Describe VII in a few words

Nicola - VII is a contemporary retelling of the events that took place 100 years ago on the 7th of June through music and physical theatre, told in Maltese, English and Italian. We've been working with The New Victorians and Erin Carter for four months to study these events together,  and tell this historic story in an exciting new way!

Sandie - VII is a piece of music theatre about the events that occurred in Malta on 7th (and 8th) June 1919. After intensive research by the entire ensemble, we created a show which exposes the various perspectives of what exactly happened on that day, why it happened, and why it was so important, while keeping the audience entertained with a visual and audial feast.

Christian - It's a stylised trilingual version of the main facts that took place around the 7th of June riots and what lead to it, accompanied with original music composed by the New Victorians

Becky - The play provides some context to how the events took place, the people directly impacted by the protests, and the aftermath thereof. We use a mixture of movement, original music and text, to paint a picture of what happened on this historic day. Ultimately however, it is about Malta's identity and what we have sacrificed to get to where we are.

Tell us about your characters

Nicola - I have the pleasure of playing several characters throughout VII. As with every character, they all come with a story and with these characters it has been particularly interesting to learn about the real people I get to portray. The principal ones being; Manwel Attard, one of the victims of the events was a barber from Sliema who was in the wrong place at the wrong time and left behind a wife and four children. Dr.Enrico Mizzi, a pro-Italian member of the Assemblea who worked hard to free Malta from the British, a Nurse caught in the midst of the chaos and a traditional Maltese washerwoman of the time.

Sandie - I play the British Prime Minister of that time, David Lloyd George. I also play a Maltese beggar from Valletta who was left starving because of the rapid increase in bread prices after World War 1, as well as Colonel Francia's servant, and Ġużè Bajada's sister.

Christian - I play a few distinct characters who triggered or formed part of the sette giugno riots. Mainly the eloquent Dr.Sciberras leading the first Maltese general meeting, Cassar Torreggiani, one of the wealthiest Maltese, also a mill owner and one of the victims, to name a few.

Becky - In the piece we are all lucky enough to get to play a variety of characters. I personally happen to go from being a nurse talking to a wounded soldier in world war 1, to a wealthy mill owner (Col J.L Francia), to William Savona for a brief moment, as well as a Maltese villager, rioter ...(The list goes on). I also get to speak in English, Maltese and Italian, depending on which character I'm playing at any given moment. This piece has chosen to really truthfully embrace Malta's lingual heritage and the fluidity with which we as Maltese tend to communicate, which I find extremely exciting.

VII opens next Friday and is produced by Teatru Malta in partnership with FĊN and is proudly supported by Arts Council Malta under the Auspices of the Ministry of Justice, Culture and Local Government, camilleriparismode, LESA, Heritage Malta and Festivals Malta. For more information on VII (Sette) visit www.teatrumalta.org.mt or call 21220255. Tickets are €15 with a €12 concession price