Tourism Minister Francis Zammit Dimech yesterday announced details of the second Notte Bianca Lejl Imdawwal – an all-night celebration of arts and culture.

On Saturday 6 October from 6pm until the early hours of Sunday, the public is invited to re-discover the capital, Valletta, through performances, exhibitions, shows, visual installations, parades, tours and re-enactments.

For one sleepless night, museums, theatres, arts and cultural centres, libraries, churches and chapels, historical sites, auberges, cinemas, streets, squares and gardens will be hosting events of different genres, giving life to a unique experience while making the arts accessible to all.

An initiative created and realised by the Tourism and Culture Ministry, Notte Bianca Lejl Imdawwal is sponsored by the National Lotteries for Good Causes Fund – the Ministry of Finance, Malta Tourism Authority, HSBC Bank Malta, Vodafone Malta Limited and DJS Trading. The event is supported by Valletta local council, while official entities include PBS Ltd, Capital Radio, Overview Photographers and BPC.

“This year the concept of Notte Bianca Lejl Imdawwal is focusing on a contemporary trend while highlighting Valletta’s heritage and culture,” said Mary Ann Cauchi, artistic director for Notte Bianca Lejl Imdawwal. “Our aim is to highlight creative works and to make contemporary art accessible to a wider audience. Maltese visitors and tourists will be invited to explore and discover unusual spaces that are generally not accessible and neither associated with cultural activity.”

The programme of Notte Bianca Lejl Imdawwal will this year be available beforehand as it will be distributed to people’s houses, so that the public will be able to form an idea of what to attend. Ms Cauchi explained that this year’s activities will be brief and repeated so as to enable those attending to move from one event to another and make the most of the endless variety of cultural attractions. Most of the events will also be free, reflecting the aim of the ministry to utilise this event as a means of presenting culture and the arts.

Dr Zammit Dimech pointed out that, although this is only the first anniversary of the Notte Bianca, it has remarkably become a great success. The minister said that last year’s Notte Bianca was the start of a good year for Malta’s tourism industry, since the rate of tourists coming to Malta has been increasing every month since last November. Such events not only served to bring the people together for a night of culture and entertainment, but also managed to attract tourists and make Malta livelier and even more attractive.

Notte Bianca Lejl Imdawwal will showcase Malta’s growing artistic community and cultural gems. Hastings Gardens will host a collection of dance genres, while in the Upper Barrakka Gardens there will be a display of contemporary visual installations by various artists. Last year’s successful JaPoRoSeT – a fusion of pop, rock, jazz, soul and folk, will be staged at St George’s Square till Sunday’s early hours.

Merchants Street will be transformed into a Maltese traditional festa with roving folk singers (ghannejja), folk dancers, Maltese food and crafts. A medieval market will be set up at Independence Square; in the car park adjacent to Castille Square there will be food, music and live entertainment with a philanthropic aim.

The Mediterranean Conference Centre, the Manoel Theatre, St James Cavalier Centre for Creativity, MITP, the Aula Magna at The Foundation for International Studies, the National Library, St John’s Co-Cathedral, other churches, chapels and places of interest will be opened for tours, viewing and live activities.

The main public transport routes will be running throughout the night. There will also be sea transport services from Vittoriosa and Sliema to Valletta and back. The Gozo Channel ferry boat will be operating return trips from Mgarr on the usual schedule to Cirkewwa and extra trips to Sa Maison.

For further details visit: www.

nottebiancamalta.com.

Enquiries may be made on info line: 9966-8833 or via email to: [email protected].