Translations Bring French Plays to English-Speaking Audiences

FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. — A new translation of medieval French plays by two University of Arkansas professors brings together seven diverse works, two of which will be performed on the Arena Stage in Washington, D.C., in October.

“From Adam to Adam: Seven Old French Plays” features translations in verse of seven plays, ranging from religious to the absurd in their themes. The volume was translated by John DuVal, director of the literary translation program, introduced by French professor Raymond Eichmann, and published by Pegasus Press.

Despite their appearance in one collection, the plays display a great deal of diversity.

“Every one of them is absolutely distinct from the others,” said DuVal.

The plays also fill a gap in the theatrical record. Manuscripts of plays from Greek and Roman times abound and are still staged today, but almost no European plays have been found in written form from the era that spans many centuries after the fall of the Roman Empire until the 12th century. The ones that appear in this translation represent all the publicly staged plays that remain in existence today from the 12th and 13th centuries.

The first play, “The Play of Adam,” is a re-enactment of the Biblical story of Adam and Eve’s expulsion from Paradise. The original manuscript included stage directions in Latin, an indication that the play probably was staged by religious orders.

“You get a sense that there were probably priests who played the parts,” said DuVal.

“The Play of St. Nicholas,” written by Jean Bodel, takes place in Arras, a small town in France, and addresses the Crusades, miracles and gambling, using a dialog peppered with jokes.

In “Courtly of Arras,” the story of a prodigal son who reconciles with his father and with God, there is what DuVal describes as a “New Testament bar scene.”

“The Miracle of Theophile” is a lyric play, written by Rutebeuf, a poet and author from the 13th century. The play depicts a priest who sells his soul to the devil, and is mostly a serious play, except for one scene where Mary beats up the devil.

DuVal describes “The Boy and the Blind Man” as a vulgar farce, in which a clever young rogue dupes a hypocritical, cheating blind man.

“Greenwood Follies,” written by Adam de la Halle, is what DuVal calls the most “post-modern” piece of the bunch, and serves as a precursor to plays such as Shakespeare’s “A Midsummer Night’s Dream.” In this play, the author was the main character, trying to escape the town he grew up in, Arras, and its assortment of gossiping, bickering citizens, as well as its enchanted woods.

The last play, “The Play of Robin and Marion,” also by de la Halle, is a musical, incorporating traditional songs and dances of the day into the work.

Although there has been speculation that perhaps theater died out after the fall of the Roman Empire and was re-born through the church, DuVal said the astonishing diversity of these plays refutes that idea.

“Because of the variety among these plays, it’s hard to imagine that all this sprang from the church,” DuVal said.

Two of the plays, “The Miracle of Theophile” and “Greenwood Follies,” will be read Oct. 17 on the Arena Stage in Washington, D.C. DuVal’s son, Niell Du Val, a University of Arkansas graduate with degrees in French and English, received a grant from the D.C. Committee for the Arts to have the two plays read by professional actors on stage. DuVal will travel to Washington to introduce the two plays.

“It will be such a delight to see the words I had fun with come alive,” DuVal said.

DuVal received a National Endowment for the Humanities grant for his work on the translation of “Greenwood Follies.”