https://www.um.edu.mt/library/oar/handle/123456789/21548 2026-11-06T16:21:42Z 2026-11-06T16:21:42Z Cremona, Vicki Ann https://www.um.edu.mt/library/oar/handle/123456789/150825 2026-11-06T13:57:50Z 2010-01-01T00:00:00Z

Title: Evaristo Gherardi and the commedia dell’arte in France at the time of Louis XIV Authors: Cremona, Vicki Ann Abstract: On the 22nd January 1682, when they produced their play Arlequin Mercure Galant in Paris, the Comediens Italiens du Roi had been occupying the theatre at the Hotel de Bourgogne for well over a year. They had previously, since 1658, shared their premises with the company directed by Jean Baptiste Pocquelin, known as Moliere, first at the Hotel de Bourbon, later at the Palais Royal, and after Moliere's death in 1673, at the Hotel de Guenegaud. Having a theatre all to themselves meant that the Italians were no longer constrained to play solely on the jours extraordinaires: Monday, Wednesday, Thursday and Saturday, and could therefore hope to earn more money from takings. Both companies had obtained their royal title in 1665, and the Italians had been granted an annual allowance of 15000 livres, the same sum as that which had been given to Moliere. In Pocquelin's lifetime, the two companies had enjoyed very good relations. The Italians had influenced Moliere considerably in the type of intrigue they presented, which inspired the way he structured his plays. Their physical discipline, and . the quality of their mime and movement were also a source of inspiration; in fact, Moliere had adopted his black costume and visage enfarine ( or powdered face - literally, covered in flour) from the famous Italian actor of the time: Tiberio Fiorilli, known as Scaramouche. In turn, Moliere had probably influenced the Italians in the type and style of dialogue they began to adopt as they started introducing more and more of the French language into their Italian plays, which led them to move further and further away from the type of commedia dell' arte performances given in Italy.

2010-01-01T00:00:00Z Cremona, Vicki Ann https://www.um.edu.mt/library/oar/handle/123456789/150824 2026-11-06T13:41:06Z 2003-01-01T00:00:00Z

Title: Making costumes live again Authors: Cremona, Vicki Ann Abstract: Whereas the baroque period is normally considered to start at around 1620, in the aftermath of the Counter-Reformation, and to be on the wane by the early 18th century, giving the stage to the Rococo period, this is not the case in Malta. The history of 17th century Malta is characterised by the gradual shift in the interests and outlook of the Order of the Knights of Jerusalem, who had moved to Malta a century earlier, in 1530, after they had been defeated in Rhodes by Suleiman the Magnificent. The development of the change in interest was marked by an important historical event that is celebrated up to this day, known as the Great Siege of 1565, when the Knights and the Maltese defeated the huge Turkish armada that had come to take over the islands. In order to create a living monument to commemorate their victory, the Knights decided to build a new capital city on a sparsely inhabited promontory in the middle of the large and deep natural harbour. This city, named Valletta after the Grand Master Jean de la Valette who had led the defence against the Turkish invasion, was planned as a fortified city on military lines.

2003-01-01T00:00:00Z Aquilina, Stefan https://www.um.edu.mt/library/oar/handle/123456789/150779 2026-11-04T15:31:33Z 2026-01-01T00:00:00Z

Title: Editorial [Stanislavski Studies, 14(2)] Authors: Aquilina, Stefan Abstract: It is a pleasure to introduce here the most recent issue of our Stanislavski Studies journal, namely Volume 14, Issue 2. Like all other previous issues, this current edition contains a healthy mix of historical and practice-based essays exploring Stanislavsky’s work and its relevance and application in contemporary theatre. A number of essays are direct continuations of the discussions held during The S Word Symposium: Stanislavsky’s Many Faces – Then and Now that was held at the University of Malta in November 2025, though I am certainly also keen to note some new connections and fresh faces making their first appearance in the journal.

2026-01-01T00:00:00Z Aquilina, Stefan https://www.um.edu.mt/library/oar/handle/123456789/150778 2026-11-04T15:26:30Z 2025-01-01T00:00:00Z

Title: Book review : Vladimir Nemirovich-Danchenko and the Moscow art theatre Authors: Aquilina, Stefan Abstract: To many of us in Stanislavsky studies, Vladimir Nemirovich-Danchenko comes across, at best, as a rather ambivalent figure. Even if he was a man of undoubted literary acumen, as well as a skilled director and theatre manager, we tend to cast aside these skills to foreground the less agreeable part that he played in Stanislavsky’s story – his incessant attempts to control the Moscow Art Theatre, the not-so-flattering impression he had of Stanislavsky as a talented but capricious amateur, the humiliation of Sulerzhitsky, the appropriation of the System for his own ends, and so on. Still, attempts have been made in recent English scholarship to review critically Nemirovich- Danchenko’s contributions not only to the history of the Moscow Art Theatre (MAT), but also, more broadly, to modern theatre and performance.

2025-01-01T00:00:00Z