Theater translation into Sign Languages: an essay on thebody and (in)visibility

Abstract

In the present essay, we propose a discussion based on a concern that part of the population, the deaf community, does not have access (or very little and in a non-aesthetical way) to the theatrical plays produced by the majority community, the listeners.  Amongst the different questions involved in this situation, we propose a discussion about the (in)visibility of translation and the Sign Languages (SL) translator/interpreter’s visible body – visible because it is present (or present because it is visible) – in the scene (or on its fringe). Of course these questions are related, as they are implicated in one another, but they allow us to see in a particular way a theme that is very dear to Translation Studies: the translation process (in)visibility. Therefore, we seek an aesthetical experience (the theatrical play), based on a po-ethic approach to translation, rather than just prioritizing a translation that “communicates the message”. The meaning here is not discovered, but created, built, invented. The theatre translation into SLs is conceived here as a visual, spatial and linguistic act, and it must be designed according to the play specificities. Thus, our goal is proposing a theater translation/interpreting process into SLs, in dialogue with the stage direction.