American Theatre: Immigrant Theatremakers Roundtable
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Theatre, at it’s core, is an act of translation. It’s a dynamic process where a playwright’s vision is interpreted, adapted, and brought to life by directors, actors, and designers for a specific audience in a particular time and place. This inherent translation becomes even more complex and fascinating when dealing with plays that originate from different linguistic and cultural backgrounds.
Beyond Literal Equivalents: A World of Perspectives
The challenge of translating a play isn’t merely about finding equivalent words. As playwright Francisco argues,it’s about “thinking,approaching a view of the world from a different viewpoint.” This deeper understanding acknowledges that language is intrinsically tied to culture, history, and lived experience.
Consider the rich tradition of protest songs in Egypt, exemplified by the legendary oud player and singer Sheikh Imam. His music, often veiled in allegory like the phrase “They’re taking the milk from the cow” to critique the exploitation of resources, demonstrates how language can be a powerful tool for conveying nuanced political and social commentary. This ability to communicate complex ideas through subtle linguistic choices highlights the cultural weight embedded within words.
the Intimacy of Language and Identity
For many artists, the choice of language is deeply intertwined with their identity and artistic integrity. Stefani, a playwright who identifies as “an Asian in america” rather than “Asian American,” expresses a clear stance on this. She finds it “realy fascinating that so many playwrights try to use english in place of their native language,” but she herself is “not interested in doing that at all.” her commitment is to write in Cantonese if the play is in Cantonese, or to embrace a bilingual approach with subtitles if the original work is a blend of Cantonese and English.
Stefani emphasizes the profound connection between hearing a language and experiencing its culture. “The environment of being in that language, what it brings out in people,” she explains, is crucial because “people behave differently when they speak different languages.” This perspective underscores the idea that language is not just a interaction tool but a living, breathing element that shapes human interaction and cultural expression.
The Nuances of Sri Lankan English
The complexities of linguistic translation are further illuminated by Arun, who describes the unique cadence and structure of Sri Lankan English. He notes that a Sri Lankan sentence in English “sort of has too many words in it for an American mouth.” While he appreciates the process of American actors adapting to and finding their way into these linguistic patterns, he contrasts it with the effortless ease of a native Sri Lankan speaker reading the lines. “The moment there’s a person who’s grown up in Sri Lanka in the room, and they read the lines-it’s like, Boom! Oh, right, I’ve forgotten what the ease was like.” This observation highlights the subtle, frequently enough unconscious, mastery of language that comes with native fluency and cultural immersion.
The Ever-Shifting Landscape of Theatrical Experience
ultimately, Francisco’s assertion that “none of us can have the same experience” when a play is transferred from one country to another, or even when a production is restaged, rings true. The theatrical experience is inherently ephemeral and context-dependent. “There isn’t a complete encapsulation of the theatrical experience that can survive place and time,” he concludes.”It’s just going to be completely different.”
This understanding doesn’t diminish the value of translation or cross-cultural theatrical exchange. Instead, it celebrates the inherent adaptability and transformative power of theatre.Each production, each translation, is a new interpretation, a fresh dialogue between the original work and its new context, enriching our understanding of both the play and the world it inhabits.**
Lyndsey Bourne is a Canadian writer,teacher,and doula working with The Doula Project. Her plays include The Second Body, Mabel’s Mine, and I Was Unbecoming Then. she teaches playwriting at Playwrights Horizons Theatre School (NYU Tisch).*