Supertitles or SURTITLESTM (a registered trademark of the Canadian Opera Company[1]) are translated or transcribed lyrics
projected above a stage or displayed on a screen, commonly used in opera or other musical
performances. The word "surtitle" comes from the French "sur", meaning "over" or "on", and the English word "title".
Surtitles are used either to translate the meaning of the lyrics into the audience's language, or to transcribe lyrics that
may be difficult to understand in the sung form. The two possible types of presentation of surtitles are as projected text, or as
the electronic libretto system. Titles in the theatre have proven a commercial success in areas such as opera, and are finding
increased use for allowing hearing impaired patrons to enjoy theatre productions more fully.
Projected titles or translations
Generally projected above the theatre's proscenium arch (but, alternately, on either side
of the stage), surtitles are usually displayed using a supertitling machine. The text must be prepared beforehand as in
subtitles. These machines can be used for events other than artistic performances,
when the text is easier to show to the audience than it is to vocalize.
Surtitles are different from subtitles, which are more often used in
film and television presentations. Originally, translations
would be broken up into small chunks and photographed onto slides that could be projected onto a screen above the stage, but most
companies now use a combination of video projectors and computers. It is generally agreed that the first performance of opera
using surtitles was the Canadian Opera Company's January 1983 staging of
Elektra.
Many people believe that surtitles can interfere with the enjoyment of a show, because they tend to find themselves following
the titles and not giving their full attention to the stage. This problem was solved by the development of an electronic libretto
system, which utilizes individual screens placed in front of each seat allowing patrons either to view a translation or to switch
them off during the performance. New York's Metropolitan Opera, which installed the
patented Met Titles, is the first house in the United States to use this system.
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