DAT@APGRD

Preservation and access are at the heart of the APGRD’s commitment to accessibility and inclusion, and so we are delighted to announce that we have begun phase one of our new Digital Ancient Theatre project, DAT @ APGRD. 

We are developing an online search interface to locate audio-visual recordings of performances inspired by the ancient Greek and Roman dramas and epics – collating information about recordings from our own extensive audio-visual collections, as well as those held by external archives, repositories, theatre companies, and online streaming services. The DAT database will be global in scope and historically wide-ranging: the earliest video recording held in the APGRD relates to the 1927 Prometheus at Delphi, while the most recent is from this year.

Photograph of an audio reel from the APGRD Leyhausen CollectionPhase 1 will also see the development of an enhanced Digital Media Collection that can be accessed on-site at the APGRD – comprising digitised versions of our analogue audio-visual collections, collaborative new digital material, and digital donations via the forging of partnerships with external archives and theatre companies with whom we already work closely.   

Thanks to the expertise of our new Senior Software Developer, Mike Kelly, the DAT database will sit on a newly revamped APGRD website and be integrated with our pre-existing Modern Production Database. Our online resources are being upgraded to facilitate the use of the APGRD's digital scholarship, beyond classical reception and performance studies, to the field of digital humanities and the teaching of digital scholarship. 

Tell us about Performances!

In conjunction with DAT developments, we are aiming to improve the scope of our productions database by inviting you to submit information about any performances, inspired by Greek and Roman sources - in any country, any time period, any medium (films and TV, stage or radio plays, ballets or operas etc.) - and particularly those that you now have been recorded! 

If you can help us, please visit our online submissions form>