The works of William Shakespeare but in CHamoru. You can listen to "The Tempest" in Guam's native tongue thanks to the University of Guam Theatre and the help of Producer and Associate Prof. Michelle Blas's mom.

“I had always admired the works of William Shakespeare and wondered how fun it would be to hear and see one of his plays performed in CHamoru,” Blas said.

The podcast on YouTube features CHamoru actors Steven Torres, Rayanna Guzman, Eain Taijeron, Jesse Mantanona, James Viernes, and Joe Anderson in performing themes of magic and illusion, love and loss, colonization, and forgiveness.

Considered one of Shakespeare’s most magical plays, “The Tempest” tells the story of Prospero, a usurped Duke of Milan who uses sorcery to create a tempest and cause a shipwreck to bring his treacherous brother, Antonio, as well as the King and Prince of Naples and other lords to the mysterious island where he has lived in exile with his daughter, Miranda, for 12 years. He is assisted by the indigenous airy spirit Ariel and the reluctant servant monster Caliban.

Blas enlisted the help of her 70-year-old mother, Beatrice Blas Aguon, a native CHamoru speaker, to translate the play over eight months. Aguon passed away three weeks after completing the project, in July 2020.

“I am so grateful I had this unique journey with her. It was an incredible gift, and I hope it will inspire others to continue endeavors like this to hear our language in a different way and know that it can be done,” Blas said.

The YouTube production includes a link to side-by-side English and CHamoru scripts, as translated by Aguon with assistance and editing from James Viernes, for listeners to follow along.