When My First Time first hit the local theatre scene back in 2009, audiences went wild for the funny, cringe-worthy and salacious stories that make up this most hilarious of plays.
The script, written by Ken Davenport, made use of real-life tales by anonymous Internet users on www.myfirstime.com - submitted all the way back in 1998. Since its first run in the US in 2007, it has become legendary off-Broadway, and the local version by TAC Theatre, based mostly on Davenport's original script, will also include never-before-heard stories by real people from Malta.
"With scripts, actors usually dissect them to no end to constantly discover new details that will help them develop the character they're playing. With this script, however, each of the four actors has 100 different characters to play, so it is more about finding versatility in each character while also trying to remain truthful to the story," explains Joe Azzopardi, who was part of the original cast when Mellow Drama first produced My First Time five years ago.
Joe has been part of the professional theatre scene since the age of 16, when he took part in Pirates of the Mediterranean pantomime produced by the MADC. Since then, Joe moved to London where he read for a BA (Hons) in Acting at the acclaimed Mountview Academy of Theater Arts.
While in the UK, Joe took up the roles of Caesar in Julius Caesar and William Trigg in Cressida, and he also had a part in the touring show Zig-Zag Zig-Zag. He is currently making his breakthrough in TV and cinema with roles in the BBC's The Whale, as well as in Night Trash, Maid for You, and Michael Bay's 13 Hours.
Locally, you may have seen Joe in Macbeth, the Sex Comedies, the Seduction of Almighty God or even in the first local production of My First Time. If you haven't, now's the time to do so, as Joe is about to reprise his role in this highly-anticipated comedy.
"As for reprising the role, all I can say is that I'm very happy to be representing all the lads out there - both those who submitted stories, and those who haven't but have been through something similar to what I'll be acting," he concludes.
My First Time will be on at The City Theatre in Valletta on 23, 24 and 30, 31 October, and again on 1 November. Tickets for Opening Weekend all cost €10, while those for the second weekend start from €10. Virgins enter for free by sending an e-mail to [email protected]. Terms & Conditions apply