New translation of Brian Friel’s “Translations” accompanies this year’s edition of Gdańsk Literary Meetings

The book accompanying this year’s edition of Gdańsk Literary Meetings is a new translation of Brian Friel’s Translations. This play in three acts was published by the City Culture Institute and translated by a team headed by Magda Heydel: Barbara Bruks, Alicja Halik, Dominika Kardaś, Emilia Kurowska, Paulina Kwaśniewska-Urban, and Joanna Sobesto.

Brian Friel (1929–2015) is widely regarded as Ireland’s greatest contemporary dramatist, but the impact of his works has travelled far beyond the borders of his home country. Known for his linguistic experimentation, in Translations (1980), Friel gave the English language a very special task. Although the English and Irish protagonists communicate in clearly distinct voices, they all use English. How to translate a language with embedded rhythms and meanings from another language, a story in itself?

On 20 April (Thursday), at 8 p.m., Stara Apteka will host the first reading of a new translation of Brian Friel’s Translations. The performative reading is directed by Zdenka Pszczołowska.

Actors: Małgorzata Brajner, Natalia Gadomska, Michał Jaros, Andrzej Konieczny, Teresa Kwiatkowska, Jacek Labijak, Piotr Łukawski, Bartosz Ostrowski, Grzegorz Otrębski, Sylwester Piechura. Music: Andrzej Konieczny.

The book will be available during the festival and from CCI’s online shop: sklepikm.pl.

Partner of the event: the Embassy of Ireland in Poland