With ‘Malta’s biggest-ever musical’ hitting the stage in just three days, producer Wesley Ellul tells Iggy Fenech how he hopes Rock of Ages will revolutionise performance arts in Malta.
I have never understood how some people could hate musicals. I mean, what’s not to love about musicals? People bursting into song randomly, intrigue and passion played out in choreographed numbers and men with enough swagger to put France’s Louis XIV to shame…
True, it’s not the most realistic art form out there. They’re not as raw as some theatrical productions and maybe you don’t need to be as ‘smart’ or as ‘learned’ as someone who revels in classical compositions to enjoy them, but musicals are pure and glorious entertainment, nonetheless.
Wesley Ellul, one of the directors of TAC Theatre, knows all that and also knows that from among all the latest additions to the Hall of Fame of legendary musicals, Rock of Ages is the most entertaining – hence why, I presume, he decided to go for the tagline ‘Malta’s Biggest Party’ to market it. And, given the cast list, the soundtrack, the story and the big names helping out behind the scenes, it sure seems like it is going to be an absolutely huge ball.
Set on Los Angeles’ infamous Sunset Strip, the Rock of Ages musical tells the story of Drew Boley, a boy from South Detroit and Sherrie Christian, a small-town girl, both of whom are in Los Angeles to chase their dreams of making it big and falling in love.
The story, written by Chris D’Arienzo, is built around some of the biggest tracks of the 1980s Glam Metal scene and will take audiences back to the time of big bands with big egos, playing big guitar solos and sporting even bigger hair! In fact, this five-time Tony Award-nominated jukebox musical features hit numbers by Styx, Bon Jovi, Pat Benetar, Twisted Sister, Poison and Europe.
If that seems a bit tacky to you, don’t listen to the voices in your head… you honestly have to see it to believe how impressively it’s all put together. So much so, that, internationally, the show has received rave reviews throughout with The New York Times calling it ‘as guilty as pleasures get’, and Time Out New York saying it’s ‘insanely fun’!
In Malta, Rock of Ages will star some of the biggest names in local musical and theatre scenes, including Kurt Calleja, Errol Sammut, Nadia Vella, Taryn Mamo Cefai, Chris Dingli, Colin Fitz and Rachel Fabri – with Marc Cabourdin and Wesley Ellul as the directors of the musical (the latter is also the producer), Renzo Spiteri as the musical director, Sue Vassallo on choreography and Roger Tirazona as the choir master.
Brings together the world of popular rock music and theatre in a funny and touching way that is sure to entertain people
It is expected to be an extravagant night out and, all in all, the individual ingredients promise a great, entertaining and professional final product. But none of this came together by coincidence.
As Ellul, the producer of ‘Malta’s biggest-ever musical’, explains the staging of Rock of Ages is a dream that has taken a lot of perseverance to realise.
“The Rock of Ages dream started five years ago,” he says, adding that he was on his honeymoon in New York at the time. “I’d heard about this musical-meets-rock-concert which billed itself as an insanely fun night out and I decided to book tickets for it in advance.
“Little could have prepared me for the awesomeness I was about to witness on stage before me, however,” he says, clearly reliving the excitement of when he first saw it. “I sat in the theatre for two hours just buzzing at the highly-energetic show, which was not only amazing musically but also hilariously funny! It was that night that I made it my mission to produce this show in Malta!”
Following his honeymoon – although, knowing Wesley, he probably started that same night – he worked on getting the contacts he needed in order to get the rights to stage the show. This took Wesley a few months, but he finally managed to get in touch with the writer, Chris d’Arienzo, and the producer, Matthew Weaver. Unfortunately, the latter had some bad news for Wesley, as a major Hollywood movie based on the musical was in the works at that time, and the rights were blocked until that was out.
For a while, it didn’t seem as if Wesley would ever stage it, until he got in touch with Matthew Weaver again and TAC Theatre was fast-tracked to the front of the list.
“It was the longest I ever had to wait for to stage a show,” Wesley continues, “but it was what Marc Cabourdin and myself needed to continue working towards our vision of creating a financially sustainable performing arts scene. Rock of Ages, in fact, is a great base on which we can put together a great show that is sustainable for a long period of time.”
“Rock of Ages brings together the world of popular rock music and theatre in a funny and touching way that is sure to entertain people. This means that audiences here will be varied, and that the show may reach new demographics which are not your typical theatregoers… Also, throw into the mix the ever-growing tourist market and you have the making of a proper, sustainable model whereby a show can run for months on end.”
Whether Wesley’s plan will turn out to be a success remains to be seen – but response is already growing for this much-loved musical, with the show already confirmed to run from the end of June till mid-August.
Rock of Ages will be performed on June 29 and 30, July 6, 13, 14, 20 and 27, and August 3 and 10 at the City Theatre in Valletta. For tickets or more information, visit www.rockofagesmalta.com.