Every attempt has been made to render this hand-list as comprehensive as possible. While the register of the French repertoires at the St James's Theatre has been entirely omitted because of exigencies of space, and while the records of foreign operas produced in England have been considerably curtailed, all other purely dramatic forms are here included. Ballets (when these were not merely individual dances), spectacles, pantomimes and entertainments find their places here alongside regular tragedy and comedy. It may be that some of the material gathered and presented here will not prove of much general or immediate use; but comprehensiveness has been aimed at, first, because no effort has hitherto been made to survey the theatrical activities of this half-century, and, secondly, because the correct interpretation of the dramatic movements of the period demands that full attention should be paid to the efforts—and even to the more trivial efforts—of the minor theatres. It is certain that further research will provide many additions to this hand-list, but I believe it will be found that I have succeeded in listing at least the vast majority even of the lesser pieces of the time.

The difficulties in the preparation of this 1800–1850 hand-list have been immeasurably greater than those encountered in the preparation of the lists for the years 1660–1700, 1700–1750 and 1750–1800.