Welcome to Adaptation as Fanfiction

Here's a not so secret fact about me: I enjoy fanfiction.

There's nothing wrong with enjoying fanfiction - sometimes I want to see what other authors think was happening with two background characters while the main characters were ignoring them or sometimes I want to speculate on what happened after the story ended.

Fanfiction is fan taking a work they love and adapting that work into a new story. This is not a new idea and often adaptation is in itself a type of fanfiction. There's a very fine line between what is cannon and what is not cannon and sometimes a work can be removed from the cannon (see any fan arguing about the Star Wars Legends demotion).

I'd argue some of the most popular plays, movies, and TV shows of the past decade could easily fall within the category of fanfiction as well as adaptation.

Hey look, mythological fan art!

For example, Hamilton is a "real person" fanfiction (yes they exist, no I'm not very fond of them, though there are a few I like) as is the movie/play 1776 (though they really do Judge Wilson dirty in 1776). Hadestown is one of my all time favorite plays...and totally an alternate reality version of the story of Orpheus and Eurydice. Pretty much anything that features Sherlock Holmes is a fanfiction (unless it's a direct story adaptation).

But do these examples really count? Aren't they just adaptations of materials in the public domain or of real events?

Yes and they are also a form of fanfiction.

A Cinderella and historical fiction fanfiction (because Da Vinci is in it)

Go re-watch Hamilton on Disney+ and tell me that Lin-Manuel Miranda isn't a fan of the real historical Alexander Hamilton. He spent 6 years developing that play. His passion had to have been sparked somehow.

Look! More public domain adaptations that are also fanfiction.

Oh Brother Where Art Thou takes a lot of liberties with the plot of The Odyssey, but clearly someone was a big enough fan of the original story to create an alternative universe where George Clooney (as Odysseus) escapes from prison to get back with his wife. It is so blatantly obvious in places, that I -without knowing the movie had any ties to The Odyssey before watching - picked up on the imagery (especially with John Goodman as the cyclops and the sirens scene).

And don't even get me started on anything and everything related to Sherlock Holmes (the original toxic fandom). Watching the old movies where Holmes goes up against the Nazis is trippy because I think of Holmes in the 1880s or 1890s - when there weren't Nazis. Though I admit to a deep fondness for all of the Wishbone adaptations of the books.

However, fanfiction goes even further back than this past century and the insane copyright laws currently in existence - one of many reasons fanfiction has become so prevalent. These works were often held in such regard that they helped change how a society saw the origins of the works.

Shakespeare created several plays about the English Kings (starting with Edward III and ending with Richard III) as this really cool adapted history of his country. These adaptations can also fall into fanfiction territory as Shakespeare had to take many liberties when adapting the narratives into plays. He had to write parts for the actors in his companies, speak to the audience in a way they would understand, and keep his wealthy patrons happy. Henry V didn't have a friend named Sir John Falstaff, he's fictional and also appears in The Merry Wives of Windsor which I'm fairly certain isn't part of the English Kings plays. However, Falstaff was (supposedly) a fan favorite of the audience and is speculated to be based off of a real person (speculations include the actor playing him, but no conclusive evidence exists).

This series of plays by Shakespeare are often seen as helping educate and shape public opinion on English history (particularly where the monarchs are concerned). Henry V is the tragic hero the public needs because he was on the right side of the War of the Roses, while Richard III is a total villain because he was on the wrong side of the war (he also likely murdered his nephews and rightful heirs to the throne, so...).

You guys might not have read the epic poems of Dante's Divine Comedy or John Milton's Paradise Lost, but by the universe you've either heard of them or been exposed to something that has been influenced by them.

 I've seen Paradise Lost referenced by Mary Shelly in Frankenstien, Neil Gainman in Sandman, a scene in the movie Animal House, the Star Trek episode "Space Seed", and more video games and songs than I have space to list. Needless to say, it's popular.

It's also this very long angsty fanfiction about the fallen angel Lucifer and the war between heaven and hell. I wouldn't even call this an adaptation of a Bible story, this is just straight up fanfiction about things that are referenced or barely mentioned in The Good Book.

That goes double for The Divine Comedy. The trilogy is a prime example of self insert fanfiction (written by a good writer) if I ever read such a story. The guy gets to meet his favorite Latin poet, get a VIP tour of hell, puragory, and heaven, damn two Popes to hell (it's complicated), and meets all the whose who of dead guys in 14th century western culture (seriously there are a lot of side conversations that could easily have been skipped over Dante).

This particular work of fiction was so popular by the time's powers at be that it influenced the Christian religion up to, well...now. Half the reason westerners and Christians think of hell the way they do is because of Dante. Heck, who else would have sentenced Marcus Junius Brutus to be eaten for eternity by the devil himself? An Italian with a grudge - that's who.

But you don't have to listen to my arguments for this. Overly Sarcastic Productions on YouTube has a fantastic summary of all three books and why they are the most fanfiction of fanfiction writings in existence that are also held in such high regard. Seriously check out the videos, they're hilarious.

So the next time you bash someone for writing or enjoying fanfiction, just remember that you might be a fan of someone else's fanfiction...that was just given a budget.

If you enjoyed this post (or it really pissed you off) please like, share, and/or leave a comment. I love hearing from my readers and I hope you guys like hearing from me.

Until next week.

Welcome to Watching the Stage

One of my goals for the start of this year, was to take advantage of the fact that I live within spitting distance of New York City. I am happy to say that I have been keeping to that goal.

And my favorite reason to go into New York is to see a stage show.

It doesn't matter if it's on or off Broadway, I've been having a lot of fun going to different plays and performances around the city, though I haven't gotten tickets to see Hamilton yet.

There are all types of stage performances. Musicals, dramas, comedies, classics like Shakespeare and the Greek tragedies, operas, and ballets. Each is unique in how they tell stories and convey emotions.

My current favorite play is Come From Away which is about how a small town in Canada took in about 3,000 people during 9/11 when all airplanes were grounded. The music is amazing and the stories are inspiring as well as heart breaking. What's really cool is that all the characters portrayed are based on the actual people who experienced the event.

What's really cool is how the set is designed. There's a rotating stage with fake trees, chairs, a "bar", and beautifully painted backdrop that reminded me of painted drift wood art. The band plays on stage, instead of in a pit and adds to the atmosphere. I hear there's a movie in the works, but no matter how well done the movie is, I don't feel it will have the same feeling as the play.

I'm not sure how to explain this feeling, but there is a big difference seeing a stage play and watching a movie based on that play. Plays rely on suggestion and imagination. When the lights go down and a single spotlight illuminates a solitary character on stage to give a soliloquy, it doesn't have the same effect as a character looking into a camera or giving a voice over to tell the audience what they're thinking.

Don't get me wrong, there are some plays that made the jump onto the big screen with success. West Side Story, Sound of Music, Hairspray, and especially The Rocky Horror Picture Show are all awesome movies (though I admit that I haven't seen them on stage). I even enjoy the 2004 Phantom of the Opera.

However, movies are a different medium from plays. Often scenes are squashed together or cut to make room for run time. Depending on the writers and directors, things can change drastically between stage to screen. That's not necessarily a bad thing, but it does change the experience.

To see "Phantom of the Opera" on stage is an entirely different experience. There's a reason it's one of the longest running shows on Broadway. The sets are a amazing, the effects are stunning, and to see the actors on stage is magic. I like the "Phantom of the Opera" movie. I love the Broadway show.

And there are a lot of plays in New York. New ones open every year, and there are even a few shorter runs with famous actors and actresses.

This is from the movie.

A few years ago, I saw The Front Page starring Nathan Lane and John Goodman. Yesterday, I saw Hillary and Clinton with Laurie Metcalf and John Lithgow. Both Adam Driver and Danieli Radcliff have recently been in shows that I nearly brought tickets for, while my mom was disappointing that we weren't able to see Jeff Daniels in To Kill a Mockingbird (tickets were about the same price as Hamilton when I finally started looking).

It's cool to see these actors in movies and TV shows. It's stunning to watch them preform live and on stage. Nathan Lane in particular is one of my favorite actors to watch on stage. His stage presence is captivating.

I do wish it wasn't super expensive to see plays though, especially in New York. There are ways to find cheaper tickets, but it's tough and the timing doesn't always work out. There are raffles and buy-same-day tickets, but they are hard to get.

If going to New York is a tough option, then check out what the local high schools or college are putting on. When I was still in high school and college, I'd go to the plays my school put on. I loved seeing Little Shop of Horrors and Thoroughly Modern Millie with my friends.

Some schools even put their performances on YouTube, which is how I saw the "Very Potter Musicals" (not "Cursed Child") and "Once Upon a Mattress".

And don't discount the film adaptations. I know I earlier said that the experiences are different (and they are), but that doesn't mean that that's a bad thing. The Harry Potter movies are very different from the books, but that doesn't stop me from enjoying them. There are tons of movies from the 30s and 40s which were originally plays (see my post on The Front Page for a great adaptation example).`

One of my favorite play adaptations is Angels in America. You can find the whole mini-series on Amazon Prime right now (and possibly HBO GO). It's about the AIDs epidemic in the 1980s. HBO put together a 6 part miniseries back in the early 2000s and if you haven't seen it, I totally recommend it. It is a play (both parts) that I hope to eventually see on stage, but for now, I'm happy re-watching the miniseries when I have the time.

Do you guys have any favorite plays or stage performances?

Until next week.

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