An Urdu production of The Taming Of The Shrew and an Arabic musical version of The Tempest are among the multi-lingual productions to be staged at Shakespeare’s Globe next year in an ambitious new project announced today.
As part of the London 2012 Cultural Olympiad, the Bankside outdoor venue is to stage all of Shakespeare’s 38 plays in a different language over a period of six weeks from 23 April. The Globe itself will produce one of the plays, with the others being presented by international theatre companies.
The festival, described by Globe Artistic Director Dominic Dromgoole as “slightly bananas” in its ambition, will include a production of King Lear in Australian Aboriginal languages, a Spanish Henry VIII and Love’s Labour’s Lost in British Sign Language. Rawiri Paratene – who appeared at Shakespeare’s Globe last year and is known for the film Whale Rider – will star in a Maori production of Troilus And Cressida, with Zimbabwean actors Denton Chikura and Tonderai Munyevu starring in a Shona version of The Two Gentlemen Of Verona. Lithuanian director Eimuntas Nekrosius, Pakistani TV star Nadia Jamil and Hong Kong director Tang Shu Wing will also take part in the season.
The project aims to build on the tradition of international Shakespeare productions in the capital and celebrate the multi-lingual nature of modern London. Dromgoole added that he hoped collaborating with foreign visiting companies would “open up conversations with these artists that will carry on into the future.”
The writing of Shakespeare is “an international language”, said Dromgoole. “His plays have been translated into every major living language and there is a long tradition of Shakespeare performances around the world in people’s own vernacular.
“As Shakespeare’s theatrical London home, we want to celebrate this international affection by welcoming Shakespeare enthusiasts – producers, performers and audiences – to experience his work in their own languages and dialects within this iconic theatre. During the course of these six weeks, the Globe will create an international Shakespeare community in the heart of London, as a prelude to the internationalism which will fill the capital later in the year with the Olympics”.
Two performances of each of the 38 plays will be performed during the six weeks. The Globe’s annual summer season will open, later than normal, following the end of the Shakespeare festival.
CB