Teatru Malta is set to captivate audiences with 1881, a groundbreaking immersive theatre experience that combines live-action role play and game elements to create an unforgettable journey. Opening on New Year’s Eve 2024 and running through March 2025, this daring production marks Teatru Malta’s longest-running show, staged within the atmospheric confines of a crumbling Maltese townhouse. Only 30 participants will enter this alternate world per performance, each encountering a deeply personal narrative that immerses them in a Malta like they’ve never known—a place where time is fluid, reality twists, and the end feels closer with every heartbeat.
Set in a surreal 1881, 1881 thrusts participants into a reality on the brink of collapse, where rituals, haunting shadows, and fragmented dreams lurk in the corners. Under the visionary guidance of game designer and conceiver Prof. Gordon Calleja, game dramaturg Rob Morgan, and theatre director Sean Buhagiar, Teatru Malta has crafted a story inspired by large-scale immersive theatre projects, giving participants the freedom to explore an uncertain, shifting universe. In this darkly captivating world, every decision has weight, every encounter is intense, and each moment could be the last.
Participants are invited to face the ultimate question: What would you do if your time was running out? As the story unfolds, you may choose to indulge in unrestrained freedom, seeking life’s forbidden pleasures as the clock ticks down, or perhaps cling to the pursuit of salvation, either through faith or the promise of scientific reason. Every move can affect the course of the experience, creating a story uniquely shaped by each participant’s choices and impulses. In 1881, the boundary between reality and fantasy blurs, drawing each person deeper into an immersive realm where the stakes couldn’t be higher.
This exclusive, age-rated (18+) experience premieres at a yet undisclosed venue. Further details, including ticket information and the trailer, can be found at 1881.show. As the world of 1881 draws you in, remember: wear the mask, play the game, and choose wisely—for the end is coming, and only your decisions will shape what’s left of your story.