Performance-oriented Drama Translation from Skopos Theory: A Case in my Chinese Translation of Translations

Based on the guidelines set by Ningbo Theatre who asked me to translate translations and features of performance-oriented drama, this commentary will deal with how I translate characters and cultural specific items from prospective of skopos theory and explain the reason why I translate it this way.I am required to present vivid characters and bridge the cultural gap while translating. During the process of translation, I try to use specific words or local dialect to differ one person from another. Sometimes, I make one person’s language less colloquial which is consistent with his own personality. When encountering some cultural barriers that would make audience confused, I adopt domestication to translate the dialogue. I will add some explanatory words to make audience get to know it and free translation to avoid cultural confusion. In this commentary, six examples are given to show my strategies of translating this book.