The Manoel Theatre was built in 1731 by Grand Master Manoel de Vilhena on the plans of François de Mondion. At around 1783, the Manoel Theatre underwent considerable modifications and decorations under Romano Carapecchia.

The site occupied by the Manoel Theatre was originally a small building between a priory and a private house. The theatre, its dressing rooms and ancillary facilities occupy a larger area including the corner building on Triq l-Ifran. The plan of the theatre stalls is in the form of a horseshoe.

Originally it had three tiers of boxes with open galleries flanking the five boxes on the top floor. Each box has painted panels depicting landscape scenes, flowers and other nature related motifs. The platea provides 370 seats and the balconies provide another 100 seats on three tiers having 17 stalls each.

The façade of this baroque theatre features a portal surmounted by a stone balustraded open balcony supported on three heavy scroll corbels.

Mepa scheduled the Manoel Theatre as a Grade 1 national monument as per Government Notice No. 276/08 in the Government Gazette dated March 28.

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