What to wear and how to behave

What the booking page asks

Under what to bring, the booking page gives comfortable shoes and a camera. It gives six items under what is not allowed. Under what is not allowed it lists high-heeled shoes, food and drinks, short skirts, sleeveless shirts, flash photography and photography inside. Treat the list as binding for the evening. If something on your confirmation differs, follow the confirmation, because it comes from the provider of the evening.

Shoulders, knees and heads

Malta Uncovered says that to enter you need to cover your shoulders and knees and take off any headgear, that backpacks should be worn in front of your body and that stiletto or thin heels are not allowed. A light scarf or shawl in your bag solves the shoulder question in warm weather. Trousers or a long skirt solve the knees. Malta Uncovered is describing the cathedral generally, and the booking page's list is the one for your ticket.

Shoes and floors

The cathedral floor is a set of marble tombstones, which Wikipedia describes as richly decorated with inlaid marble. Hard stone is tiring over half an hour of standing and walking before the performance, so flat, comfortable shoes are a sensible choice as well as a rule. The booking page bars high heels, and Malta Uncovered also bars stiletto and thin heels inside the cathedral.

Photographs

The booking page lists photography inside and flash photography as not allowed. That includes the performance and the painting. A camera on the what-to-bring list is for the streets and squares of Valletta, where you can photograph the cathedral's plain front before you go in. A daytime visit may have its own photography rules, which the cathedral publishes. Silence the phone as well, since screens glow in a dark Oratory and a ringing phone carries in a room of stone and gilt.

Arriving

The booking page says to arrive at the main door on St John Street for entry, and that the cathedral may be viewed without a guide for 30 minutes before the performance. The daytime visitors' entrance is elsewhere, on Republic Street according to Wikipedia, so do not follow a daytime sign. The same article notes that regular concertgoers aim to be seated before the first note, which here means using the half hour well.

During the performance

Wikipedia's rule of thumb for a classical concert is courtesy to the people around you: no talking while the music plays, and phones and other devices switched off. Applause between movements is usually a minor faux pas in the 2020s, and for sacred works a long, quiet pause often comes before anyone claps. The performance here mixes music and spoken storytelling in English, so follow the performers' lead and wait for the end.

Read next: Caravaggio concert in Valletta

Access and comfort

The booking page lists wheelchair access. The cathedral is a historic stone building, so allow extra time to move between the door, the nave and the Oratory, and tell the producer of any need before the evening using the contact details in your confirmation. The after-hours tour option is booked on its own page. Wikipedia describes a cathedral entered from the square and a separate visitors' entrance, so confirm which door has step-free access with the producer.

Who this isn't for

This guide is about the evening's rules. It does not cover daytime opening hours, Mass times or the rules for a daytime visit, which the cathedral publishes on its own website. If you need to take photographs of the interior, plan a daytime visit and read the cathedral's current rules first. The confirmation is the place to check anything specific to your date.