WHEN THE SAINT COMES MARCHING OUT - THE CULTURAL PLAYING OF A MALTESE FESTA

[...]the theatrical qualities of the festivity also serve to reinforce the community, and to highlight its capacity to attract the attention, admiration and, up to a certain extent, the envy of persons outside it. During the days of the celebrations, bright lights in front rooms and hallways reveal...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Themes in theatre 2014-01 (8), p.181
Main Author: Cremona, Vicki Ann
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Maltese
Turner, Victor
Online Access:Get full text
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Summary:[...]the theatrical qualities of the festivity also serve to reinforce the community, and to highlight its capacity to attract the attention, admiration and, up to a certain extent, the envy of persons outside it. During the days of the celebrations, bright lights in front rooms and hallways reveal the wealth of objects inside, thus affirming social standing. [...]balconies are decorated with lights, festoons, and pictures of the patron saint, although the latter have greatly diminished. [...]festa and political rivalry have often blended; in certain areas, partisans of a particular saint are affiliated to one of the two main political parties (Boissevain 1993: 84). [...]the statue itself assumes its own personal aura and charisma, and there are all sorts of stories related to the actual making of certain statues, in order to raise their status even higher.7 The complex series of rituals that are associated with showing the saint and parading him/her through the streets are a means of emphasising the community and its identity through the object.
ISSN:1871-8736
1879-6060