official blog for 1816, a brand new musical!
Trapped indoors by torrential rain, legendary writers Byron, Percy and Mary Shelley and their friends, Polidori and Claire, search for inspiration by the gloomy Lake Geneva. But things fall apart the longer they are stuck together... Polidori’s diary is brought to life in the 1816 Year Without a Summer musical.
NEW MUSICAL ABOUT THE ROMANTIC POETS AT LAKE GENEVA
1816 is a brand new comedy-drama musical based on the happenings at the Villa Diodati, where Lord Byron, Percy Shelley, Mary Shelley, John Polidori and Claire Clairmont met, leading to the creation of Frankenstein and the first modern vampire novel. The first show will be on the 6th August in Camden, London.
with less than two weeks to go, now is your chance to ask the team anything!!! about the show, the romantics, the music, whatever it is you'd like to know about us...
1816 is back in 2026, hot on the heels of three successful runs last summer. Keep an eye out for more, as we get closer to our cast album release announcement! More info can be found at 1816musical.com
If you'd like to support new, original theatre, consider supporting us: https://www.gofundme.com/f/help-1816-...
1816 is back in 2026, hot on the heels of three successful runs last summer. Keep an eye out for more, as we get closer to our cast album release announcement! More info can be found at 1816musical.com
If you'd like to support new, original theatre, consider supporting us: https://www.gofundme.com/f/help-1816-...
If you missed our last post, here's a brief description of what 1816 is. In short, it's a new comedy-drama musical about the Romantic poets, the birth of Frankenstein and the messy drama brought about by 5 writers' disastrous retreat. We started as a university production under the same company that gave rise to SIX the musical, and now we are an independent show looking to future runs and an album in 2026!
1816 was first conceived as an idea in summer 2022; me and the cowriter of the show had been absently planning to write a musical for a good few years, but with no ideas yet. We went to the Edinburgh Fringe with a friend to watch shows from our university troupe, and were inspired again.
The show's cowriter had studied A-Level English, and suggested Byron. I, at the time, knew simply that he was scandalous and wild, so agreed. Early research led us to this summer, which neither of us knew about, and featured two other big names: Mary and Percy Shelley. I started reading Polidori's diary as the only solid source left from the summer, and was instantly hooked on this summer as an idea. The arguments, the great literary creations, the comedy of 5 young, dramatic adults trapped inside, the potential for tragedy and jokes all in one pre-defined event. It felt like a wattpad fanfic more than a historical reality, but we ran with it.
We applied, and got approved for full funding from Cambridge University's Musical Theatre Society to go to the Camden Fringe and perform our show on behalf of the university. Once we were approved in December 2024, we started writing in earnest, and finished a first draft of the show between then and Feb 2025.
I've now read Polidori's diary twice, all of Frankenstein and the Vampyre, excerpts from dozens of Byron's and Percy Shelley's works, almost every letter Claire wrote to Byron and probably hundreds of academic articles on this topic. Quotes have been snipped up and stitched into lyrics. It's been written, edited, re-edited, and is now being rewritten with new songs and themes, now we understand the show better. The show is always changing. When it started, it was much more of a comedy, and much more oriented around fun facts we knew about each author. We've since thought about the wider motivations and flaws of each person, and drawn on the force of writing and creation as key points in the show. It will likely keep changing as long as it runs.
The show has had three runs so far; one at the Camden Fringe in August with CUMTS, one independent production off-West End in September and a run in our university town of Cambridge in October. In December, we recorded an original cast album, which will be releasing THIS YEAR. We are editing and preparing to go to the Edinburgh Fringe ourselves this summer, which we are fundraising for through a combination of university applications, delivering composition workshops and a GoFundMe. If you want to support original theatre, or particularly want to see Polidori and Claire Clairmont take centre stage in their own narratives, do consider donating to us!
After a 5 star review from The Obscuity and a 4 star review from London Pub Theatres, 181… Gina Stock needs your support for HELP 1816 GET T
We are so excited to continue working on this show and see how far it'll go from here, so please do stay tuned to see how we evolve from here.
If you missed our last post, here's a brief description of what 1816 is. In short, it's a new comedy-drama musical about the Romantic poets, the birth of Frankenstein and the messy drama brought about by 5 writers' disastrous retreat. We started as a university production under the same company that gave rise to SIX the musical, and now we are an independent show looking to future runs and an album in 2026!
1816 was first conceived as an idea in summer 2022; me and the cowriter of the show had been absently planning to write a musical for a good few years, but with no ideas yet. We went to the Edinburgh Fringe with a friend to watch shows from our university troupe, and were inspired again.
The show's cowriter had studied A-Level English, and suggested Byron. I, at the time, knew simply that he was scandalous and wild, so agreed. Early research led us to this summer, which neither of us knew about, and featured two other big names: Mary and Percy Shelley. I started reading Polidori's diary as the only solid source left from the summer, and was instantly hooked on this summer as an idea. The arguments, the great literary creations, the comedy of 5 young, dramatic adults trapped inside, the potential for tragedy and jokes all in one pre-defined event. It felt like a wattpad fanfic more than a historical reality, but we ran with it.
We applied, and got approved for full funding from Cambridge University's Musical Theatre Society to go to the Camden Fringe and perform our show on behalf of the university. Once we were approved in December 2024, we started writing in earnest, and finished a first draft of the show between then and Feb 2025.
I've now read Polidori's diary twice, all of Frankenstein and the Vampyre, excerpts from dozens of Byron's and Percy Shelley's works, almost every letter Claire wrote to Byron and probably hundreds of academic articles on this topic. Quotes have been snipped up and stitched into lyrics. It's been written, edited, re-edited, and is now being rewritten with new songs and themes, now we understand the show better. The show is always changing. When it started, it was much more of a comedy, and much more oriented around fun facts we knew about each author. We've since thought about the wider motivations and flaws of each person, and drawn on the force of writing and creation as key points in the show. It will likely keep changing as long as it runs.
The show has had three runs so far; one at the Camden Fringe in August with CUMTS, one independent production off-West End in September and a run in our university town of Cambridge in October. In December, we recorded an original cast album, which will be releasing THIS YEAR. We are editing and preparing to go to the Edinburgh Fringe ourselves this summer, which we are fundraising for through a combination of university applications, delivering composition workshops and a GoFundMe. If you want to support original theatre, or particularly want to see Polidori and Claire Clairmont take centre stage in their own narratives, do consider donating to us!
After a 5 star review from The Obscuity and a 4 star review from London Pub Theatres, 181… Gina Stock needs your support for HELP 1816 GET T
We are so excited to continue working on this show and see how far it'll go from here, so please do stay tuned to see how we evolve from here.
i find it interesting that everything i've written about mary shelley so far in the show has taken many painstaking drafts that don't quite work before a random spark of inspiration has unlocked the final bit i need. she's too relatable unfortunately
1816: The Year Without a Summer is a new original musical coming to a music streaming service near you in 2026! 1816 is a musical retelling of the summer Frankenstein and the first modern vampire novel were written, bringing to life the time famous literary legends like Lord Byron and Mary and Percy Shelley spent trapped indoors by torrential rain, though this time putting a spotlight on the lesser-known stories of Polidori and Claire Clairmont.
It's a fun comedy about five young adults (one celebrity, two messy situationships and an eloping couple) trapped in a claustrophobic villa on a holiday gone wrong, but it's also a drama focussing in on themes of ambition, legacy, interpersonal conflict and societal standing in the early 1800s.
Me and the cowriter of the show have been writing 1816 since summer 2022, and are so excited to share details about it with you! Please send us asks about the show so we can talk about it more :) Every week I'll hop on here with some fun details from the show and the process of creating it, so you can follow along as we develop the show even further! For now, have a sneak peek of whats to come in the form of a live recording of our last run 👀
CAST ALBUM FOR ROMANTIC POET MUSICAL RELEASING 2026
Huge news for the new year... following our sold out runs in London and 5* reviews, 1816: The Year Without a Summer is releasing our original cast album to all streaming services in early 2026!
Retelling the story of the summer both Frankenstein and the first vampire novel were written, 1816 brings famous literary figures like Lord Byron, Mary Shelley and Percy Shelley to life while shining a light on the neglected stories of Claire Clairmont, Byron's scorned ex lover, and John Polidori, Byron's travelling doctor, who was inspired by his tumultuous relationship with Byron to create the first piece vampire fiction. 1816 is a comedy-drama, highlighting these young Romantics' humanity, flaws, ambitions and power.
We've got ballads, Agony-style duets, gothic anthems and more. I'll be updating this blog with little BTS snippets, show details, answering questions about the creative process and sharing videos. Most up to date will be TikTok and Instagram though (@1816.musical) if you'd rather not wait. Keep the questions coming and keep an eye out for a release date!
CAST ALBUM FOR ROMANTIC POET MUSICAL RELEASING 2026
Huge news for the new year... following our sold out runs in London and 5* reviews, 1816: The Year Without a Summer is releasing our original cast album to all streaming services in early 2026!
Retelling the story of the summer both Frankenstein and the first vampire novel were written, 1816 brings famous literary figures like Lord Byron, Mary Shelley and Percy Shelley to life while shining a light on the neglected stories of Claire Clairmont, Byron's scorned ex lover, and John Polidori, Byron's travelling doctor, who was inspired by his tumultuous relationship with Byron to create the first piece vampire fiction. 1816 is a comedy-drama, highlighting these young Romantics' humanity, flaws, ambitions and power.
We've got ballads, Agony-style duets, gothic anthems and more. I'll be updating this blog with little BTS snippets, show details, answering questions about the creative process and sharing videos. Most up to date will be TikTok and Instagram though (@1816.musical) if you'd rather not wait. Keep the questions coming and keep an eye out for a release date!
Is the play going to be recorded or do you know if theres the possibility of a live stream? The premise your play sounds amazing and I'd hate to miss it but im doubtful I'll make it to London in time since im not from the UK :(
We are hoping to record it, though I'm not 100% sure what we will be doing with the recording after (I am but a humble writer and this is our director's realm) but we would love to put it out there! We also have shows planned 30th Sept-4th Oct and 15th-18th Oct, but obviously still in the UK, unfortunately 😔 We'll just have to become an international sensation i guess 👀
Very complicated man . If only his entire life had gone differently he could've been a better person but it didn't and that's very sad! but on the flip side he's objectively funny as hell. love him
what is new about this adaptation vs previous ones,, i'm excited to hear about this!
The musical is a direct adaptation of Polidori's diary, with Polidori as the narrator, and a big focus on him + Claire Clairmont as the two untold stories of this summer! Plus, being both a comedy-drama and a musical, it's more like a sitcom (with songs) that goes very, very wrong rather than a full-on drama.
