Hajja Salesjana Jan-Mar 2019

H AJJA S ALESJANA September 29th 2018: The opening chords of a haunting melody fills Teatru Salesjan, as the stage is set for the final performance of Sfumat – an original production created by the talented youths at the Salesian Oratory in Sliema. Charles lies sick and dying in his bed at the nursing home – visited by his eldest son, Joseph, and his family. He is anxious about how Joseph is running the company he had built so many years ago, and asks about his grand-daughter, Maria, whose father is Charles’ estranged youngest son, Alex. Through the scenes that unfold, we learn more about the many strained relationships within this family, gaining a different perspective about Alex (who is never seen or heard throughout the performance). The idea for the production came about last September 2017, during a weekend live-in held by the Salesian Worship Team – a group of youths who animate the Sunday Youth Mass at the Salesian Oratory Chapel in Sliema, as well as various other events at the Oratory throughout the year. 2018 marked the tenth anniversary since the Worship Team’s birth, and so we decided to celebrate it in a special way by putting up a production, totally created and produced by the youths at the Salesian Oratories around Malta. The working title was “Perception” – we wanted to create a story which would leave the audiences thinking about what they would have just watched, and not just give superficial entertainment during its run. This is why we decided that the main character would never be formally introduced to the audience, other than through the perspectives of those around him. To achieve the final product we did, we relied on around 25 talented coordinators divided into the following main groups: The Production Team, Script-Writing Team, Artistic Team, Logistics and Sponsors Team, and Marketing and Fund-Raising Team. The Production Team was made up of Edward Mifsud (the Executive Director), Mohamed El Bakry (representing the Logistics and Sponsors Team), Michaela Cardona (representing the Marketing and Fund- Raising Team), David Camilleri (as President of the Sliema Oratory) and myself (representing the Artistic and Script-Writing Team). Through a series of meetings spanning 8 months, we 14