M
iquel Martorell was appointed director of Palma's Teatre Principal a year ago, and has known the company since he was a child. “I'm from Palma. When I was 13, I joined the Teatre Principal de Palma choir and sang the choruses in the opera Turandot.” It was at this venerable institution, founded in 1667, that the young Miquel discovered opera, theatre and... his vocation. In 2001, Miquel began a professional relationship with the theatre: as a chorister, actor, prop-maker, assistant director and musical director, he was exposed to every facet of the profession. At the same time, he acquired a master's degree in business management and a master's degree in cultural management. “I like the creative part and the commercial part,” he explains. “When the competition for the theatre's director was launched, I saw that it was a post-public competition with many guarantees for the selection of professionals with no political ties, so I applied”. Unanimously selected, Miquel Martorell developed a project that paid tribute to the theatre, with an approach based on plurality and inclusion. “We are the most important and most beautiful theatre in the Balearic Islands,” he says, “in terms of budget, building, scenic qualities and technology, we have to be up to the challenge.”
In this age of platforms and social networks, with screens monopolising everyone's time and attention, it's hard for a theatre to attract audiences. Cultural habits have changed, and today's audiences have much more choice. "We have to differentiate ourselves, have our own personality and be very clear about the quality of what we offer, we have to be attractive enough for people to choose us.” The message to the audience would be “choose us because with a live show, you're going to experience something special”.
