Is-Simpozju is a summer theatrical production being organised by The Malta Classics Association and Troupe 18:45 to

be held at the University Campus as part of EVENINGS ON CAMPUS on Saturday 30 July and Sunday 31 July at 9pm. Director RODERICK VASSALLO talks to Erika Brincat about

the event

What can you tell us about

your upcoming production?

Is-Simpożju, inspired by one of Plato’s most important works, is a play in Maltese written by Karmenu Serracino. Agathon, an Athenian tragedian, has just won the first prize in the Dionysia of 416 B.C, a competitive festival for Athenian playwrights. To celebrate his success, he throws a party for some of the most brilliant men of Athens, including the philosopher Socrates and the comic playwright Aristophanes. As the wine flows, talk turns to love, with the guests discussing all forms of love, including erotic, homosexual and eventually philosophical. As the discussion becomes increasingly animated, the adaptation takes on a life of its own until it culminates in a conclusion that is as moving as it is unexpected.

This is the first time in recent memory that a classical Greek text has been adapted into an original play in Maltese by a proper classicist. The text chosen by the Association is Plato’s Symposium which is of great contemporary interest since it discusses love in all its forms. The play has been written by one of the brightest classicists of our generation, Karmenu Serracino, who is not only an academic but has a history of achievement in local cultural and theatrical events. We are working hard together to ensure that this work will surprise and inspire even those most familiar with the text.

As one of the Founding members

of Troupe 18:45 – what kind of

plays do you produce?

Troupe 18:45 is a non-profit organisation whose mission statement is to provide an enriching experience through the creative process, and to educate and entertain by providing a superior theatre experience. Since our inception, we wanted to be engaged in activities that could be host for stimulating scripts and performances and this is the main reason why we chose both No Exit by Sartre and now Is-Simpożju by Karmenu Serracino.

Troupe 18:45 strives to produce plays that tackle issues of social, cultural and political relevance allowing its performers to take risks in the search of artistic fulfillment. We intend to use the unique power and magic of the theatre to ask difficult questions about the world we live in, examining the forces that influence what we believe in and why we do so. We want our plays to be a conversation with our audience. In fact in No Exit the audience was one with the actors on stage. The theatre lights were set on the audience and the acting floor identically.

The audience could therefore experience hell physically as Sartre intended it to be in No Exit.

How would you describe your style

as a director? And do you prefer

small intimate productions which leave

a lasting impression on the audience?

Absolutely! The main aim is to leave an impression which will bear its fruit maybe at a later stage. The style can be described as simple but which can encompass different forms of theatre. In Is-Simpożju I am working hand in hand with a group of excellent actors and in collaboration with Martian Theatre who are also excellent in bringing physical theatre to life.

I tend to focus on character building which aims at leaving the audience totally convinced of the characters portrayed on stage. In the first few weeks of the rehearsal process, we focused mainly on the original Symposium text, the historical context and literature contribution to build strong characters. I believe that no gimmick can really impress the audience as much as good acting does.

When did your theatrical

launch as a troupe take place?

Troupe 18:45’s theatrical launch was a play produced in collaboration with the Malta Classics Association in Summer 2010 as part of Evenings on Campus. The Widow of Ephesus was performed in Latin, attracting an unexpectedly large crowd at University and receiving excellent feedback from the audience and positive press reviews. Following the performance, in November 2010 Troupe 18:45 was formally invited by His Excellency the President of Malta Dr. George Abela to perform the play for an exclusive audience of his distinguished guests at San Anton Palace.

However, Troupe 18:45’s true baptism of fire was the existentialism-themed play No Exit, written by the French playwright Jean Paul Sartre and directed by Albert Marshall. No Exit was performed at the MITP theatre in March of this year and was well received by the audience in general and by the critics who wrote positively about the production.

What is the mission of the

Malta Classics Association?

Their aspiration is to see classics projected into the 21st century by a new generation of classicists. We live in a global world and we have to think globally and positively. The association aims to bring back to life the immense treasures of the Greek and Roman civilisations and to make them relevant to present day society, thereby helping it become more self-fulfilled. They also acknowledge the close links between the Sanskrit language and its closely related Indo-European relatives, especially Latin and Greek. Our contemporary world still needs inspiration and ideas from these civilisations that can be transformed by current technologies and frames of mind. This association is there to help make this happen.

Although Plato’s Symposium is

an ancient Greek text is it still

controversial in today’s day and age?

It depends on the way you look at it, and what you mean by ‘controversial’. If you mean ‘thought-provoking’, it most certainly is. It explores love in its various forms, among which, homosexual love, which was a sort of ideal love in classical Greece. However, Plato’s Symposium goes beyond the physical and existential realm of love as it propounds the theory of love for the absolute, which could be seen as the ultimate form of spirituality.

It is, in fact,no wonder that Plato’s theory of love has often been considered as a precursor to the Christian essence of love, a theme so relevant particularly to a Maltese society that claims to be based on such Christian values.

In addition, we have recently started to hear more about gay issues, including gay marriage, however we very rarely hear about gay love. It is almost as if gay people are only capable of sexual activity but not love. We actually live in a society where the stated norm in matters of love is the heterosexual form. Aristophanes (one of the characters in the play) at some point takes the platform and tells the story of the origin of love. He explains how originally the human being was different, there were three sexes and love proceeded from these through divine intervention. The wisdom underlying this story is that all forms of love are equal and beautiful.

To spell it out clearly…gay, lesbian, heterosexual and all other forms of love are equally valuable and precious. It is surprising that somewhere in human history this concept has been totally lost. And when we start wondering why this happened it easily leads to controversy…but maybe a controversy that we need to face openly and maturely.

Does the text adaptation simplify

the original version or has it been

kept in its entirety?

The play is an adaptation and simplification, and more besides. It is mainly inspired by Plato’s lively philosophical work Symposium, but it also borrows from other Greek texts of the time. Moreover, there are some significant departures from Plato. So one could say that Is-Simpożju is an original drama in its own right, promising to be both instructive and entertaining to its audience.

How would you describe the

energy of the play – is it passionate,

dramatic, intriguing?

It has all three attributes. It is passionate because its main theme is love and what it means to be in love. It is dramatic because it is not without its exciting moments. It is intriguing because the audience will sense from the very beginning that something is bound to happen sooner or later. I would also add: it speaks to one and all.

Everyone can watch the play and grasp the ideas of Plato and Karmenu; you don’t need to be an academic and a philosopher to follow the plot. This concoction of passion, drama and intrigue promise to ensure a most entertaining evening.

Last but not least who will be

performing the play and

have you worked together before?

The cast is extremely varied not only in terms of age and thus experience but also in terms of origins. Many actors in fact belong to different theatrical groups. The full cast is as follows: Kris Spiteri, Michael Tabone, Shirley Blake, Tyrone Grima, Keith Borg, Kurt Pawley, Josef Zammit, Yanika Bugeja, Marika Gatt, Rebecca Bezzina, Elaine Muscat and Rozita Lautier.

I have worked closely with Shirley Blake, Tyrone Grima and Keith Borg in the past but the rest of the cast is new to me. Shirley is also one of the founding members of Troupe 18:45 and her rich theatrical experience has greatly contributed in modelling the Troupe’s main objectives. All the actors involved are fully committed to this project and I must say that the skills they bring are a profit for the whole project. The dynamics created between the actors is positive and conducive to the creative process making this experience a pleasurable one indeed.

The play will be performed in the courtyard of the Earthsystems Institute in Car Park 6 at the University of Malta. This is in the car park opposite the University’s Gateway building, very close to the Archaeology Farmhouse. There is plenty of parking space available. Tickets at €8 can be purchased at the door or by calling Tel. 23402141 from Monday to Friday between 8.30am and 1.30pm.

For further information please visit: www.classicsmalta.org and www.facebook.com/troupe18.45