On 8th August, Valletta’s most recent cultural infrastructure, Pjazza Teatru Rjal, was inaugurated as part of the larger city entrance project. An open-air theatre designed by world-renowned architect Renzo Piano. The venue hosted an exceptional performance by the European Union Youth Orchestra as part of the Malta Arts Festival.
Pjazza Teatru Rjal is built on the ruins of the Royal Opera House which was bombed during WW11 and never rebuilt. In its heyday, the original nineteenth century opera house was a valid cultural reference for Maltese and Italian opera singers who performed in it before proceeding to more established European opera houses such as La Scala in Milan.
A decision by Government to build Parliament offices on the site in 2008 was received most unfavourably by the public. Renzo Piano managed to convince the powers at the time to move the Parliament building to the adjacent square leaving ‘the monument’, an open-air theatre, as a witness to history and collective memory.
Emerging from the ashes, Pjazza Teatru Rjal has had a difficult rebirth as an open-air space, people’s opinions being that public funds spent for a venue of this nature are not a priority. The building of the open-air theatre certainly reflects Malta’s political, social and economic undercurrents providing interesting discussion. But like many cultural monuments that were unpopular decisions, this new venue now needs to overcome challenges, first of which is the public’s perception.
From a public opinion perspective, Malta’s take on contemporary arts has been fraught with difficulties, perhaps arising from the responsibilities of having to afford maintaining world heritage monuments, including three UNESCO World Heritage sites. The Maltese Islands host one of the world’s most concentrated historic areas within its 316 square kilometres of archipelago which has a population of just over 400,000. The Islands’ extremely important pre-historic period includes the world’s oldest freestanding monument and temples predating the Giza Pyramids. The capital city, Valletta, was built as a result of the Knights of St John settling in our Islands in the sixteenth century.
The future augurs well, however, with a new Cultural Policy since 2011 and Valletta’s successful bid as European Capital of Culture in 2018. Many new cultural policy initiatives are being implemented resulting in a developing healthy and competitive arts scene. The issue of professional facilities and spaces still seem to be the stumbling block and need to be addressed with urgency to match growing skills and entrepreneurial projects in the cultural and creative sectors.
Through a positive creative outlook, Pjazza Teatru Rjal will be transformed from a controversy to a cultural presence which is there to make us move forward and face the exciting challenges that the future brings.