Some Leaks, Some Draughts: On Three Unstaged Polish Translations of Harold Pinter’s Plays

Łukasz Borowiec

doi:10.18290/rh.2017.65.11-6

Łukasz Borowiec The John Paul II Catholic University of Lublin, Faculty of Humanities

DOI: https://doi.org/10.18290/rh.2017.65.11-6

Keywords: Harold Pinter; theatre translation; The Room; Party Time; Moonlight

Abstract

The article discusses translations of three plays by Harold Pinter (The Room, Party Time, Moonlight) which so far have not been staged in Poland. The plays are significant since they represent three major stages in Pinter’s playwriting career while simultaneously enriching and extending Pinter’s predominant motifs and concerns. So as to reflect the inherent duality of the dramatic text (which can be treated both as a literary work and a script for potential performance), the article investigates the translations of the plays by placing emphasis on their literary as well as theatrical features. This is done with a view to presenting challenges facing translators of Pinter’s plays and to reflect on selected translator’s choices and strategies which might have a bearing on the interpretation by potential readers as well as theatre practitioners. It is especially relevant in the light of Pinter’s determination in underlining the importance of the dramatic text in the actual performance.

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