Reflecting on Feminist Translation in Practice: Readings, Dialogues and Collaboration

In May 2024, at the Centre for Latin American and Caribbean Studies, we organised a one-day symposium on Feminist Translation in Practice. This included a workshop, a roundtable and a rehearsed reading of an extract in the original Spanish and English translation of a play by Uruguayan playwright Josefina Trías, who attended the event in person. The programme for the day can be accessed here and translation research and practice is an important element of the work in CLACS. The event brought together translation researchers and practitioners to explore strategies for feminist translation which extend beyond approaches to the text and can support ways of working to develop, publish and perform feminist translations. The research underpinning the event and its format demonstrated the importance and creativity of academic-practitioner collaborations and how these can form the basis for further research inquiry, and also lead to the implementation of new practices in related industries such as theatre and publishing.

One of the key elements to organising the day and making it a success was collaboration and this involved drawing on networks of researchers, artists and practitioners. My collaboration with Josefina Trías began after I saw her play Terrorismo Emocional in 2019 at a festival in Uruguay to celebrate International Women’s Day. Another playwright, whose work I had previously translated and published on, Raquel Diana introduced me to Josefina and Raquel had previously performed at the same festival. Raquel shared her insights and her recommendations, as well as her knowledge of theatre and translation, with both of us. There is an openness and care to this way of working which connects others and creates opportunities to share expertise; I adopt this approach to creating and staging feminist translations, and to creating the network of collaborators that I want to establish through this work. The play Terrorismo Emocional asks questions about feminism, intersectional feminism, women’s identities, women’s bodies and women’s creativity. This play, along with others I’m working on in this project, asks who gets to create, tell and perform stories about women and how these topics can generate connections across different contexts, languages and experiences. During this event, we exchanged translation practices and strategies, explored new research and methodologies from theatre practice, and shared work in progress. We sought to create spaces to exchange ideas, learn from different types of knowledge and experience, and think about how feminist translation strategies could underpin future work.

In recognition of this collaboration, to celebrate the work we co-created, as well as to mark Women in Translation Month, I invited some of the people involved in the event to reflect upon the experience.

By Sophie Stevens, CLACS 

Fran Olivares, London-based theatre practitioner and director from Chile, reflects on designing and delivering the workshop activities:

During the workshop, Sophie introduced the concept of "PONER EL CUERPO". This concept is deeply rooted in political and activist contexts, highlighting the act of putting one’s body into the struggle, both literally and metaphorically. This idea ties directly into theatre practice, where "putting your body into" a character makes the experience more authentic and dynamic. We did an activity in groups which involved drawing the outline of a body and placing translations inside or outside to explore their significance in understanding a character in a play. I feel this activity has even more potential that we could explore in the future.

This exercise, as well as one that we created where we invited participants to translate or re-phrase feminist slogans and hashtags, focusses on embodying the text - literally putting words into physical space. I'd like to keep exploring this connection in future workshops, possibly by integrating movement or physical theatre techniques to deepen participants' engagement with the text.  

"Her Open Eyes"

One of the more complex activities involved working on a scene from Her Open Eyes (Original: Los ojos abiertos de ella) by Raquel Diana and translated into English by Sophie. We worked together on the staged reading of the play for Out of the Wings in 2019. We used the outline of the body that participants had created and asked them to place phrases and ideas either inside or outside the outline, representing personal resonance or external influences. This exercise aimed to highlight the translator's voice and their interpretative authority.  

The connection between "PONER EL CUERPO" and drawing the body outline just becomes clearer here: both exercises seek to bridge the gap between text and embodiment, making the translation a more immersive, physical experience. As I continue to reflect while I write this, this experience will undoubtedly push me to dig deeper into my practice as a theatre translator, director and facilitator.  

Marisol Spensieri, actor originally from Argentina, reflects on the rehearsed reading of Terrorismo Emocional performed in Spanish by the playwright Josefina Trías and performed in English by Marisol, directed by Fran Olivares:

Delving into Terrorismo Emocional - Emotional Intelligence (working title) was an immersive endeavour – when I read the words, it felt like reading my own mind. What are the chances of having the opportunity to perform a piece that is originally written in my mother tongue -with a lot of slang and accents I recognise- in London? Josefina and I grew up on opposite sides of the Río de la Plata, yet there is so much language shared amongst those shores. And Sophie’s translation felt as natural as the original version.

Clara’s (the protagonist) brain felt like my own but also so recognisable for the experiences of so many other women going through change and rediscovery of themselves. As a performer, it was a huge honour to work with the translator, playwright and a director for this reading. In the short space of one day, we exchanged so much about the process of transmitting the poetry, the pace of a language, the tone, the irony, into another language. Each read-through was a discovery of who this character is, what does she sound like. Fran directed me with care and her ideas generated so many moments of playfulness and humour. Then, it was beautiful to hear Josefina reading it in Spanish and experience the pace of the words in her voice, a delivery that opened more avenues and made me think – how can I explore that pace in English? The feedback from the event’s participants also sparked new thoughts and feelings.

It was beautiful to be part of a generous and supportive environment amongst this group of women. For me, this piece is not just about portraying the pain of a break-up; it is about embodying the strength, discovery and resilience that emerge in its aftermath. It’s also about the broader struggles we as women face in society when trying to reclaim who we are. And how art, and writing in this case, can help us channel difficult situations.

You can read about the event and access a recording of the performances and dialogue between actor, playwright, director and translator here: 
https://ilcs.sas.ac.uk/podcasts/feminist-theatre-translation-practice-readings-dialogue-and-collaboration

The event was supported by funding from the Convocation Trust and The John Coffin Memorial Fund.

The playwright Josefina Trías was interviewed about her work and her experience at the events held in Senate House in London in the Uruguayan newspaper El País. You can read about it here (in Spanish).

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The views expressed in this article are the authors' own and do not necessarily represent the position of CLACS, ILCS or the School of Advanced Study, University of London.