August Wilhelm Iffland. Berlin dramaturgical writings

• Applicant: Dr. Klaus Wolfgang Gerlach
• Subject Area: Theatre and Media Studies ; German Literary and Cultural Studies (Modern German Literature)
• Term: since 2024
• Project identifier: Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG) - Project number 545419165

Within the requested research period of two years, a text-critical selected edition of 16 of Iffland's writings, three writings by A. W. Schlegel, which were written in exchange with Iffland, and three thematically closely related letters will be edited. The texts are to be edited diplomatically faithfully and in their entirety. With the help of an overview and passage commentary, the writings will be explained in such a way as to ensure their comprehension by scholars of all disciplines and to contextualise their references within the discourses of theatre, music and literary history of the period in which they were written and effective. The commentaries are supplemented by an annotated index of persons, works and places as well as a subject index. Transcription and commentary will be carried out in the digital working environment ediarum according to the rules of a scholarly edition. ediarum is an electronic working environment developed at the BBAW, which has already been used to create and present other digital scholarly editions at the BBAW. The primary form of publication is the digital version, which is published in open access under the CC BY 4.0 licence. In addition, there will be a print edition published by Metzler Verlag, which will be based on the digitised edition. A print edition more recognisably represents the work character of the writings, it has the advantage of better readability and is still the most durable storage medium. Representative texts were selected from Iffland's extensive archive of work. The selected writings to be edited are thematically very diverse and show the broad spectrum of Iffland's theoretical and practical engagement with theatre. They deal with the function of theatre in society, aesthetic questions of productions and the practice of acting. The selection of writings considers the following thematic aspects: 1. performance analyses that deal with the effect on the audience and in which the importance of the public sphere of the theatre around 1800 is significant. 2. writings that were produced in connection with the concrete development of a performance and deal with such central points as text composition, casting, costume and decoration. 3. writings that deal with the transformation of theatre as a whole, highlighting both aesthetic and social aspects such as rehearsals, further training, orchestras and retirement.

• DFG Programme: Research Grants