The PTC’s poetry translation workshops offer an inclusive, collaborative form of literary appreciation and cultural discovery through the act of translating. The workshops are open to everyone and participants don’t need any prior knowledge of the language, literature or culture that is translated. The process is thought provoking, with participants rethinking what it means to translate, and opening up wider questions about creativity, culture and language.

What to expect at a PTC workshop

Our workshops are guided by expert translators and facilitated by leading English-language poets. Ahead of each workshop the translator prepares a guide translation to allow everyone to participate in the process, and during the session they are on hand to offer guidance on the language and poetry. The poet facilitator draws out contributions from the group to create a final collaborative translation.

The workshop starts with the poem being read in the original language so everyone can hear its cadence and music, at the end the brand-new English translation is read aloud for the first time.

Basic details

Our regular online workshops are hosted on Zoom, with each workshop taking place over two 90-minute sessions separated by a week. Sessions generally run from 6.30pm to 8pm UK time.

The cost of running these sessions is £45 per person. However, the PTC wants to ensure that our workshops are accessible to all, so participants are invited to pay what they can afford to attend.

We are planning to start in-person sessions with a community-language focus later in 2021. Watch this space!