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“Yattona! or “Gotcha!” ? Challenges of Translating Kyogen From Stage to Page to Stage
Organizer and Chair: Jonah Salz, Ryukoku University, Japan
Discussants: Shinko Kagaya, Williams College and Kathy Foley, University of California
To coincide with the publication in of the Spring, 2007 Asian Theatre Journal special issue on kyogen, Japanese traditional comedy, guest co-editors and contributors focus on the central challenges of literary and stage adaptations of kyogen comedy. Kyogen in English poses problems to translators hoping to retain authenticity of text, tone and rhythm, playability, and humor. How does one create a successful coherent single text from the multiple texts over time for single plays within schools and even families? Giongo, the onomotapoeic sounds accompanying kyogen pantomime, is always controversial: retaining the Japanese can create a distancing exoticism, yet employing English equivalents may sound too precious and arhythmical. Should contemporary slang be employed as equivalent to kyogen’s familiar tone, or does elegant stiltedness provide a more archaic patina appropriate to “classical comedy”? When translations are not meant to be read, but serve as a basis for a performance script, what liberties may be taken? Without the support of explanatory footnotes, how can obtuse phrases or customs be made comprehensible? And how can performances of chanted and melodic songs be successfully translated into exciting performance? The panelists have decades of experience translating, adapting, directing, and performing kyogen in English in various university and professional theatre settings. They will attempt to frame their specific experience within wider discourses of translation, readership, and intercultural theatre. DVD and live performance excerpts of kyogen song and speech in English should provide a common basis for a lively discussion.
The changing texts for Kyogen theater and the impact on performance: a study of the blind man plays
Carolyn Morley, Wellesley College
Kyogen is a theater of the material world as opposed to its counterpart, no drama. What makes kyogen unique is the recreation of this world on stage through language, mime, and physical props like masks, sickles, and so forth. Even the gods of the kyogen stage have a very real, corporeal presence, like the thunder god who crashes to the earth and is treated for an aching hip by an acupuncture doctor who is passing by (Kaminari). Over the centuries, since the first collection of plot summaries, the Tensho bon (1570), kyogen texts have changed to accommodate the changing audience. This has meant the gradual deletion of scenes and dialogue that could not easily be understood by the contemporary audience of the day. In a certain sense this was necessary in the early 17th century in order that theatrical conventions be established and identified with kyogen. However, in more recent times this same honing process has removed some of the uniquely colorful scenes, as well as some of the more complex plays. This is particularly apparent in the so called “blind priest plays” (zato kyogen) which are rarely performed today. By comparing texts from the early modern and modern periods, I will examine the material world created in the zato plays and explain what has been lost, and why contemporary kyogen troupes avoid these plays. Finally I will offer examples of how translators have coped with the multiple variants to provide faithful, composite texts.
Introducing kyogen in English: strategies for translating comedy for performance
Jonah Salz, Ryukoku University, Japan
Kyogen plays have been translated to English for over a century. Actors today regularly perform at international conferences and tour abroad widely. A number of non-Japanese students perform kyogen, sometimes sharing the stage with their teachers. This paper discusses benefits and deficits of various strategies for making kyogen accessible to non-Japanese, including projected subtitles, summaries, English adaptations, and bilingual dialogue. Performers and producers have developed numerous strategies for overcoming language and culture gaps. The New York Japan Society employs both summaries of plays, carefully edited not to give away punchlines, and powerpoint-projected slides of the translations, whose length, detail, and timing require adept implementation. Actors abroad may shorten plays or simplify language while exaggerating gestures to make stories clearer and funnier when performing. Numerous theatre groups in the U.S. and Japan have attempted English-language kyogen, while the Theatre of Yugen in San Francisco and Noho Theatre Group of Kyoto have employed bilinguality to provide non-native speakers a window on the otherwise obscure world of Japanese kyogen. Live performance and video excerpts demonstrate the challenges of striking a balance of comprehensibility, authenticity, and comedy.
Challenges in Translating Kyogen Texts for the Stage: Allusion, Incantation,Onomatopoeia.
Laurence R. Kominz, Portland State University
Kyogen texts consist primarily of prose dialog. They are couched in a moderately formal style of transitional, late-Edo Period Japanese. Texts are highly expressive and easily comprehensible to Japanese today. The translator's first task is to decide on an appropriate English idiom for translated texts. My purpose in translating kyogen plays is to provide the central tool for actors and directors to give audiences an enjoyable experience, authentic to the experience of Japanese audiences watching kyogen plays in Japan. This presentation will investigate various approaches to idiom made by translators (including the author) and the impact that various idioms have on audience experience of the play. Kyogen texts often present problems that go beyond the issue of basic translation. They include literary allusions, word play, ritual incantations, and onomatopoeia. Each of these "texts within the text" requires different strategies, including paraphrasing Western poetry, creation of rhythm-sensitive English, and occasional retention of the original Japanese text. The paper will include examples illustrated by live and recorded performance segments.
Linking Sound and Movement in Kyôgen Dance
Julie A. Iezzi, University of Hawaii
Generally thought of as a theatre of spoken dialogue, nearly one third of the plays in the current kyôgen repertory feature or short songs (kouta) or other chant accompanying dance. These songs and dances serve a variety of dramatic functions, ranging from mere entertainment as characters drinks, to displays of the performer’s virtuosity, to providing celebratory musical endings. No matter when or how they are used, the complex interconnection between the song lyrics and dance movements provide moments of discovery for the audience yielding both laughter and nods of appreciation. In translating kyôgen songs for performance, the translator must keep in mind not only the meaning, rhythm and melody of the lyrics, but consider how they are linked with the dance movements. Like a scroll, the “story” of the dance is revealed with each intricately linked phrase of song and movement. This paper will present ways of dealing with the various issues that arise in translating dance lyrics for performance, illustrated by live and video performance.