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Ninety seconds on Manoel Theatre
Visits and tours lead visitors inside the house Monday to Saturday without a show ticket, and the tours tell the theatre's story among the boxes. A performance in the theatre season is the other way in.
Tours are sold by date and start time on the What's On page of the official site, which is where to check a given day and buy. The theatre recommends that groups book ahead.
The theatre stands on Old Theatre Street in Valletta, a few minutes' walk from City Gate. It is just as close to Republic Street, so the theatre is an easy stop on a walk through central Valletta.
Joining a tour or taking a seat at a show gets you inside Valletta's baroque playhouse, reputed to be Europe's third-oldest working theatre and the oldest still working in the Commonwealth.
Inside, the auditorium is lined with tiers of wooden boxes facing the stage. The building is a baroque work on Old Theatre Street and serves as Malta's National Theatre, with a lavishly decorated interior.
Look closely at the box fronts. Their painted panels were later repainted and gilded by the theatre's own set designer, Ercolani.
Its Maltese name, Teatru Manoel, honours the Portuguese António Manoel de Vilhena, Grand Master of the Knights Hospitaller, who ordered it built. It is often called simply the Manoel.
On a tour, the guides cover how the theatre has changed over the years, from its founders onward, and the relationship between its audiences and artists.
Standard visits run at fixed start times. From late June to the end of August, weekday visits start at 10:30 and noon. The rest of the year, they start at 11:00 and 15:00.
On Saturdays there are three morning slots, an hour apart. Because this is a working theatre, the rooms a visit shows depend on which spaces are free that day.
To see the house in use rather than empty, book a seat at a performance. One Malta guide puts the theatre season for shows at October to May.
The theatre lists its visits as suitable for all ages, and the second named tour is pitched at families, so you can bring children along.
Casa Rocca Piccola, a palace and museum, is a few minutes' walk away if you want a second Valletta interior on the same outing.
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