George Mizzi founded the Gozo Creative Theatre Club 13 years ago. Today, their productions are some of the most soughtafter on the island. Iggy Fenech chats to the man behind the success to find out this theatre company’s story.

George Mizzi is a man of many hats. On top of being a drama teacher and a former teacher at Stage Coach, George is also a member of the Association of British Theatre Technicians, the only Gozitan member of the National Operatic and Dramatic Association (UK).

Moreover, he’s a technical consultant for Gozo cultural activities and a former lecturer of drama, movement and stage management at the Gozo Drama School.

It was just over a decade ago, however, that George added the title of founder of the Gozo Creative Theatre Club to the list and, over the past 13 years he has truly cemented his status as a visionary by putting up an impressive number of productions on Gozo – each with its own unique twist that married art, culture and history perfectly.

Gozo Creative’s story started in 2002, when this non-profit organisation made up of volunteers, put together its first production: a well-received rendition of Heather Brothers’s A Slice of Saturday Night.

“We’ve always loved a challenge,” says George, as he reminisces about the many achievements of the theatre club. “So, when we were putting up our first production, we decided to be faithful to the script – which is set in a disco – and did one night at Ku Club and one night at Club Pyramid.”

That production would turn out to be the start of a wonderful story that has seen Gozo Creative showcase some of Gozo’s most spectacular historical sites by using them as unconventional stages and backdrops for their 24 ensuing productions.

“I believe that it’s important to give audiences something different, and the venue is a big part of any production,” George says. “We have used various locations. For The Jeweller’s Shop, which was written by Karol Wojtyila we used the medieval chapel of St Cecilia, the oldest chapel in Gozo.

“For The Trojan Women, a Grecian play by Euripides, we used the oldest wall of the Citadel, built by the Arabs in the Middle Ages. We used a pjazzetta located between two narrow, winding roads off St George’s Square in Rabat for Legends of Gozo.

“One of my other favourite venues was the Astra – we didn’t just use the hall, but rather the stage itself for The Lord of the Flies. We got the 200-strong audience on the stage and turned it into a very intimate play where the audience was also part of the play.”

Over the years, Gozo Creative has managed to get over 40 actors to join their troupe and take part in their highly-acclaimed productions. These actors range in age and, together with George, they have brought to life some of the world’s most famous plays to an audience that has grown to expect the best from this budding theatre club.

“Normally, when theatre groups put up the stage adaptation of The Lord of the Flies by Nigel Williams, they tend to use people who are over 18 years of age, as the themes discussed and experienced by the characters – even the youngest of them – are quite hard-hitting,” says George.

“We didn’t. Instead, we remained faithful to the story and cast young actors to play the part of the younger characters. I think this really brought out the politics of the story and highlighted that which needed to be highlighted.

“Thankfully, over the past couple of years, Gozo’s cultural scene has greatly improved, particularly in terms of visual arts, including painting and sculpture, as well as in literature. Nevertheless, the theatre scene is moving at a much slower pace.

“What we need now is a State-owned space like the St James Cavalier Centre of Creativity on Gozo,” says George. “What some may not realise is that theatre companies cannot produce something like The Vagina Monologues or The Penis Monologues – both of which we’ve done – in Church-owned theatres.

“So, yes, somewhere State-owned which can be used for educational drama in the mornings and then for theatre productions in the evenings would be wonderful,” he says.

Undoubtedly, it is Gozo Creative’s mix of eccentricity and idiosyncrasy is what makes the company stand out.

Those interested in getting in touch with Gozo Creative Theatre Club can e-mail George at berniniana@onvol.net.