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Glossary entry

français term or phrase:

Ils ont fait la Foire !

anglais translation:

They championed the fair/show!

Added to glossary by Catharine Cellier-Smart
Mar 14, 2016 14:54
8 yrs ago
français term

Ils ont fait la Foire !

français vers anglais Art / Littérature Général / conversation / salutations / correspondance Interview
"Ils ont fait la Foire" is the title of a series of interviews with people who have been instrumental in the history of an Agricultural Fair which is celebrating its 40th edition.

IMO there's obviously wordplay between the idea of "faire la fête" and the fact they've been important in making the Fair what it is today.

I'm having trouble finding a decent translation which conveys the wordplay, and I'm not sure if it's even possible.

My best efforts so far have been:
(1) "They made the fair what it is today" but two sentences later I have "Sans ces figures « historiques », la Foire ne serait pas ce qu'elle est aujourd'hui" so it's rather repetitive, as well as being rather long.
(2) "Fair Share" - the idea being that these people share their story, but there's no wordplay involved.

Any bright ideas?
Proposed translations (anglais)
3 +6 They championed the fair/show!
5 they rocked at the Fair making it what it is today
4 the founding fathers/founders of the Fair
3 These people have been making hay....
3 The Faeries of the Fair !
3 they faired well!
3 Fair play to them!
3 So long at the fair!
2 From fair to famous/flourishing
2 Key fair players!
References
Faire la foire au Salon de l'Agriculture

Discussion

Cécile A.-C. Mar 14, 2016:
The more I think about it, it seems that they made event, nothing to do with 'faire la fête' rather they championed it, right on the target for Sheila.
Catharine Cellier-Smart (asker) Mar 14, 2016:
@Cecilea Yes, there's an exclamation mark (as per my question)
Cécile A.-C. Mar 14, 2016:
Does the source text contain an exclamation mark? If not, there is no 'jeu de mots' - "Sans ces figures « historiques », la Foire ne serait pas ce qu'elle est aujourd'hui" indicates that they have had a serious impact on the fair. I do like 'they championed the fair/exhibition from Sheila.
polyglot45 Mar 14, 2016:
they got the show on the road show UK; fair US
Catharine Cellier-Smart (asker) Mar 14, 2016:
Made a show of it? Following on from Robin's comment about Show, I could use the translation "They made a show of it".
Jessica Noyes Mar 14, 2016:
So long at the fair Here in Vermont USA, everyone looks forward to the annual Tunbridge Fair, Barton Fair, and many similar venues for giant pumpkins, prize livestock, and unhealthy food. Anyway, I'm not sure if the refrain "Johny's so long at the fair" (from "Oh dear what can the matter be" is immediately recognizable by your target audience, but these people you are writing about have indeed been at the fair a long time.
Cécile A.-C. Mar 14, 2016:
They had a stand at the Agricultural Fair meaning they were present and that presence made the Fair what it is now. This "Sans ces figures « historiques », la Foire ne serait pas ce qu'elle est aujourd'hui" indicates they have had a great impact on the Fair.
Catharine Cellier-Smart (asker) Mar 14, 2016:
@Lara I don't think the client needs to be consulted, or not yet anyway. It's not the title of the Fair/Show, but of a series of articles that are inside a brochure.
Lara Barnett Mar 14, 2016:
@ Catherine I think the client should be consulted on this. If this is the title it might be too important for marketing or publicity purposes to provide a translation that even just slightly misses the point.

Unless you go for something very general like "All the fun of the fair...." or maybe "They all had fun at the fair...."
Catharine Cellier-Smart (asker) Mar 14, 2016:
@Robin It doesn't really have an official English name, the brochure/magazine of prior editions wasn't professionally translated so it's previously been called "Agricultural Fair" which is more of an Americanism than a Britishism I think.
So I've been calling it 'Agricultural Fair' but there would be no problem with using 'Show' - at this stage everything is still possible.
Catharine Cellier-Smart (asker) Mar 14, 2016:
@Alexandre I won't keep the pun if it means a nonsensical translation into English.
Sheila Wilson Mar 14, 2016:
A possibility Whether you go with fair or show, you could maybe pair it with "Champions", as in "a person who vigorously supports or defends a person or cause". Or use the verb form to make it a little clearer to the reader that they didn't win this year's prizes.
Jennifer Levey Mar 14, 2016:
@Asker Can you confirm that the official name of the event in English (if it in fact has an official English name...) is "Agricultural Fair". I ask, because it would be more common (at least in the UK) to call it an Agricultural Show (and the venue would be a "show-ground" - a "fair-ground" is a place for carrousels and roller-coasters).
Maybe you need a play on "show", not "fair" .... ?
Alexandre Tissot Mar 14, 2016:
Pun Good afternoon,

I confirm the pun: "Faire la foire" = "Faire la fête" and it is mandatory to keep it but not easy.

Proposed translations

+6
1 heure
Selected

They championed the fair/show!

As others are posting answers, I thought I'd add one to my discussion entry. Of course, it's more often used for ideals, causes, principles etc., but this type of use isn't unknown.

http://www.thomasmarker.com/building-a-hub-of-hope-the-story...
They championed the project from beginning to end

http://www.skinet.com/warrenmiller/causes/climb-to-glory-leg...
Climb To Glory tells the story of the 10th Mountain Division Ski Troopers and how they championed the U.S. Ski Industry following World War II.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Doug_Parmenter
Together they championed the music scenes of Reading and nearby communities.

http://archives.gcah.org/xmlui/handle/10516/5241
They Championed the Cherokees
Peer comment(s):
agree Cécile A.-C. : the fair (or exhibition).
1 heure
Thanks. Depends really on variant and prior translations.
agree Katherine Rutter : I'd change the wording to "the champions of the fair" if you go down this route.
1 heure
Thanks. I actually decided not to because they may not have actually won anything. Wouldn't want to ruffle feathers :).
agree Yolanda Broad : I like Katherine Rutter's "champions of the fair" (or even: "championing the fair"
1 heure
Thanks. See my reply to Katherine re champions, but I really like the idea of championing
agree Yvonne Gallagher : Just "Champions of the fair/show!" as the title and verb can be used elsewhere
2 heures
Thanks. See my reply to Katherine
agree philgoddard : I'm not sure your suggestion quite works because the wordplay is not immediately obvious. How about "(These are) the REAL champions of the fair"?
2 heures
Thanks. Yes, that might work.
agree Sheri P : Super creative
4 heures
Thanks
Something went wrong...
4 KudoZ points awarded for this answer. Comment: "Thanks Sheila, and to everyone for your comments"
21 minutes

These people have been making hay....

...and not only when the sun shines!--- is a type of agricultural metaphor which implies their dedication to agriculture through the ' and not only when' twist I added.
The usual expression is ' to make hay while the sun shines' meaning to take advantage of a situation, in this case to improve the lot of agriculture; it's a point of departure at least;
Note from asker:
Unfortunately I didn't mention that the Fair/Show takes place in Reunion, where hay is not really a crop.
Peer comment(s):
neutral Marie-Pascale Wersinger : I think this expression is a little old
1 jour 18 heures
Something went wrong...
27 minutes

From fair to famous/flourishing

Playing with
"From fair to middling".
I really do not know whether this would work...
Something went wrong...
41 minutes

The Faeries of the Fair !

A bright idea ?
Something went wrong...
1 heure

the founding fathers/founders of the Fair

my take
Something went wrong...
22 heures

Key fair players!

Sounds a bit daft, but at least there's some wordplay and it's short. Thought I'd throw it into the pot.
Something went wrong...
1 jour 34 minutes

they faired well!

another idea
Note from asker:
This was my second choice, thanks!
Peer comment(s):
agree Jessica Noyes
3 heures
thanks
disagree Marie-Pascale Wersinger : this is not a powerful enough statement
18 heures
this is hardly high-power journalism
Something went wrong...
1 jour 1 heure

Fair play to them!

and another...
Something went wrong...
1 jour 22 heures

So long at the fair!

An allusion to the song "Johnny's so long at the fair"
Also suggestive of the 40 years history of the fair
Something went wrong...
2 jours 14 heures

they rocked at the Fair making it what it is today

suggestion
Something went wrong...

Reference comments

1 heure
Reference:

Faire la foire au Salon de l'Agriculture

Que ce soit à Paris ou à la Réunion, l'ambiance est la même ! Pour vous en inspirer :
http://www.concours-agricole.com/accueil/
Something went wrong...
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