A database of eighteenth-century transmedial adaptations, 1660-1843.
The theater and the novel were closely enmeshed in the eighteenth century. Novels were adapted to the stage, plays were given a second life in prose, and numerous authors excelled in both forms. This database originated in a desire to look at the exchange between the theater and novels over the course of the long eighteenth century. It has since grown to include all instances of transmedial exchange between the theater and non-dramatic texts. The database attempts to record all instances of theatrical adaptations of non-dramatic texts (including novels, poems, prose), and all prose adaptations of stage performances, published or performed in Britain between 1660 and 1843.
As of January 2024, the database contains over 500 records and 272 instances of adaptation . 88% of the adaptations are theatrical adaptations of non-dramatic texts, and the remaining 12% are prose adaptations of stage performances.
Funded, in part, by a Mellon Mid-Doctoral Fellowship in Digital Humanities. A public version of the database is forthcoming.