Minority Shakespeare: a cultural study of translation and performance in Welsh, Euskara, and Te Reo Māori

Jeffery, Elizabeth Mary ORCID: 0000-0001-8378-9892 (2021). Minority Shakespeare: a cultural study of translation and performance in Welsh, Euskara, and Te Reo Māori. University of Birmingham. Ph.D.

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Abstract

This thesis takes an interdisciplinary approach to studying the cultural and theatrical performance of Shakespeare in minority languages. It combines archival research with live performance and audience analysis to evaluate how Shakespeare’s works and legacy can be transformed within diverse cultural and linguistic contexts, and the subsequent sustained social impact of performing Shakespeare in translation in a minority language. By focusing on under-researched areas of performance history, this thesis contributes to wider discussions of what ‘global Shakespeare’ means, and the role Shakespeare has played in shaping contemporary society in three distinct locations: Wales, the Basque Country and New Zealand.
These marginalised communities decentre the dominant cultural narratives of their regions through decolonising Shakespeare to tell their own unique stories. The Other becomes the home territory for the playwright as theatre-makers syncretically ‘tradapt’ his work in rhizomatic, exciting and invigorating ways. By doing so, these minorised communities claim ownership over their own unique heritages and identities – and over Shakespeare – in order to educate, rejuvenate and preserve minority language and culture.
Chapter One offers a broad study of minority languages and cultures and their interactions with Shakespeare. It is organised around five key areas: adaptation, language, national identity, space, and festivals. This exploration of minority Shakespeare reveals a rich tapestry of traditions, in which I situate the work of theatre-makers from Wales, the Basque Country and New Zealand. Each of the following three chapters focuses on one of these main locations, and is divided into two parts. The first part of each chapter provides a detailed account of the history of translation and performance of Shakespeare’s works in Welsh, Euskara and te reo Māori, and his influence on local social and cultural practices. The second part presents a case-study of live performance from 2016-2020. By analysing recent productions, this thesis offers a new perspective on the current state of intercultural Shakespeare performance studies.

Type of Work:	Thesis (Doctorates > Ph.D.)
Award Type:	Doctorates > Ph.D.
Supervisor(s):	Supervisor(s) Email ORCID Sullivan, Erin UNSPECIFIED UNSPECIFIED Tronch, Jesús UNSPECIFIED UNSPECIFIED
Licence:	All rights reserved
College/Faculty:	Colleges (2008 onwards) > College of Arts & Law
School or Department:	School of English, Drama and American & Canadian Studies, The Shakespeare Institute
Funders:	None/not applicable
Subjects:	P Language and Literature > PB Modern European Languages P Language and Literature > PE English P Language and Literature > PN Literature (General) P Language and Literature > PN Literature (General) > PN0080 Criticism P Language and Literature > PN Literature (General) > PN0441 Literary History P Language and Literature > PN Literature (General) > PN2000 Dramatic representation. The Theater P Language and Literature > PR English literature
URI:	http://etheses.bham.ac.uk/id/eprint/11666

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