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Actors working with Trinity Saint Davids students on new production |
Over the coming weeks, professional actors will be working alongside Welsh-medium graduating students from the School of Performing Arts Trinity Saint David on a production and short tour of Torri Gair – Elan Closs Stephens’ Welsh-language adaptation of Translations a stage play by Brian Friel. The story It is the warm summer of 1833 in the small provincial town of Baile Beag in Dhun na nGall (Donegal), Northern Ireland. Gradually, we are introduced to some of the Gaelic village’s colourful characters who regularly congregate within the walls of the bedraggled barn used by its inhabitant Hugh - the learned old Irish schoolmaster - to hold his informal hedge school classes. However, as British soldiers from the Royal Engineers arrive in the area under royal orders to undertake a mapping-survey exercise of the Irish territories on behalf of the King – and in so doing proceed to ‘standardise’ the original Gaelic place names - they receive a mixed welcome from the local plebeian community of the northern 'colony', leading to some disturbing consequences. The play’s history Written in 1980 – fully intentionally in English according to Irish playwright Friel - the play without doubt resonates of the political and social conflicts witnessed and experienced in Northern Ireland during those troubled times. However, the play also contains some timeless themes relating to language, communication and identity, as well as highlighting questions relating to cultural imperialism and the transience of memory. The playwright’s particular creative theatricality is manifested in his use of a single language being heard from the stage, whilst at the same time reflecting that most of the characters can only converse and communicate in their own particular language (i.e. either in Gaelic or English). It is partly due to this theatrical device and its inherent themes of communication, lack of communication and an unwillingness to communicate that the play by now is regarded as a modern Irish classic, and its continuing appeal and far reaching relevance as a stage play is unquestionable. The play has regularly featured as a set text in many schools in recent years. Moreover, Carreg Gwalch Press more recently have also seen a need to issue a reprint of Elan Closs Stephens’ Welsh-language adaptation of the play. It will also be thirty years since the first Welsh-language staging of the play in 1982 by the previous Welsh-language national theatre company - Cwmni Theatr Cymru. Here is a fitting and well-overdue opportunity therefore to see Friel’s powerful stage play with performances both in English and Welsh. The production Joining the cast of 3rd year Welsh-medium students of the School of Performing Arts will be seasoned actors Huw Emlyn and Ioan Hefin – both familiar faces to stage and screen audiences in Wales. The decision to combine professional actors with the students is completely intentional according to lecturer and production director Iestyn Llwyd. “The students should benefit greatly from working alongside such experienced actors on the production: able to follow and share good professional practice and advice; aiming towards attaining professional standards in their work, and also to raise their own personal expectations in terms of their input and commitment to their rehearsal processes and their ultimate performances.” Actor Ioan Hefin states: “I’m a strong believer of experiential learning, and commend any School, College or University that venture beyond their ‘safe’ boundaries. The acting world is stacked of unexpected opportunities, and I hope that the students will benefit from sharing the rehearsal space. As an actor, and as a person, I personally regard the educational process as a lifelong process.” As well as attempting to bridge the gap between University work and the professional workplace, an added challenge for the cast will be to perform the play in both languages, as the intention is to present some performances of the play in the original English as well as the performances in Welsh. This may also prove interesting for the cast to gage the different audiences’ reaction to the play in both languages. Iestyn Llwyd continues: “Being mindful of the difficult challenges currently facing the Arts and creative industries in general, all of the Welsh-medium courses offered within the School aim to nurture and equip our graduates with a broad variety of skills in order to face the challenges of finding, creating and sustaining employment opportunities either within the creative and media industry or indeed beyond. I would hope however that presenting the students with this challenge to perform in both languages might help them - as well as others - to appreciate and realise their potential and enhanced employability as bi-lingual professional performers.” Tour details: Halliwell Theatre, University Campus Carmarthen Sunday, February 5th at 7:30pm (*S) Monday, February 6th at 7:30pm (C) + Matinee for Schools (t.b.c.) (C) Ticketline: 0845 226 3510 Theatr Soar, Merthyr Tydfil Thursday, February 9th am 7:30pm (C) + Matinee for Schools (t.b.c.) (C) Ticket Reservations: 01685 722176 Llanofer Hall Arts Centre, Cardiff Friday, February 10th at 7:30pm (C) Saturday, February 11th at 3:00pm (C), 7:30pm (*S) Ticket Reservations: 029 20 63 1144 (C) = performance in Welsh (*S) = performance in English For more information contact the production’s director Iestyn Llwyd at The School of Performing Arts (TSD): i.llwyd@ydds.ac.uk 01267 |
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| Iestyn Llwyd e-mail: i.llwyd@ydds.ac.uk |
Thursday, January 19, 2012 |
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