About

This project explores adaptation in theatre for young audiences (TYA) focusing on how literary works are reimagined for the stage. Adaptation is central to TYA, as it reimagines stories to captivate young audiences while meeting their developmental needs. Beyond their artistic and educational impact, adaptations are commercially successful, demonstrating their broad appeal and ability to engage audiences both creatively and culturally. By examining the collaborative nature of adaptation, this research will uncover how key creative voices—such as playwrights, directors, actors, and designers—work together to transform a source text into a live performance. This focus on adaptation is crucial for understanding the collaborative nature of theatre itself, as it involves the active exchange of ideas and expertise across various artistic domains, making it an ideal focus for ethnographic research into the dynamics of TYA.

By applying the rectangle framework—which I developed during my master’s to examine adaptation from a holistic perspective, integrating the original author/text, playwright, performance, and audience, to future adaptations in TYA— I will analyse the transition from page to stage through immersive ethnographic research within the rehearsal rooms of three theatre companies: Unicorn, The Ark, and Birmingham Rep. My holistic perspective views adaptation as a dynamic, multi-directional process, where creative contributions, interpretations, and audience responses interact to shape the evolving life of a story. This ethnographic approach will highlight the lived, embodied, and collaborative experiences unfolding in real-time within the rehearsal room. It offers a deeper understanding of collaborative processes, providing valuable insights into the life cycle of adaptations through the creative dynamics mapped within my framework. By studying adaptations through this lens, my research will illuminate how these interconnected elements collectively create a meaningful experience for young audiences, underscoring the importance of TYA as a rich, collaborative, and transformative form of theatre.