Taxes stall special flight plans for Bocelli's concert

Interest in world-famous tenor Andrea Bocelli's Taormina concert on Sunday has surpassed expectations, leaving Malta promoters Renaissance Productions Ltd both surprised and satisfied at the response.

Ticket sales for Duetti d'Amore at the evocative Teatro Antico have reached 150, with a waiting list of 40 at the travel agency, Britannia Services, not to mention those who have given up due to the unavailability of flights.

There is a demand for between 50 and 100 more, RPL directors Anton Tabone and Amabile Zammit said, adding that they have had to make a second request for tickets to event organisers Asset Group Italia. Tickets were snapped up soon after the concert was announced at the end of July.

The event would have merited extra flights on August 13 and 15, Dr Tabone said.

RPL, together with Brittania, had considered chartering a flight to Catania on Sunday afternoon - the day of the concert - returning early on Monday morning. "But the taxes, which are close to Lm40, turned out to be more expensive than the concert ticket, or the flight and therefore, it did not make financial sense to organise a day trip."

Concert tickets of every category have been sold - from Lm35, to Lm95 and even Lm280 for a couple, which includes a VIP dinner of 200 guests with the singer after the show. About 15 Maltese couples have gone for that option, Dr Tabone said.

The response "goes to show how popular Andrea Bocelli is even here and that the expense of going overseas to see him perform has not been considered a hindrance".

The feedback has also been "food for thought" for RPL in terms of bringing the world-famous tenor to Malta some day. Put off by the prohibitive price of his performances - the singer is among the costliest in the world - they are now considering the possibility, judging by the lengths the Maltese are willing to go to watch him perform.

Moreover, "wherever Bocelli performs, he brings added intrinsic value to the location," they said.

Malta is taking advantage of the audience at the concert - the Teatro Antico has a capacity of 4,500 - and a promotion arrangement has been made with the Malta Tourism Authority, whereby Malta is being advertised in the programme while freestanding billboards promoting it are being positioned at the entrance to the theatre.

RPL was only approached by Asset Group Italia around three weeks ago, following its successful Riccardo Muti concert in July, to support the promotion of the Taormina event in Malta. The company, which has been operating for some 23 years and has been involved in the organisation of a variety of top-notch cultural and sporting events, is "more than pleased and impressed with the local interest", Dr Tabone said.

Time to market and transport availability were not on their side but they still managed to surpass an "ambitious" target of 100 tickets and were getting closer to 200, including those who were just waiting to secure travel arrangements.

The figures meant RPL could take its collaboration with Asset Group Italia to another level in terms of future cooperation on high-profile events, both abroad and locally, Dr Tabone continued.

Meanwhile, a major future event for next summer is being announced by RPL in mid-September.

Andrea Bocelli's Duetti d'Amore concert in Taormina is kicking off his world tour. He is performing together with sopranos Raffaella Angeletti, Désirée Rancatore, Annamaria dell'Oste and Patrizia Orciani, under the baton of musical director Steven Mercurio, conducting the Orchestra Teatro Vittorio Emanuele di Messina.

The international star, who is blind, was discovered by Luciano Pavarotti and has been described as his "heir". He appeals not only to opera lovers but also to followers of pop music.