Splinters in AusStage
The AusStage Performing Arts database is an invaluable online resource that collects information on Australian live performance - mainly theatre, but encompassing musical theatre, comedy and circus. It is led by a consortium of universities, government agencies and collecting institutions and has receieved significant Australian Research Council funding since its establishment in 2001. The research has engaged with AusStage from the beginning and ensured that records for Splinters performances were as complete as feasible.
The data structure in this website is mapped as far as possible to the AusStage ontology. The fundamental unit of the AusStage ontology is the Event - a performance or season of performance at a particular location. This is appropriate for a company like Splinters, which was constantly experimenting with the works created, often giving them new or mutiple titles over the course of a tour. The primary unit for collecting is, however, the Item. This is similar to a Resource in Austage, which is based on the Dublin Core Metadata Element Set, and includes the concept of a Collection which corresponds to an Item Set. The AusStage data catergories of Contributor, Organisation and Venue have been mapped here in a similar supporting role to create internal links.
Various facets of the AusStage data are available via web services and APIs (Application Programming Interfaces) and the site makes some use of this: for example, the AusStage page listing of Splinters Events is embedded below. Clicking the links will take you to the AusStage website: please use your browser's Back button to return to this site.