Canada's Michel Tremblay: Des Belles Sœurs à For the Pleasure of Seeing Her Again

Abstract

This article examines the representation of Michel Tremblay's drama as proposed by two English translations completed twenty-five years apart : Les Belles Sœurs, translated by John Van Burek and Bill Glassco and produced in Toronto in 1973; For the Pleasure of Seeing Her Again, translated by Linda Gaboriau and presented at Montreal's Centaur Theatre in 1998. The first play was written by a young author, as yet unknown, who would revolutionize Quebec's theatre by bringing joual to the stage at a time when Quebec plays were translated to respond to the needs of a nascent Canadian drama repertoire. The second play is the latest work of an internationally renowned author and its English version contributes to a well-established Canadian dramatic repertoire where translation no longer fulfills the same function. In this instance it is rather a question of celebrating a renowned author and sharing in his success.