwards.