Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/767061
39 Events maltatoday, SATURDAY, 24 DECEMBER 2016 The founders of Famalco, a portmanteau company name derived from Family Mal- lia, were inspired to build on the three gen- erations' legacy of fresh produce trade. This kickstarted substantial growth, eventually expanding into an array of industries and services. The festive season and celebra- tions mark the end of 22 years of successful business ventures and welcomes the 23rd. Throughout the past years, by establish- ing a strong work ethic, at Famalco we have built a young, creative and committed team that is constantly seeking new terrain for business development and consolidation. Being strong believers in fostering long lasting relationships that add value to our clients, we pursue the empowerment of an equally strong, capable and loyal work force. We approach our work force as family and as a result we believe in developing, training and rewarding our employees with constant qualification and training pro- grammes. Most of all, our vision is focused on a steady and structured growth, one that combines our expertise and diversification with in- tegrity, and one that we carry on from the past year of 2016 onto 2017. MADC has always been top of the class when it comes to pantomime and this year is no exception as the club is breaking new ground as they fly an actual car above the MFCC stage for their panto- mime, Un-Believe it!. This is the first time a car has been flown on a Maltese stage. Executive Producer, Martin Azzopardi, admitted he was a bit worried by the daunting prospect of identifying the right car model, but when scriptwriter, Alan Mon- tanaro, insisted on having not one but two versions of the same car, the idea was almost abandoned completely. Un-Believe itI is based on child- hood classic Chitty Chitty Bang Bang , so we needed a battered, old version of the flying automobile", explained Alan Montanaro, who will also be playing the scrump- tious role of dame Vera Tastee. The solution came from car col- lector, David Arrigo who loaned not two but three Fiat Barchettas, with the 3rd being a drivable one for promotion purposes for the Christmas show. The next challenge was of course to get the Barchetta to sprout wings and fly. "It would have been much easier to build a contraption for the car to merely go up and down, but I wanted it to do more", said director, Nanette Brimmer. "I wanted the car to be able to tilt this way and that and to fly at different angles to simulate the journey our heroes have to take in order to reach the magical land of Kitchnick". Joshua Borg, a 19-year old me- chanics prodigy and his partner Ronnie Spiteri of Triton Carnival Company came up with the solu- tion in the form of a folding-arm contraption that can sustain the weight of the car as well as the 4 actors who are lucky enough to fly around the MFCC stage. Set designer, Claudio Apap ex- plained that the starting point of the design was always going to be safety, and ensuring that the actors in the car as well as those singing and dancing below and to the side of the car are safe from any eventuality so the contraption is a little cumbersome and has ef- fectively blocked two entrances onto the stage but the bulk of the equipment is confined to the wings and the whole show will work like a well-oiled machine. Nanette Brimmer described the excitement of the cast as palpable. "We've been rehearsing every day for the past 6-weeks and I believe we've got a very tight show that's got something for every genera- tion. We're offering yuletide gold" Un-Beleive it! runs till January 8th. For further details and book- ing visit www.madc.com.mt or send an email to booking@madc. com.mt or SMS on 77776232 MADC raises the theatrical bar. Literally! New Year… New biking gear! FTIAS blood donation at SmartCity Malta KTM® motor cycles have just re- leased a new line of clothing for its loyal customers, just in time for the New Year. The 2017 range, which is currently available at the Fapi Mo- tors showroom, offers both men and women a stylish way of staying safe on the road. For men, KTM have come up with a different design for their hoodies, t-shirts and jackets. Their new range also includes an excit- ing choice of accessories, helmets, riding goggles, and a mixture of back packs, hydration packs and belt bags. For the KTM motorbike enthusiast, they have even included logo towels in their range, and that's not it. Get even more ready to race with KTM's off-road equipment including kits (t-shirt & trousers), gloves, body armour & knee pro- tectors. A wide range of hoodies, t-shirt and jackets are also available for women. Fapi Motors are the official dis- tributors of KTM® motor cycles in Malta. At our showroom you can find KTM motor bikes, parts, acces- sories, a wide range of merchandise and even KTM bicycles. Visit our showroom in Mdina Road, Attard, or send an e-mail to info@FapiMo- tors.com for further details. FTIAS has organised a blood dona- tion drive for its employees together with employees of other business partners based at SmartCity Malta as well as residents from the neigh- bouring localities of Xghajra and Zabbar. The blood donation drive form part of the Company's ongoing cor- porate social responsibility initia- tives and is a testament of the val- ues embraced by the employees at FTIAS and other partners based at SmartCity Malta. The theme for the blood donation drive was 'the gift of life' where employees were encour- aged to give a Christmas gift in the form of a blood donation. This is the second blood donation event organised by FTIAS this year and as in previous years was held in collaboration with the National Blood Transfusion Service. This service seeks to raise awareness of the importance of voluntary blood donation and encourages new and existing blood donors to donate blood regularly throughout the year Famalco gets head start on 23rd year of success