The temptation of globalization
A conversation with Jalal Tehrani, writer and theater director about global communication[1]
The recent years were full of travel for Iranian theater. Groups from across the borders participated in the stages of Iran and our festivals, and groups went across the borders to make our theater international according to the managers. They went to break the closed cultural boundaries. The result of these trips eventually became a trend, and now the discussion of traveling and who goes and who doesn't have been discussed in theater communities for a long time. When we sit down to talk with the managers, we are faced with an interpretation of these trips that is a little different in the story of the artists. Jalal Tehrani is without a doubt one of the potentials rather than actual talents of today's Iranian theater. Before the discussion and these trips, he breaks the boundaries and searches for innovation and thought in his works. Last year, Jalal Tehrani went to the Silk Road Festival in Germany (Rohr) with his play the Single cells, and this year, his play the Single cells was read without his presence at the Iran Cultural Week in Berlin. We have had a chat with Jalal Tehrani focusing on communication, globalization and its processes. This conversation took place before the celebration of World Theater Day, and now that it is being published, Jalal Tehrani has been honored as a playwriter who searches for new and original subjects. It's not bad to hear artists' opinions about foreign travel and international communication when it's not too cliche... Mr. Tehrani, the last 5-6 years were the years in which many foreign groups as well as domestic groups traveled abroad. Among the people who got the chance to go on these trips, you also took the play the Single cells to Germany last year, and this year your play was read without your presence: let's start the discussion about these two trips...Let me tell you that last fall, we performed the theater the Single cells at the Silk Road Festival, and this year, a German group read it in Germany, which I don't know about. Nothing at all?No, I know nothing at all. In fact, I was in contact with Thomas Engel, the head of the German ITI. I asked them to give me any kind of information that might be useful about reading the play. The answer has not yet arrived. Did you communicate with them after the performance?They first saw the work at this year's Fajr festival. It was decided that the play would be read in Germany, in German and with a German cast, and our cast would go to Germany to perform. Then they said that the coming of the actors has been canceled for the time being, and only the play reading will take place. After that, they invited me and specified my schedule, when I would meet the actors and when I should see the translator. Anyway, they translated the text and a German writer fixed the exotic problems after the translation. That is, a German director led the play reading?Yes. That’s how the play reading took place. Iranian crew have not seen the work either. I heard that Mr. Jalal Sattari and Mrs. Laleh Taghian were in this meeting, but unfortunately, I did not see them. But apparently, they said that the work was done nicely. Well, that’s a relief. Have there been other works from Iran alongside yours?Yes, once a year in Berlin, the house of culture organizes Iranian Culture Week, during which a number of theaters, movies, music tracks and other arts are presented. In the field of play reading, was there only your work present?No, three plays were read in Germany. Don’t you know why your performance didn't get to be held Germany?Not really. Didn't you think about the reason?I did, probably due to the limited capacity, this arrangement is based on turns really. Is it a random turn? Or does it happen for a certain person?No, I like to think it's a basic turn. Because we went on a trip last year and it seems that the performing arts center's budget for these trips is limited. Well, the facilities must be divided. Basically, do you think your play could easily be expressed in another language?No, it will be very difficult. Because most of the original language phrasal credits of any text are lost during translation. And do you agree that some texts are much more damaged during translation than others, and your text is one of them?Yes, the Single cells is more difficult in this sense and hey big man, don't cry has a much simpler language than the Single cells, especially in terms of idioms. When we do literary translation, we deal more with idioms and terms than with scientific language, which makes it difficult. I myself translated this text into English together with four or five brilliant translators, and it was very difficult until we were finally able to get a decent text and in the German translation as I said, a writer helped the translator to fix exotic bugs. Because we have idioms here that gives a different meaning there. Were the work chosen for the play reading?Yes, I think they also chose the work for performance, but in order for their audience to connect with the performance; They decided to read the play first in German and then the Iranian crew will perform it. So, it was their decision, not the performing arts center.Yes, actually they were checking things from two to three months before the festival. In fact, the reading of your work in Germany was supposed to be a prelude to your performance there?It was supposed to be like this. For example, the play will be read at five o'clock and the performance will begin at eight o'clock. Does this mean that the German audience will hear your show in German at 5 o'clock and prepare to see the performance with your actors at 8 o'clock?Yes. Mr. Tehrani, you took the Single cells to Germany for performance before this, and you were also involved in the work. Did the center take action on that matter?Yes, Ruhr Theater did not invite us. Mr. Sharif Khodayi saw the work and decided to send it for execution and consulted with the center in order to do that. Because they apparently only invited Mrs. Toloui's work.
How was the reception of your work?
It is impossible to distinguish. Because they see all the work and the hall is full. At the end, everyone claps.
When you are a theater director, I stand in front of your work as an audience, even from my mood you can see how much I relate to your work.
it was good. In fact, the reactions were very interesting. However, this does not make our work superior to other works. Because we don't know if they treated others the same way or only us. Because no matter who was on stage, whether it was from Morocco or Algeria, it was performed in a full hall, and then there was a lot of applause. After dinner, the theater performing group would open the dinner table and then the rest of the groups would come and congratulate them. Well, these things happened to our work as well. Mr. Sheffer and Mr. Choli and the crew of the Rohr group came and greatly congratulated the cast and expressed their amazement. But I don't know if it was just about our work or not? Of course, my feeling is that this has been about everyone's work.
I repeat my question. As a director, apart from what you said earlier, can't you really understand the extent of my relationship with you at this moment, for example, from the way I deal with you?
You see, the interesting thing for me was that while writing and rehearsing the play here, we laughed at things that the audience did not laugh at all during Iran’s performances. But in Germany they laughed at the same things.
Explain about these in detail.For example, in the play, we have a philosopher and a vagabond who go around the stage four times. The first time we see that the vagabond is carrying the philosopher, but the second time the philosopher is carrying the vagabond and taking him away. I think this must be funny and they laughed at this and the third time the vagabond put the philosopher inside wheelbarrow and took it away and the fourth time it was the philosopher's turn to carry the vagabond and take him away. They laughed at these things.
And the Iranian viewers didn’t laugh at these?
No. I think these things made them laugh because they didn't understand our language.
Really?
Yes, because I think that when the audience understands the language, they are so involved in other issues that they don't see these.
My next question is, according to your own words, do you think language acts as a barrier in communication? And your show communicates better with foreign audience because they don't understand Farsi language?
No, I don't think so. Do you mean that we can communicate better without language?
Do you think it is related or is there a mistake somewhere?
This is a hypertext communication. In fact, it is in the field of hypertextual references. We often use hypertextual references in theaters where the show’s language is the same as the language of the audience, which is often laughable. My own works are often for pure laughter, and whenever I escape, I seem to return to the world outside the theater and to the surrounding world, it is to relieve boredom and to keep the audience. They also use these tricks to keep the audience. Do you agree with this?I think the director tries to keep his audience as much as possible, but I don't know how that happens in their theater. I saw Choli's own show in Germany and I liked it. Have you seen any work from Choli in Iran?Yes, I've seen Pinocchio fest, Report to the Academy, and The Cherry Orchard. Was there a difference between the performance you saw in Germany and the performances you saw in Iran?No, just a bunch of considerations that are here in terms of headscarves and veils weren't present there. So, you didn't feel that he ran a different theater show due to the atmosphere in which he performed?No, of course, the works I saw of Choli in Iran were related to the first two periods of his presence in Iran. What you say is related to the gradual transformation of Choli. I did not feel that the works of his first two periods were underselling or underestimating the audience. Never. I think he does Pinocchio fest or The Cherry Orchard very energetically and correctly (by his own standards). Visually, I always think that Choli has his own image and knows a certain kind of theater, and the show I saw from him there was as good as the shows I saw from him here. Mr. Tehrani, what do you think is the necessity of these trips? Or do you think it has nothing to do with you?I don't know exactly what the necessity of these trips is. But it is attractive to me. What exactly is attractive about it?That we face an audience other than the conventional audience that we always deal with and we can estimate to what extent our work is inclusive. You say that my audience had these reactions, but it is impossible to understand how much communication was received, but after this process, you can recognize whether your work was comprehensive or not? It doesn’t make any sense?
No, actually my answer to this part of the story is that I don't know if my show has been taken over more than any other work. I didn't mean that it was insignificant for them and they didn't show any reaction. I mean, I can't claim that my theater was very well received. Because I really don't know how they have received all the other theaters. But I’m sure the connection between the audience and the play took place.
So, it happened.
I want to open a parenthesis between your speech. In this discussion, I have to talk about my own work. Because when I’m talking about the interpret of the audience who does not understand my language, I’m analyzing this very generally. And maybe I myself, in the field of theatrical activity, have a prediction of how the communication will be before the performance and after some experiences I will find out how correct my predictions are. But for the theatrical flow you're talking about, I think it produces at least a certain amount of confidence that's a good test, if it's not false and pretentious. Parenthesis closed.
For the entire theatrical flow?
Yes, now a person may say, I want to have a family performance in my house and that's it.
Does anything happen to you during these trips? Both in the field of directing and in the field of writing. By incident, I mean even a small point that might be answered later?
You don't understand what I mean and you didn't get the right conclusion. What I meant by this parenthesis that I opened was that if I, from the theater community, want to look for a credit in these trips, perhaps the most important credit is that one can see how the work is tested and how the foreign audience connect to a work in which language is very important. Theatre crews travelling around the country has the same intentions.
What does it mean?
They perform in Tehran. Then Isfahan and then Mashhad. Why is this happening I ask you?
Well, now that our places have changed, In one case, I answer with maybe and but that maybe the reason is money. Or a trip that happened and in this area is not bad anyway and I will answer one thing firmly and that is that definitely no one in these trips thinks about what is the reaction of the Isfahan audience or what is the difference between theirs and northern people reaction. This is the only thing that has no importance.
I don't think so either, so what is the reason? Or why are Dariofo and Brooke traveling?
I do not know about Dariofo. But Brooke, well, with a rich background and a lot of concerns in the field of language and the claim of globalization, goes in his direction, it means removing language as a barrier. It tries to reach a universal language in which it uses a lot of sounds, but we are not like that. We take our work with a very complicated and difficult Farsi and we expect a German speaker to have a connection with it.
Let me tell you, if we want to be honest with ourselves, two things will happen. One is an invitation, for Mr. Brooke who is working in theater in France or England to come to America. They invite him and he goes there to perform. And they will definitely give him a budget that cannot be ignored. Why should we ignore it in the first place?Yes, and this is absolutely true, and this is the second aspect. That is, making a living, in which we see different aspects. It is power, it is money, it is fame. These are necessary so that everyone can make a better living. Globalization is a temptation that exists for everyone. Although, for example, Mr. Jules Verne has apparently not even left his village in his entire life, but is famous worldwide. Or Khayyam, with ten to twenty quatrains attributed to him, is known all over the world. There is no doubt about this. These two aspects exist. Even if we claim that we are doing experimental work. We need both money and globalization.Now it may come to mind that what does Iranian theatre have which we want to globalize?
Nasim Ahmadpour
[1] Sharq newspaper, number 192, May 29, 2013