Festivals Malta is reaching out with regards to an upcoming event that is of interest to your students – The Emperor’s Feast – Puppetry for Children by Karromato
Czech marionettes theatre company KARROMATO will be coming back to Malta during the Three Palaces Music and Early Opera Festival, with their production The Emperor’s Feast.
This performance will be taking place on the 10th November 2022 with two shows, one taking place at 9.30AM and one at 11.30AM at the Grand Salon within the Museum of Archaeology.
As a performance it recommended for children older than 9 years old. However, the performers will be giving a brief introduction before the show so that the children can understand what the show is about.
This is a uniquely enriching experience for your students on a theatrical, musical and historical level.
Tickets for the show are at €5 per student, should you be interested in booking kindly email [email protected] or call 9947092 and you will be guided accordingly.
Short Synopsis of The Emperor’s Feast – Puppetry for Children by Karromato:
A comical look behind the scenes as Mozart creates an opera, and has to compromise – his art, or the Emperor’s money? A finely tuned parody of 18th-century court entertainment.
It’s the year 1786, and we are at Schönbrunn Castle, near Vienna. The Austrian Emperor Joseph II has just received a letter from his sister, announcing her impending visit. The Emperor decides to prepare a courtly celebration and a theatre performance in her honour. He commissions Mozart, his court composer, to write a short opera entitled Der Schauspieldirektor (The Theatre Director; or as we know it in Malta, L’Impresario), based on a libretto he is given. Mozart is working intensely on his opera, The Marriage of Figaro, however, the Emperor’s order forces him to take on the commission.
The theatre is a miniature replica of baroque theatres in which the carved wooden marionettes, the visual richness of the sets, and the carefully finished costumes and other stage elements perfectly recreate the ambiance of the period. The movements of the marionettes, along with the magic of shadow theatre, bring to life the story’s comic dimensions and captivate the spectators with charm and imagination.
The opera has subtitles that complete the overall comic atmosphere. These subtitles are shown in English or Maltese. The whole evening will include a medley of several themes taken from Mozart’s works, arranged especially for Karromato’s performance. This non-stop musical accompaniment, lasting sixty minutes, provides a wealth of situations and inspiration that makes the marionettes come alive.
