Translating Shakespeare between the East and West

Translating Shakespeare between the East and West

This conference will take place between 7-9 November 2024 at the University of Birmingham in a hybrid mode. Please note Saturday 9 November will be a fully online programme. 

Wherever you are, East or West, you will be able to join our conference and enjoy a diverse range of presentations. It will bring together Shakespeare scholars, translation studies scholars, theologians, theatre practitioners, educators and anyone who loves Shakespeare. By inviting different speakers in the area of Chinese Shakespeare from Hong Kong, Taiwan, Mainland China, the US and the UK to speak on the translatability of theatrical productions of Shakespeare in China in different periods – it is hoped that meaningful discussions will come about on differing translatability issues and socio- political factors underlying these translations at different points in time. This conference will represent the first of its kind that can stimulate thought-provoking discussions regarding the range of problems and opportunities arising from both the original texts and the target languages and cultures which combine to make Shakespeare translation the rich field that it is today. 

The University of Birmingham is England’s first civic university. Cultural assets on campus include the Barber Institute of Fine Arts, the Lapworth Museum of Geology, the Winterbourne House and Garden, as well as the Shakespeare Institute situated at Stratford-upon-Avon – Shakespeare’s Birthplace. Birmingham is known for its status as the UK’s “Second City” (after London) and for its industrial heritage. Home to the largest creative sectors outside the capital, it is one of the most multicultural cities of the UK, and also one of the greenest cities in the country.

If you are thinking of spending a few days before or after the symposium in Birmingham, you might find this information useful.

Key Dates

• 1 Oct 2024: Deadline for Call for Papers
• 28^th August: Registration opens
• 20th October: Registration closes
• 7-9^th November 2024: Conference Dates

This event is partly funded by British Academy Small Research Grants. 

• Explore the Call for Papers
• Key notes and programme
• Fees and registration information

Conference Organizers

Jenny Wong, Assistant Professor, University of Birmingham

I am currently Assistant Professor and Programme Lead for MA in Interpreting with Translation at University of Birmingham. My doctorate degree at the University of Glasgow which draws heavily on translation studies models as it focused on the translatability of Shakespeare across cultures. The outputs of my research have been published in high impact international peer-reviewed journals and have been turned into book chapters in books related to translation studies. Such interdisciplinary research has been published as a monograph known as The Translatability of the Religious Dimension in Shakespeare from Page to Stage, from West to East (2018) and is highly recommended by Very Rev. Professor Iain Torrance, Pro-Chancellor of the University of Aberdeen as “a brilliant, innovative study of intercultural stagecraft and the performability of such intimations of humanity."  

Saihong Li, Senior Lecturer, University of Stirling

Presently, Dr Li is employed as a Senior Lecturer in Translation Studies at the University of Stirling. She has also been appointed as a Visiting Professor at the University of Strathclyde and Sun Yat-San University. Dr Li has been extremely active in developing research funding applications and have a strong record in obtaining funding as a co-investigator and principal investigator for research in Denmark and the UK. She specialises in interdisciplinary digital humanities translation and cross-cultural studies, with particular expertise within the areas of creative industries and cultural institutions. She has produced a substantial body of research analysing food, and political discourse in tourism literature (e.g. Shakespeare) translation from sociological and psychological perspectives. Her work has been cited in the creative industries, the hospitality sectors, as well as in international reports relating to the post-Covid recovery of the creative industries and global tourism.

Practical Information

Travel to the conference

Directions to Birmingham and to our Edgbaston campus are available on the Getting here page.  The conference will be based in our Arts Building R16 on our campus map in Lecture Room 4 (1st floor) and Lecture room 6 (2nd floor).

Accommodation

We have our Edgbaston Park Hotel on campus. (Please note we do not have rooms reserved for the conference at the hotel, bookings are made by delegates on an individual basis.) Please visit our accommodation page for advice on how to research other accommodation options near to the campus and in the city.