No trip to Malta would be complete without a visit to the small Manoel Theater in Valletta. Once home to beggars, vagabonds, and vagrants, now home to over 6,000 theater costumes.

Located on Old Theater Street, this fascinating purpose-built baroque building is an architectural gem. It is said to be the third oldest theater in Europe still in use and the oldest theater in the Commonwealth. It dates back to the first decades of the 18th century, when the then Grand Master of the Knights of Saint John, Antonio Manoel de Vilhena, decided in 1731 to build a public theater ‘for the honest recreation of the people’ according to the Latin inscription above the gate. The 650-seat auditorium is quite unlike a conventional 20th century theater, originally U-shaped it was transformed into an oval in the early 19th century. With a small stage and orchestra pit, the stall seats just 272 people, but above and below the gilded ceiling and magnificent crystal chandelier are three full rows of boxes, including a very discreet Grand Master box. Beneath the theater are two shafts which serve to give the exceptional acoustics for which the theater is famous. The original theater was smaller than the current one, as the current gallery and proscenium were added in 1812. It was also narrower, as the boxes were also situated on the ground floor. Patrons in those distant days used to dance the pieces in production, so the parterre would be lit up during performances. All of the delicate frescoes are Mediterranean scenes bordered with 22-carat gold leaf. Originally called ‘Teatro Público’, it later bore the title of ‘Teatro Real’ but, finally, in 1866 in homage to its founder, it became and remains the Manoel Theatre.

The first night of all first nights was January 9, 1732 with the performance of ‘Merope’, a great tragedy in the classical style, by Scipione Maffei. The set was designed by Francois Moudion who was the architect of the Order of Saint John and was played by the Knights. The theater was run by a Senior Knight of the Order who bore the title of ‘Protettore’ and managed the house by generally approving the program of plays for each season. Nicolo Isouard became the ‘Protettore’ or Commissioner during the French occupation of Malta in the last two years of the 18th century, but hard times took their toll and players could no longer withstand the strains of war and dark days followed for the Manoel.

With the arrival of the British, the theater was brought back to life and during the first half of the 19th century there was a nine-month opera season every year, from September to May. In 1812, when British General Sir George Whitmore redecorated the theatre, the engineer responsible for the work introduced the proscenium arch, dismantled the stone boxes on the ground floor to erect wooden ones complete with decorated panels, and raised the ceiling so that the theater became a flat. higher. During this period there were nights of splendor such as December 4, 1838 when Queen Adelaide, widow of King William IV, came with cheers, hymns and a guard of honor to see the performance of ‘Lucia di Lamermoor’ by Gaetan Donizette.

Curiously, it was the very prosperity of the last years of the 19th century that led to the eclipse of the Manoel Theatre. The large garrison, the fleet and a growing number of tourists made the theater unsuitable and in 1861 it became private property. With the proceeds from the sale, the Royal Opera House was built and the little house of Grand Master Antonio de Vilhena fell into disuse and served as a home for beggars. Some of the old glory returned when the Royal Opera House was destroyed by fire in 1873. The grand opera house replaced the evicted beggars until the Opera House was rebuilt and then the once-loved little venue on Theater Street seemed to be in its deathbed. It irregularly served as a dance hall and, in this century, as a cinema. But then once again the fate of the Opera House brought about the revival of the Manoel when the former was completely destroyed in World War II. Dreams of bringing the Manoel back to life came true when the Maltese Government acquired the building in response to a public appeal. Experts from Great Britain and Italy were called in and under their supervision and with loving care the delicate restoration process was carried out. On a splendid December night in 1960, the famous Ballet Rambert Company presented ‘Coppelia’ at the opening performance.

Some 40 years later, the theater is now in the fourth phase of another restoration project that includes bringing out the original shades of blue in the three layers of panels in the flat roof that are darker towards the edge and lighter in the center. : a visual effect image that, seen from below, gives a trompe l’oeil effect of a round dome, similar to the technique used on the flat “dome” of the Chiesa del Gesù in Rome. The theater lobby is now the restored Bonici Palace, a grand 18th-century palace adjoining the theater on the corner of Old Theater and Old Bakery streets. The internal Central Courtyard of the Palace serves as the center of the new theater complex and acts not only as a foyer for the auditorium, but also as a meeting place for coffee and lunches and a venue for art exhibitions, recitals, lectures and poetry readings. . Courtyards are important in traditional Maltese domestic architecture because they capture the cool, heavy air at night that filters laterally through the surrounding rooms during the day. But to act as the year-round theater foyer, it had to be protected from winter storms while still being able to perform its traditional climate-control and social functions. The architects developed a steel and glass roof, made in slightly curved sections that can be moved with individual motors depending on the weather and the season. However, the old building has retained many fascinating features, such as the white Carrara marble staircase and shell-shaped niches, the wall brackets and chandeliers from Vienna, the heavy blue/green and gold silk curtains, a couple of chandeliers and, at the top of the stairs, a truly magnificent chandelier. Throughout there are engravings depicting characters and scenes from famous operas and display cases that house memorabilia from the Theater collected over the years.

The Manoel is now officially the National Theater of Malta. Celebrities who have graced its stage include Sir Yehudi Menuhin, Sir Donald Wolfit, Margaret Rutherford, Kiri Te Kanawa, the Berlin State Opera Ballet, and Gary Linekar. A visit here is not an option but an obligation. An unmissable experience to delight and captivate.