The Comparative Drama Conference was founded in 1977 by Dr. Karelisa Hartigan at the University of Florida. This international, interdisciplinary event is devoted to all aspects of theatre scholarship, including textual and performance analysis. Each year, the conference attracts over 150 leading scholars from around the world for a weekend dedicated to academic collaboration in the fields of English, Theatre, and the Classics.

Since the conference’s inception in 1977, the University of Florida, Ohio State University, California State University--Northridge, and Loyola Marymount University have each hosted the event; Stevenson University in Baltimore begins hosting the Comparative Drama Conference in 2012.

Scholars in the fields of Classics, Theatre, and English from a variety of international universities organize the conference annually. The conference also compiles and publishes Text & Presentation, which showcases outstanding papers presented at the conference each year.