Romeo et Juliette cursed by run of bad luck

Tenor Joseph Calleja and his Romanian wife Tatiana Lisnic have pulled out of this week's concert performances of Romeo et Juliette at the Manoel Theatre after suffering a severe bout of flu.

The 27-year-old opera sensation said it was with a heavy heart that on Sunday evening he was compelled to inform the administration of the Manoel Theatre that the couple would not be able to recover in time to take part in the performances, due to take place as part of the Bank of Valletta opera festival tomorrow and Friday.

Manoel Theatre chairman Wilfred Kenely said last night there was still "a very good chance" of the concerts going ahead as efforts were being made to procure two other quality singers in time for tomorrow's performance.

Mr Kenely said the couple's withdrawal had been one of a series of unfortunate episodes "and we look forward to Joseph Calleja performing at the Manoel in the future".

Mr Kenely said, however, that the theatre was working very hard to ensure that the performances would take place and he hoped to be in a position to make an announcement today.

"I am optimistic that it is not just going to go ahead but also that the quality of the performance will be honoured. We want to put on a high level show that will be worth the patrons' money and worth their time," he said.

The theatre's production of Romeo et Juliette has been dogged with problems for several weeks.

It was switched from an opera to a concert 10 days ago after Alejandro Gallo, who was due to play Mercutio, was seriously injured while rehearsing a duel at the theatre.

Brian Schembri had also withdrawn from conducting the production and had to be replaced by Michael Laus.

However, the latest announcement is bound to disappoint the sell-out audience, who were looking forward to seeing Mr Calleja for the first time since his performances on the island as part of the EU celebrations 11 months ago.

Over 600 tourists are coming to Malta specifically for the festival.