A panel discussion on Shakespeare in Malta, hosted by the English Department’s ‘English Seminar’ research series, in collaboration with the Department of Theatre Studies, will be held on 28 October 2024 at the Teatru Salesjan, Sliema.

Panellists Philip Leone-Ganado, Pia Zammit, Joe Friggieri and Marco Galea will discuss the past and living legacy of Shakespeare in performance in Malta, and what Shakespeare continues to mean to Maltese audiences, with additional insights from Paul Xuereb. The talk will be chaired and moderated by Krista Bonello Rutter Giappone. A Q&A session with the audience will follow the panel discussion.

Entrance is free. The event starts at 18:00 and is open to the public.

Prof. Joe Friggieri is a Professor of Philosophy at the University of Malta. He is the author of two books on the 20th century British philosopher J.L. Austin and the first History of Philosophy in Maltese in three volumes. His papers have been collected in Selected Philosophical Essays. He is also a well-known poet, playwright, and theatre director. He has directed over thirty plays, including eight by Shakespeare.

Philip Leone-Ganado is an actor, director, dramaturg and member of the Teatru Malta performance ensemble. He graduated with an MA in Directing from LAMDA and is the founder of WhatsTheirNames Theatre, for which he has to date produced and directed nine editions of the Shakespeare in the Pub and Shakespeare in the Garden series, as well as two editions of Shakespeare for Schools as part of Teatru Manoel TOI TOI. 

Pia Zammit is a Communication Coach, an actor, a keynote speaker, a voice-over artist, a civil-society activist, and an educator. She has had the privilege to inhabit the soul of a few of Shakespeare’s people – of note, a chaste woman, a cunning servant, a fairy queen, and a drunkard. And that way madness lies! 

Marco Galea teaches in the Department of Theatre Studies at the University of Malta. Between 2005 and 2007 he was President of L-Akkademja tal-Malti (The Maltese Writers' Union) during which time the Maltese organisation was accepted into the European Writers' Council. He has published extensively about Maltese theatre history and has been instrumental in setting up and running the School of Performing Arts' Digital Archive, a project which strives to document the history of performance in Malta and make it available to researchers. 

Krista Bonello Rutter Giappone has an MA in Shakespeare Studies from the Shakespeare Institute in Stratford-upon-Avon, and a PhD in Drama from the University of Kent. She has been teaching early modern drama for fourteen years, first with the Drama Department at the University of Kent, and currently with the Department of English at the University of Malta. Krista is also an RSO with the Centre for Labour Studies. 

Thanks also goes out to Ivan Callus and James Corby, for their support of this initiative.

The Departments of English and Theatre Studies would like to pay tribute to Polly March, whose contributions to theatre and Shakespeare in Malta are unforgettable and will continue to inspire new generations.