Maltese theatre, national identity and theatre in Maltese

Abstract

Independence in 1964 was an understated revolution for Malta. The people who voted in favour of independence in the referendum held at the time certainly never envisaged the far-reaching consequences of their vote, which was to pave the way for Malta not only to take full possession and responsibility for its territory, but to overcome its insularity and eventually claim its European-ness and right to international decision-making, at a par with its former colonizers. Independence shifted power from the hands of a foreign state, ruling Malta at a distance and allowing Maltese development only insofar as it served its own interests, and placed it fairly and squarely in Maltese laps. Malta had to go through a learning curve in its engagement with the democratic process that proved at times arduous and painful. Maltese theatre was to develop in relation to this reality and true to its nature, to boldly confront themes that the rest of society had to, and in a certain sense, still has to, get used to discussing. [Excerpt]