2019, Video
During meetings that are held at the United Nations, speeches in foreign languages are heard by the attendees through a simultaneous interpretation – a process which attempts to translate on the fly and without breaks what is being said. The core identity of the speaker's performance is replaced with the mechanical voice of the interpreter, denying any correlation between words and emotions. This video explores the tension between the real voice intonation of the speaker and the one of the translator while questioning how such a phenomenon can affect the cognitive and emotional reception of world leaders who are responsible of resolving global political issues. Speech written and performed by Nadia Mourad Basee Taha at a UN General Assembly.