When Performance is not a Metaphor for Translation: Translation as “Performative Event”

Abstract

The aim of this article is to theorise translation as a performative event (term coined by Stuart Grant 2013). Theories on translation and per­for­mativity in Translation Studies have historically been developed from Lin­guistics or from Performance Studies. Perhaps less known among Trans­la­tion Studies scholars is the work of performance theorist and philosopher Grant, who recognises the need for a clearer definition of terms related to per­formance theory and practice. He therefore draws a clear distinction be­tween “the performative event, performance, the moment of performance, and the theatrical as opposed to the performative” (Grant 2013: 127). These con­cepts provide a start­ing point for my theoretical analysis of sign language in­terpreting of popular mu­sic and live concerts. In my research I have demon­strated that in the work of sign language interpreter-performers, the per­formative event as intended by Grant (2013, 2015) is itself the translation, and the moment of per­for­mance is itself performative not in a metaphorical sense, but in its tangible em­bodiment and in its very essence (see Tarantini 2023). In this article I will look at how Grant’s theories are applicable to trans­lation more broadly, and can be functional to theorise translation as an event: a performative event.