Fifth literary collaboration across borders

A befitting hush descended on The Garden of Rest, Floriana, the mounting anticipation palpable as the scene was set for an evening of smooth jazz, film screenings and readings.

Burial ground to the “father of the Maltese language”, Mikiel Anton Vassalli, the garden – both welcoming and reverent – proved to be the ideal setting for the fifth Mediterranean Literature Festival.

Organised by cultural organisations Inizjamed and Literature Across Frontiers, the three-day festival kicked off on Thursday with Effie Azzopardi, Eric Santucci, Leonard Caruana and Reuben Navarro setting the mood with their jazz tunes.

Their onstage presence was punctuated by psychedelic lighting, which illuminated random trees, bushes, shrubs and the odd headstone that threw friendly shadows around the garden.

On the first two nights, a decently-sized screen projected short films in English (or with English subtitles) from the Zebra Poetry Film Festival, which takes place in Berlin. Presented by Boris Nitzsche, the films, and readings, were decidedly meant for a mature audience. However, the interplay of words with visuals had the members of the audience laughing out loud in complete enjoyment on a number of occasions.

The true highlights of the festival are, however, the readings. Popular Maltese novelist Ġużè Stagno; Sicilian poet/singer/ musician and actor Biagio Guerrera and Portuguese poet Valter Hugo Mãe performed on Thursday night. Readings yesterday were by Maltese poet and festival guest writer, Victor Fenech; Maltese poet Nadia Mifsud, who is based in Lyon; Egyptian poet/novelist/journalist and photographer Youssef Rakha and leading Catalan writer Miquel Desclot.

A touching, mesmerising aspect of the event was the collaboration of all those involved. Authors and poets came together through the sharing and partaking of their literary works. Poems were translated into Maltese, Portuguese, Italian... yet, despite the foreign tongue, the “musical” quality in the essence of literature was respected, while the emotive content remained unchanged.

Those attending the festival will have the opportunity of reading and signing a declaration form dealing with freedom of expression. It reads:

“We writers are convinced that, among other things, writing is a political action which calls for great responsibility... a responsibility which we have chosen to take upon ourselves...”

“While we understand and value the idea that our discipline can be a means of enjoyment and recreation, we realise that, politically, it can also be a source of disquiet...”

The Mediterranean Literature Festival ends this evening to the notes of Effie Azzopardi’s jazz band and the words of Gozitan writer Pierre Mejlak, Lebanese poet/novelist Hyam Yared and UK novelist Niall Griffiths.

Entrance to the festival is free.

www.inizjamed.org