¿Habla usted español? If not, you may want to try. At least for a few key phrases.
The Spanish-speaking population in the U.S. has topped 50 million — 16.3 percent of the total, according to U.S. Census Bureau statistics. Projections by researchers such as Cuban linguist Humberto Lopez Morales also indicate that, by 2050, 10 percent of the world will speak Spanish, double the English-speaking population, while percentages for French and German decline to 1.4 and 1.2 percent.“People get nervous if they think that being bilingual is the only way to land certain opportunities,” says Maria Munro, managing director of the temporary labor company, PTT, Davie, FL, who is bilingual herself. She notes a “buddy system” that PTT uses to help English-only speakers contribute to shows such as the Latin Billboard Awards. “Our company would never send someone on a job unprepared.”
Not Just Languages
The need for clear communication among crew members includes the ability to overcome heavily accented variations of languages, not just the languages themselves — and these variations permeate Spanish-speaking populations just as significantly as the accented variations in English.
“We have many talented crew members who come from Haiti and Jamaica too,” Munro notes. “In that case it’s French, French Creole or Jamaican Patois. It’s the accent that can be a challenge even if a crew is entirely bi-lingual.”
“The accents between England, Australia, Ireland, and the United States can be significant,” says Erich Friend, owner of the Texas-based Teqniqal Systems, a Fort Worth, TX-based consulting firm specializing in performing arts technology and safety. “This might come as a surprise to someone who got their first booking for a job in one of those destinations.”
Safety Signage
Friend makes a case for the effective use of safety signage to help overcome barriers from languages and dialects. “The international show production environment is a very dangerous place, so there is little room for error,” he notes. “Everyone should be familiar with the ISO standard pictograms for health and safety items. Any misinterpretations with regard to hazard warning and communications can result in serious injuries and even death.”
Friend also directs people to ANSI Z535, a standard published by NEMA (the National Electrical Manufacturers Association), which includes the uniformity of safety color coding; environmental and facility safety signs, and communicating safety symbols. ANSI further enables the design, application, use and placement of product safety signs, labels, safety tags and barricade tape. (Just in case you’re wondering, ANSI stands for “American National Standards Institute.”)
Theatre Words
Another resource for effective communications among production crews is Theatre Words, a forthcoming publication from OISTAT (Organisation Internationale des Scénographes, Techniciens et Architectes de Théâtre/International Organization of Scenographers, Theatre Architects and Technicians). OISTAT, founded in Prague in 1967, has its offices in Taiwan.
OISTAT’s Digital Theatre Words (DTW) Project, which focuses on current theatre terminology in 40 languages, is overseen by the OISTAT Publication and Communication Commission led by Michael Ramsaur and Jerome Maeckelbergh. Ramsauris a professor of lighting design with Stanford University and Jerome Maeckelbergh is a scenographer living in Belgium.
The project leaders are now working closely with volunteers from around the world to translate the first group of theatre words. More than 2,000 theatre terms with 3D graphics and descriptions will be ready to be searched and translated in 40 languages via OISTAT Digital Theatre Words multi-lingual Interface.
Trade Jargon
Along with languages, dialects and accents, trade jargon can be a barrier to effective communication as well. Even the symbols used for mathematical formulas can differ — as PLSN has noted in previous “Focus on Fundamentals” columns.
An electrician might be familiar, for example, with the so-called “West Virginia” formula for watts, volts and amps: W = V × A, while someone with an engineering background would express it as P = V × I, where P = Power in Watts and I = Current in Amps. Other common symbols from the engineering world include E = Voltage in Volts and R = Resistance in Ohms.
Clearly, it’s not enough just to hire a translator, but for some tricky assignments, that translator might need to be fluent in the nuances of how different people involved with entertainment productions refer to things.
Lost in Translation
Timo Beckman, a sound engineer at Timo Beckman Geluidstechniek in the Netherlands, relates an anecdote that illustrates the inefficiencies that can arise when a single word is lost in translation, and, secondly, how body language can help bridge the communication gap.
“I was a FOH sound engineer working on a premiere in Shanghai,” says Beckman, “and after that we went deeper into China. I think it was in Hangzou that I had to use the house system, which was a local theater and also used by the local communist party. The system was okay, but lacked punch in the low end. So I walked up to the translator of the day and told her I needed some additional subs.”
The reply, says Beckman, was, “Sub? What is a sub?”
“The girl was surrounded by local people,” Beckman continues, “and she asked them something which resulted in a discussion between about 10 people.” After listening to this for about five minutes, Beckman says he decided to go for coffee because he couldn’t understand anything being discussed.
“After one hour I went back to where the discussion started and they were still at it. I walked by and saw the local chief from the sound company that provided the lights and sometimes speakers when needed. He did not speak English, only Mandarin,” says Beckman, “but gave the thumb up as if everything was all right. I made a fist and punched myself in the stomach, pointing out I needed more low end. His reply: ‘Oh you need subs.’ The additional subs — six of them — arrived the next day.”
In addition to its role in getting your point across, “body language is part of the language of client relationships,” notes PTT’s Munro. “For some cultures, it might be more acceptable to touch someone or stand close by. Others might find this to be aggressive or uncomfortable.”
If being bilingual is always an asset, so is common sense — and the awareness of the need to prepare for potential snags that can arise, not just for events staged abroad, but here in the U.S. as well.
“Never assume,” cautions Munro. “Always ask a client if they have a need for a particular language in advance. Even if everyone on the program speaks English, it’s possible that one person of importance will be there and not be as conversant.”
