Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/361046
maltatoday, SUNDAY, 10 AUGUST 2014 38 THIS WEEK CHOSEN from amongst hundreds of youth theatre companies from across the Common- wealth, Teatru Manoel Youth Theatre (TMYT) was one of the 10 groups of young artists given the opportunity to be part of The Tin Forest In- ternational Theatre Festival as part of the Glas- gow 2014 Cultural Programme. The Glasgow 2014 Cultural Programme ran alongside the Commonwealth Games and the Festival brought together a whole assembly of cultural variety providing participants with the most exciting of workshops and extremely diverse theatrical experiences. Members of TMYT performed their originally devised piece "CLUB" directed by Denise Mulholland and choreographed by Warren Bonello. This was first performed during the Żigużajg 2013 Fes- tival. TMYT member Luke Saydon described the experience, "Not only did audiences respond so positively to our piece but they were also emo- tionally engaged to what we were giving them. No satisfaction could be greater than this. Tin Forest opened a gate of opportunities as well as new friendships and networks between differ- ent companies. "Working closely with established professional theatre veterans, engaging in cultural exchange as well as performing to an international audi- ence marks Tin Forest as an experience which will always be a landmark in my acting career." Leon Xuereb added that, "The various theat- rical traits explored in the workshops, some of which included improvisation, clowning and puppetry, were enrich- ing both on a personal level for me as an actor performing as well as the devising of a theat- rical piece". Three other TMYT students, Nicola Az- zopardi, Ruth Borg and Karen Decelis were chosen as part of The Tin Forest Internation- al Performing Com- pany which was made up of young people between the ages of 16- 25 from countries all over the Commonwealth – from the UK to India, Australia to Canada and South Africa to New Zealand. Divided in groups they devised and performed a mesmerising 10 minute piece, as well as an installation, inspired by the book The Tin Forest, in different areas of the Glasgow for hundreds of Scots and visitors. They were also given the opportunity to see the Common Wealth Games Opening Ceremony at Celtic Park. In Karen Decelis's words, "These two weeks were an unforgettable experience for us. We are very thankful for this unique opportunity given to us by the Teatru Manoel Youth Theatre and the National Theatre of Scotland as well as the Scottish Youth Theatre". Denise Mulholland, who directed and accom- panied the group, summed up the whole expe- rience, "Apart from the extremely positive im- pression the performances given by TMYT left on the other member groups and the audiences, the whole event was a fantastic opportunity to build networks with other groups and festival organisers from different countries. This will undoubtedly lead to further interesting ex- changes in the future". Ray Attard, Teatru Manoel CEO, stated, "This is a very satisfying outcome of this first over- seas TMYT project and we are extremely proud of our new cultural ambassadors. This justifies the investment we are making in this field in not only giving our local artists an opportunity to expand their horizons overseas but also to show- case to the outside world our local talent". "CLUB" is part of the recently launched Malta Showcase which aims to give local artists a help- ing hand in exploring overseas markets. The TMYT members taking part were: Andrea Baldacchino, Antonella Mifsud, Bettina Paris, Justin Mamo, Karen Decelis, Leon Xeureb, Luke Saydon, Mattea Fenech, Michaela Fenech, Nicola Azzaoprdi, Philippa Cassar, Rebecca Camilleri, Robyn Vella, Rommel Grech, Ruth Borg, Sandie von Brockdorff and Stefanie Weenink. TMYT is part of Toi Toi, Teatru Manoel's Edu- cation Programme which is devised and run by Rosetta Debattista. Look out for audition dates for a new intake of TMYT on www.teatrumanoel.com.mt Cultural "gold medals" for our ambassadors in Glasgow NEWLY launched NGO, the Klezmorimal- ta Foundation, which was set up by Malta- based Dutch couple Ralph and Birgit Albre- cht, is working towards the protection and appreciation of acoustic instruments, and the traditional ways of creating music. "Music has always played an important role in our lives," explains Birgit Albrecht, one of the co-founders of the Klezmorimal- ta Foundation. "We are not musicians our- selves, but we understand that music is a powerful and emotional form of human expression, and we would like to preserve its quality. "When playing an instrument, such as the clarinet or the contrabass, a musician needs to practice for long periods of time, and we truly believe that a computer could never replace this," she says. "Removing the mu- sician lowers the listeners' respect towards the music and the instrument. "It is for this reason that we chose to put the word 'klezmorim' in the foundation's title, as it means an itinerant Eastern Euro- pean Jewish professional musician, and that explains exactly the kind of artists we'd like to promote and protect." It is no surprise that Birgit and Ralph chose Malta as the seat of their NGO. Due to its geographical position, the island has long been a great melting pot of cultures and culture, and this has led to every- thing from music to art, and architecture to crafts, being influenced by its colonisers and its neighbouring countries. "Malta has a very special position, and its architecture invites people to perform," says Birgit. "The Klezmorimalta Founda- tion also aims at encouraging musical edu- cation, and our idea of protecting music as a performing art is by allowing the natural advancement of culture in general, and by creating new ties between Maltese and for- eign artists." The Klezmorimalta Foundation hopes to do all this by organising special events that bring a myriad of artists and European culture-vultures together in one space. In fact, it has recently been in the news as the organiser of the upcoming Klezmorimalta Nights – a concert of Eastern European klezmer music, which will take place on 29 and 30 August at Pjazza Teatru Rjal in Val- letta. "What's so exciting about klezmer music is that the genre has developed all over the world. You can find klezmer bands in many different countries, and its artists – known as the aforementioned 'klezmorim' – have left many little seeds that have germinated into a very popular music genre worldwide," continues Birgit. The Foundation would like to stimulate an exchange of musical patrimony between Malta and other countries, which is why this event will include performances from the Amsterdam and Yxalag Klezmer Bands, from the Netherlands and Germany respec- tively, and the singer-songwriter Démira, who is also from the Netherlands. "This event will bring together old and new forms of music and will serve as an ex- ample of how acoustic doesn't have to mean boring, and of how traditional doesn't have Safeguarding the acoustic and the traditional