The Spiteri Lucas entertainment show, as far as I am concerned, is a high point of the Malta Arts Festival. It is complete entertainment without tears. This summer the title of the spectacle was The Legends of Music and it took us on a journey of over 50 years of song. Mark, who recently got married, was alternating his playing on a synthesizer and a baby grand with his usual dexterity. He was running a temperature, he told us at the interval. In fact to my disappointment, he did not sing at all because he was simply unwell. ‘But the show must go on,’ he insisted.
His brother the cuddly Ivan, had also been unwell, his wife Phyllis told me, but managed to croon his way through several numbers. My favourites? What a wonderful world and Hello Dolly.
What can possibly go wrong with a show which starts off with Nadine Axisa singing Piaf’s La Vie en Rose? Thank you very much for arranging that Mark. My youngest had just sent me the link to the film of the same name, which has had excellent reviews. When am I going to get an opportunity to see it I wonder? Nothing in life is ever going to offer any real compensation if I fail to do so, even if it isn’t in Paris. I shall probably have to settle for the video eventually.
The Legends at the old opera house was a most enjoyable spectacle. Some of those singers can squeeze a whole world of emotion out of a single quaver. Listening to them move from Piaf to the Everly Brothers’s All I have to Do is Dream to Abba’s medley: Dancing Queen, Waterloo and Mamma Mia and finishing with a handful from the genius Queen, starting with Bohemian Rhapsody, was truly pleasurable. Some of the girls’ clothes, too, conjured up a deliciously summery vibe. Hard work all round but what fun it must be to be young and able to sing and play to an audience. Absolutely every single child should be given a chance to make music of some sort. We learn so many useless subjects at school, some of which will never serve any purpose. All those hours spent trying to figure out trigonometry and the sex life of the amoeba. The love of music stays with you forever and even a badly played instrument gives you satisfaction. Not so trigonometry and biology, unless you become an expert in them. Let’s push our children to making music themselves.
I went to the show with one of the sisters and my sister-in-law – an occasion for bonding. My sister brought little pieces of her homemade pan’forte which is better than any of the commercial ones. I had bought a packet each of Minstrels as I could not find any decent chocolates at my grocer’s. But by the time I got to the opera house two of the packets had been devoured so we shared the one that was left. And sister-in-law also took something edible out of her bag which cheered us no end.
Those young people played to a full house made up of all ages and musical tastes. May they go on doing so.
Another enjoyable evening was Olivia Dow’s tribute to her husband John Baldacchino who died earlier this year. Thru’ the Barres took place at the University theatre with the first half dedicated to ballet and the second to Pirates of the Caribbean and to a variety of other dances, including Greek Folk dancing and an Irish medley. There was so much talent on that stage, starting from very young ballerinas and we have come to expect beautiful costumes from Olivia Dow. We were not disappointed. I also loved George Curmi playing with such verve the Czardas accompanied by Uri on the accordion. I could listen to it a million times and still not tire of it. This musical duo was very popular with the audience. There was a special appearance by George’s young daughter Miriana who has inherited her father’s gift for music. So much beauty transports you to another world where everything is perfect.
We need this occasionally, in this mad world in which we live, where people are killed because bridges are not maintained properly while billions are being spent on the useless war in Iraq. And now there are all those dead in Peru and six Italians shot dead in Germany. How does this world work? Can someone please tell me? It’s still an untold story. It is largely a world of folly and insanity with men in power who should not be there at all.
The new phone I bought some months ago never really worked properly from the very start. Conversations with ‘abroad’ were interrupted and I had to restart and dial again and again. I blamed it on the 1021 which I decided, is used by so many that it doesn’t really ever work properly. But I was wrong so I blamed it on the batteries. I changed them, time and again but it seemed to be getting worse. Even the local calls were interrupted and I was cut off so often that I decided to take it back to the shop from where I had bought it. But before I found the time to do this acid had come out of the batteries. So I knew that there could be no more dallying and I took it back immediately as I was going to be left without a landline.
Well, the person behind the counter told me it would have to be thrown away as I had used the wrong batteries; only rechargeable batteries should be used and not normal ones. The original batteries should have lasted for at least three years and I had changed them after some three months hoping to get the phone working properly again.
No one at the shop had told me about the type of batteries I could or could not use. The phone was still under guarantee. What could he do about it? He could replace the handset for Lm10 he informed me. What had happened was entirely my fault as once it was not working I should have returned it and not ruined it by using ordinary batteries. Yes, a handful of phones turn out to be defective, he admitted. Too bad that mine was one of them.
I know that strictly speaking he should have given me another handset since my defective one was still under guarantee. But was it worth arguing? I paid him for a new handset and walked out. What a relief to have a phone which works without interruption. But do these people really expect us to read these handbooks they give us in a dozen languages? Who has the time? Certain instructions should be given to us orally at the shop. But since when have shopkeepers done what they should? They are in the business of making money and moving merchandise. It is entirely up to us to look after our rights. So if you have one of these phones with batteries please note they should last three years and when you change them make certain they are the right sort.
The son of old friends in Sicily and his girlfriend came out for a short break and I wanted to take them somewhere they haven’t been before. After a brief discussion we opted for the Birgu Waterfront. We admired the newly restored waterfront and since Italians have a fascination for casinos we popped in to the Casinò di Venezia with its enormous chandeliers from Murano. I wanted them to take a look at the view from the terrace and once there we decided on dinner. We had not pre-booked as all this was spontaneous but the waitress managed to find us a table. A waiter arrived with a bottle of spumante and told me that it came with the compliments of Mr Storace. I turned round to find that Bernard Storace was dining there. He told me he is now general manager. I have known Bernard and Lesley for a number of years and knew that Bernard has been in the casino business for some 34 years and has worked in 8 European countries and Egypt. Until he joined the Casinò di Venezia he had been Chief Inspector of the Lotteries and Gaming Authority. There have been several changes at the Casinò since he took over.
The restaurant offers two menus and the choice is big enough but not too vast to create indecision and confusion. We enjoyed the food very much from the antipasti to the entrées – the young people opted for beef and I enjoyed my sea bream. The potatoes were delicious as was the generous helping of properly cooked and tasty vegetables. We were given enormous helpings of dessert too and nothing was too much trouble for the waitress. She actually looked as if she was happy to please us. The beautiful view is an added bonus and as we reminisced this young man and myself his girlfriend told me that she worked in the family business which is on the same street where Piero lives and yet they only met recently. Piero’s mother’s family and us have known each other for over 40 years. We are family. His father, now bedridden with a stroke, was an admiral so we have lived at the Capitaneria di Porto over the years, many a time and were driven by sailors and saluted at every turn.
We were the last to leave this beautiful terrace. It was a successful evening and it is not always easy to please our neighbours who are very fastidious when it comes to food but I must say that the Casinò di Venezia has it all. I hope it will settle down under Bernard’s management for a long time to come.