Kim Dalli is an extraordinary woman. With an incredibly fruitful career, Kim’s recent projects were the centre of this podcast, including a recent exhibition relating to narcissism, something that effects so many people, both men and women.
‘I was engaged to curate this exhibition in which two artists in Malta created these beautiful artworks expressing the journey that one goes through, and the impact on your mental health, when one has just escaped from a relationship with a narcissist. It was an eye opener to delve into what it means. It’s a silent type of abuse. I came up with the title (Un) Silenced – it’s about women getting back their voices. It’s a long journey but women can make it back and find their voice and there is light at the end of the tunnel. It’s an erosion of self and identity and you feel very isolated. But it happens to a lot of women and men. Don’t be afraid to reach out for help.’
Kim is a very busy woman, but she makes the time to volunteer at the St Jeanne Antide Foundation.
‘I still volunteer there but my first project was when they connected me with a young woman, and I acted as her mentor. I was the only stable presence in her life. The journey was incredible. Throughout the course of a year and a half, she emerged from her shell, and she now has a successful job now and lives in her own home. I just showed her what I could see she could do because she couldn’t see herself. Being a volunteer is so satisfying.’
The next project that Kim is currently undergoing leads to another part of her life – acting. Kim is engaging in a new project about the women who are never talked about.
‘I call it my baby and I’m very close to giving birth to this project! It is docudrama focusing on the wartime contribution of Maltese women - a topic which is extremely interesting. The war is always explored from a masculine lens. There is very little literature about women in the war. There’s so much to discover. So, I headed to the National Archives of Malta, and I would spend hours digging into these documents. I started piecing it together. I approached relatives and I started building the stories. Their stories are incredible. There were so many phenomenal women of national importance. In fact, women’s war time work directly contributed to their voting rights in 1947. They were the engine keeping Malta’s economy running. Women took on this role upon themselves. I am a background character in the stories of these women. I’m a very non-invasive presenter.’
This 8-part episode docuseries called The Women of George Cross Island is about women stepping up and changing the course of history for all women after that. It is planned to go out later this year and once it is aired locally, Kim hopes that it will also be aired abroad.
Moving on to a very important production, one that won awards…They Blew Her Up. This fictional story (since the case is still open) explores one of the biggest shocks to the Maltese Islands. Every Maltese will know where they were when this happened. This story is about an active journalist, Daphne Caruana Galizia, looking to dig up any corruption from the government, who was
assassinated for telling the truth. In this production, Kim plays a journalist which she also was at the time.
‘It is such an important story, and it is our job is to keep telling that story and reminding people. Justice is yet to be served. We need to keep reminding people of this story. We recently performed in Brussels – packed with people, it was sold-out. People identified with the story. We were also accompanied by Daphne’s son, Matthew Caruana Galizia, and there was a Q&A after the show. It does not attempt to white-wash Daphne’s legacy. As journalists, we did not always agree with her. Sometimes, she wrote hurtful things. But the point is, she was assassinated for telling the truth. That remains the crux of it.’
Kim claims that it is an uncomfortable reality, but it is a very human story.
‘My character is a journalist, and she starts off very cynical about Daphne. She is critical of her work but then she slowly starts changing her perspective when she starts stripping off layer after layer of the whole truth. Suddenly it took on immense proportion. A monumental event that rocked the foundations of a lot of people’s lives. The story is relevant and we’re here to keep saying it. I do hope that justice is served.’
Recently, Kim also took part in another award-winning production called Zoom, based on the effect Covid had on our lives.
‘This was performed bang in the middle of the pandemic when the art sector was trying to navigate the pandemic. This was an innovative production – it utilised the space we performed in at The Inquisitor’s Palace in Birgu. We had an audience seated in the outer part of the courtyard and another group seated in the inner courtyard. However, we also had people watching online through Zoom, hence the name of the play! This means that we had people experiencing the same play from different angles. I was able to perform at a very challenging time and I feel privileged to have been a part of these production.’
So, what’s next for Kim?
‘My next production is called The Merry Wives of Windsor. It is a feminist play with a local element to it. It is a fun play that you go to watch to forget all about your worries and laugh your troubles away!’
Thank you, Kim for being a blessing to us all and for always striving to empower women!
