“The Power of Darkness” by Leo Tolstoy on the Tatar stage

Abstract

The article systematizes information from the history of Tatar translations of Leo Tolstoy’s dramaturgical works and their existence in the Tatar environment. We have two Tatar translations of the drama “The Power of Darkness”. The analysis is based on Rafkat Shageev’s translation, made a century after the creation of the work. The belated appeal of the Tatar theater to this work is due to the specifics of the Tatars’ mentality and their way of life. In the course of our comparative analysis of the “Dөm” (“The Power of Darkness”) script against the original of the work, we found that the scriptwriters Elizaveta Bondar and Evgenia Augustenyak significantly abridged the work, intensifying the metaphorical and symbolic aspect of its dramatic images. The duration of the performance at the Almetyevsk Theater is 1.5 hours. During the comparative analysis, we proved that the scriptwriters sought to demonstrate the imagery potential of the Tatar language and its rhythmic capabilities, which is why the stage canvas has acquired the operatic sound. The translator managed to convey not only the message and the general idea, but also the structure of the script. R. Shageev used literary techniques in such a way as to make the pronounced text produce on the reader an emotional effect which would be close to the original. This article is the first step forward on the way to understand the phenomenon of Rafkat Shageev’s translation strategy.