Identifying practices in contemporary Maltese theatre

Abstract

This dissertation aims to identify the contemporary theatre practices of Maltese theatremakers. This was done by gathering data from every production held at Spazju Kreattiv Theatre and at Valletta Campus Theatre between 1 January 2017 and 31 December 2019, categorising it, and performing a statistical analysis. These theatre spaces were chosen as they are frequently hired by multiple different production companies. Furthermore, the period under review was selected in order to allow theatre practices and trends to emerge. The socio-political context within which contemporary theatre practitioners operate is described, and the study’s methodology is clarified. The fields researched for this study are: Genre, Month of Performance, Number of Shows per Performance, Local or Foreign Performers, Nationality of Director, Sex of Writer, Sex of Director, Sex of Performers, Language of Performance, Original or Adapted Production, and Funding. These fields were chosen as they were deemed to be the best indicators to understand the contemporary practices employed by practitioners. The outcomes of this research suggest a theatre scene that is creatively motivated, with a majority percentage of original drama and text-based productions. In addition, a healthy degree of collaboration with foreign performers has been noted. However, a more significant representation of male practitioners than female practitioners has been noticed, especially in writers and performers in non-student productions. Finally, a heavy influence of the government has been observed with many productions financed with the use of government funding. Lastly, this study should serve as a pilot study to inspire future studies similar to this one, to further the research and provide an even more detailed window into the practices of contemporary theatre-makers in Malta.