The year 2024 marks an important milestone for local theatre company Theatre Anon, who will be celebrating 30 years of creating challenging and exciting theatrical productions. To commemorate this, Teatru Manoel has commissioned a re-run of two of the company’s well-loved performances for a double-bill event at Teatru Manoel between the 15th and 18th of February. Both performances have an element of puppetry and appeal to audiences of all ages.
Set up in 1994, Theatre Anon is made up of performers and theatre makers who collaborate and contribute directly to the creative process which blurs the lines between the diverse elements of production including direction, set, costumes, props and light design.
Daqxejn ta’ Requiem lil Leli
Theatre Anon transforms Immanuel Mifsud’s meditation on the life of an ordinary man into a theatrical explosion, a celebration of life and creativity. Backed by an 8-piece chamber orchestra, Leli, represented by a life-size puppet, relives the main chapters of his life during his last moments on Earth in a show guaranteed to mesmerise and delight in equal measure. The requiem chronicles the last moments in the life of Leli, who, while in a coma, re-reads the main chapters of his life, most notably his childhood, where he encounters his parents, relatives, friends, and teachers. As he gets closer to his last breath, Leli’s visions become more poetic and charming with merry-go-round white horses, butterflies, chocolates, toy trains and pretty women.
Daqxejn ta’ Requiem lil Leli is performed in Maltese, with English surtitles translated by Albert Gatt. It features music composed and conducted by Kris Spiteri, visuals created by Vince Briffa, and direction by Paul Portelli.
The cast is made up of Douglas Comley, Sandra Mifsud, Jacob Piccinino, Liliana Portelli, Paul Portelli and Pierre Stafrace. Daqxejn ta’ Requiem lil Leli premiered at the Malta International Arts Festival in July 2018, and will be running at Teatru Manoel on February 15 at 8pm, Saturday 17 at 8pm, and Sunday 18 at 7pm.
The Little Prince
In this performance Theatre Anon display their unique style of theatre, mixing animation, puppetry and live action in a show which will delight young and old alike through an interpretation of the classic book ‘The Little Prince’ by Antoine de Saint-Exupéry. Reimagined through a newly devised script adapted by Jes Camilleri, the story follows a young prince on his journey across various planets throughout space, addressing themes such as love, loneliness, friendship and loss.
With specially commissioned animations by Franny Gee, the retelling of this literary French classic brings together the age-old magic of puppetry and the wonderful wizardry of modern technology, directed by Chris Gatt and performed by Jes Camilleri, Charlotte Grech, Liliana Portelli, Paul Portelli, and Pierre Stafrace. This production has an original soundscore by Albert Garzia, who will also be performing live. Get ready to be enchanted by the Little Prince as he journeys through the universe in a theatrical feast for heart and mind.
The Little Prince was first commissioned by the ŻiguŻajg International Arts Festival for Children and Young People in 2021. It will be performed again on Friday the 16th of February at 8pm, Saturday the 17th at 3pm, and Sunday the 18th at 3pm at Teatru Manoel.
For more information on Theatre Anon’s 30th anniversary double bill, and to book tickets, visit https://teatrumanoel.mt or call (+356) 21246389.
