Undergraduate Research Guide: Theater and Drama
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Scope
This research guide begins by providing general sources of information related to theater and drama in College Library. Here you will find dictionaries and glossaries of theater and drama terminology, books on American and World theater, guides to the best and worst plays, biographies of playwrights and directors, books covering musical theater, drama criticism, Shakespeare, and synopses of drama. The "Internet Sites" section begins by describing theater and drama gateway sites, and topical headings follow in alphabetical order.
Overview
General
Cambridge Guide to American Theatre
College Library Reference Collection: PN 2220 C35 1993
Theater in America: 250 Years of Plays, Players, and Productions
College Library Reference Collection: PN 2221 H38 1996
Best/Great Plays
The Best Short Plays of the World Theatre
College Library Main Collection: PN 6112 B45
Musical Theatre
The Encyclopedia of the Musical Theatre
College Library Reference Collection: ML 102 M88 G3 2001
Shakespeare
All Things Shakespeare: An Encyclopedia of Shakespeare's World
College Library Reference Collection: PR 2892 O56 2002
The Oxford Companion to Shakespeare
College Library Reference Collection: PR 2892 O94 2001
Shakespeare's Language: A Glossary of Unfamiliar Words in Shakespeare's Plays and Poems
College Library Reference Collection: PR 2892 S447 1996
Synopses
MasterPlots Complete Multiyear (not updated)
Masterplots Complete is only available in campus libraries. It contains full-text essays on works of fiction, non-fiction, drama, and poetry from Salem Press reference series, such as Masterplots and Masterplots, American Fiction Series. Basic instructions for MasterPlots Complete
Finding Journal and News Articles
Below are links to databases that cover this subject area. The truncation symbol for all of them is an asterisk (*) unless otherwise noted.
- Sample searches for databases:
-
drama or theatre and review*
play* and review*
Shakespeare and review*
Hamlet and review*
drama or theatre and criticism
"performing arts" and United States
Recommended Databases:
Academic Search 1984 - to date (updated daily)
This library database indexes approximately 3,100 popular magazines and academic journals and provides the full-text articles from approximately 1,000 journals. Basic instructions for Academic Search
ABELL is the British equivalent of the MLA Bibliography, but different enough in its coverage and the journals it indexes that the overlap is surprisingly far from complete. ABELL covers monographs, periodical articles, critical editions, books reviews, collections of essays and dissertations. Basic instructions for ABELL
Biography and Genealogy Master Index 1976 - to date (updated annually)
Citations to more than 4 million current and historical persons are included in the Biography & Genealogy Master Index. Sources include more than 1000 English-language "who's who" type publications, including biographical dictionaries, handbooks, and directories. Name, birth and death dates, and source information are included for persons in all fields. Basic instructions for Biography and Genealogy Master Index
Contemporary Authors 1960 - to date (updated semiannually)
Contemporary Authors offers biographical and bibliographical information on nearly 100,000 modern authors, including novelists, poets, screenwriters, journalists and other nonfiction writers. The database contains the full-text of the following series: Contemporary Authors Vol. 1-140, Contemporary Authors New Revision Series Vol. 1-41, and Contemporary Authors Permanent Series Vol. 1-2. Basic instructions for Contemporary Authors
The Essay & General Literature Index indexes chapters in more than 300 English language essay collections and anthologies annually. Both humanities and social sciences topics are covered, including economics, political science, history, philosophy, religion, and criticism of literary works, drama, and film. There are no abstracts. Basic instructions for Essay & General Literature Index
Humanities Full Text 1984 - to date (updated monthly)
Indexes 400 scholarly journals on archaeology, classical studies, art, film, folklore, history, journalism, linguistics, literature, music, performing arts, philosophy and religion. Basic instructions for Humanities Full Text
Literature Resource Center 20th Century (updated continuously)
Literature Resource Center includes information on a large number of authors and literary works taken from Contemporary Authors, Dictionary of Literary Biography, Contemporary Literary Criticism, and other sources. In addition to biographical information, LRC includes full-text articles from more than 130 literary journals, a dictionary of literary terms, and links to 5,000 relevant Web sites and special collections. Basic instructions for Literature Resource Center
MLA Bibliography (Literature) 1963 - to date (quarterly)
The Modern Language Association International Bibliography indexes 3,000 English language and foreign periodicals as well as books, book chapters, and dissertations. Its subject matter includes critical works on literature, language, linguistics, and folklore. Reviews of literary and scholarly works are not included. There are no abstracts. Basic instructions for MLA Bibliography
ProQuest Historical Newspapers: New York Times 1851 - 1999 (updated annually)
This version of The New York Times includes full-text and full-image articles since its beginning year. Digital reproductions of every page and every article from every issue are available in downloadable PDF files. Basic instructions for ProQuest Historical Newspapers
ProQuest Research Library 1988 - to date (updated daily)
Indexes over 2,000 general-interest and academic journals. Nearly 1,000 periodicals are full-text. Dates vary, but many full-text journals go back to 1988. Basic instructions for ProQuest Research Library
World Shakespeare Bibliography Online 1974 - 2000 (updated regularly)
A comprehensive bibliography, international in scope, with coverage extending to more than 92 languages, which will, when complete, provide annotated entries for all important books, articles, book reviews, dissertations, theatrical productions, reviews of productions, audiovisual materials, elctronic media, and other scholarly and popular materials related to Shakespeare published or produced since 1900. Basic instructions for World Shakespeare Bibliography Online
Finding Books
MadCat
Books on theater and drama can be found in MadCat, the UW-Madison library catalog.
- Sample keyword searches:
-
dramatist? and biography
drama and history and criticism
theatre and United States and biography
actor? and biography
"performing arts" and review
playwright? and biography
Internet Sites
| Gateways | Awards and Reviews | Biographies | Broadway Theatre | International Theatre | Musical Theatre | History | Other Theatre Art | Performance Art | Wisconsin Theatre |
Gateways
Librarian's Index to the Internet - Performing Arts Topics
http://lii.org/
A collection of annotated performing arts links. The Librarian's Index to the Internet is a searchable, annotated subject directory of more than 11,000 Internet resources selected and evaluated by librarians for their usefulness to users of public libraries.
Selected Theatre Resources on the Internet
http://www.nypl.org/research/lpa/internet/lpa.cfm?Trg=1&d1=1018&d3=Indexes%20to%20Internet%20Theatre%20Resources
Hosted by New York Public Library, this site provides annotated and highly recommended web sites on all aspects of theatre such as musical theatre, history, design, playwriting, associations and organizations, and journals and e-zines.
Voice of the Shuttle
http://vos.ucsb.edu/browse.asp?id=782
The Voice of the Shuttle began in late 1994 as an introduction to the Web for humanists at the University of California, Santa Barbara. This site contains links to drama web sites, online journals and local zines, drama listservs and newsgroups, and drama history links.
Awards and Reviews
The American Theatre Wing's Tony Awards
http://www.tonys.org
The official Web site, it not only has information and news about the current nominees and awards, but also keeps an archive of past winners and presenters.
Curtain Up: The Internet Theatre Magazine of News and Reviews
http://www.curtainup.com
An Internet magazine of reviews, this site reviews performances in New York, London, Philadelphia, and California.
OBIES
http://villagevoice.com/obies
"The Village Voice OBIE Awards were created soon after the inception of the publication in 1955 to publicly acknowledge and encourage the growing Off-Broadway theater movement." Use the OBIES database to search the last forty years of off-broadway performances.
Biographies
Roger L. Stevens Presents
http://www.loc.gov/exhibits/stevens
An exhibition at the Library of Congress that examines Roger Stevens. He was a theatrical producer presenting more than 100 plays and musicals, and an arts administrator, organizing the National Endowment for the Arts (NEA) and serving as its first chairman.
Women of Color, Women of Words
http://www.scils.rutgers.edu/~cybers
"Women of color, women of words is a site dedicated to African American women who have gifted, shaken up, and disturbed the theatre world with their powerful words." Contains critical and biographical review information of plays and playwrights, announcements, play information, and other theatre links. The site's author is a Performing Arts Librarian at George Mason University.
Broadway Theatre
IBDB: Internet Broadway Database
http://www.ibdb.com/default.asp
IBDB (Internet Broadway Database) archive is the official database for Broadway theatre information. IBDB provides records of productions from the beginnings of New York theatre until today. Details include pertinent people involved as well as interesting facts and production statistics.
Playbill
http://www.playbill.com/index.php
This site contains listings and ticket information for Broadway and Off-Broadway shows, tour information, theatre news, features, jobs, celebrity information, playbills on the web, and links to other theatre Web sites.
Theater Mania
http://www.theatermania.com
Here you will find “Everything Theatre.” The site has show and ticket information searchable by city, message boards and archives with past feature news events.
International Theatre
Guide to Theatre in Africa
http://www.afromix.org/html/culture/theatre/index.en.html
This site has theatre company information, festivals, and other theatrical events in Africa and includes articles on African theatre.
Encyclopedia of Canadian Theatre
http://www.canadiantheatre.com
Hosted by Athabasca University, Canada's online and long-distance education university, this online encyclopedia provides artist profiles, theatre reviews, and other historical documents. Search by phrase or by term.
London Theatre Guide
http://www.officiallondontheatre.co.uk
The official site of The Society of London Theatre, you will find what shows are currently playing, recent news, ticket purchasing information, special offers, Laurence Olivier Awards, and a kids and education page.
Musical Theatre
Music Theatre International
http://www.mtishows.com
A theatre licensing company, this site provides a wealth of information on musical theatre.
Musicals101.com: The Cyber Encyclopedia of Musical Theatre, TV and Film
http://www.musicals101.com/
Musicals101 offers detailed histories, bibliographies, chronologies, a show rights index, reviews, photo galleries, biographical sketches, script samples, and a calendar of memorable events.
History
Medieval Drama Links
http://www.the-camerino-players.com/medievaldrama/index.html
A directory of links to medieval drama Web sites, covering Medieval books and publications, news and discussion groups, performance and set design, costumes, dance and music.
Theatre History on the Web
http://www.videoccasions-nw.com/history/jack.html
This site serves as a resource for theatre historians and students of the theatre's history. It is divided into easily identifiable categories with annotated links. The site author, Jack Wolcott, is a retired Associate Director and Graduate Program Coordinator of the University of Washington School of Drama.
The Digger Archives
http://www.diggers.org
"The Digger Archives is an ongoing Web project to preserve and present the history of the anarchist guerilla street theater group that challenged the emerging Counterculture of the Sixties and whose actions and ideals inspired (and continue to inspire) a generation (of all ages) to create models of Free Association."
Other Theatre Art
American Variety State: Vaudeville and Popular Entertainment 1870-1920
http://memory.loc.gov/ammem/vshtml/vshome.html
"This is an anthology selected from various Library of Congress holdings, including 334 English and Yiddish language playscripts, 146 theater playbills and programs, 61 motion pictures, 10 sound recordings and 143 photographs and 29 memorabilia items documenting the life and career of Harry Houdini. Groups of theater posters and additional sound recordings will be added to this anthology in the future."
The Puppetry Home Page
http://www.sagecraft.com/puppetry
The Puppetry Home Page is produced by Rose Sage Barone of Sagecraft Productions and Nick Barone of Nick Barone Puppets. The site provides the latest news in puppetry information, a classifieds section, puppetry exhibits and museums, performance companies, puppetry schools and workshops, puppet theatres, and definitions.
The World of Mime Theatre
http://www.mime.info
This site includes a library of articles and books about the art of mime theatre, information and resources including school and workshop information, performance dates, and theatre locations and information. The site author is a theatrical mime artist and instructor and Director of Mime Theatre Studio in Los Angeles, California.
The Burning Man Project
http://www.burningman.com
A fascinating site that focuses on an annual performance art event that takes place in the Black Rock Desert in Nevada. See "theme camps and art installations" for images and annotated descriptions of past events.
Wisconsin Theatre
University of Wisconsin-Madison, Department of Theatre and Drama
http://www.theatre.wisc.edu/
Here you will find information about UW Madison Department of Theatre and Drama undergraduate/graduate program offerings, class information, and links to other theatre resources such as the University Theatre.
Theatre Wisconsin
http://www.theatrewi.org
The alliance of not-for-profit professional theatres in Wisconsin, this site provides links to contact and other local theatre information in Wisconsin.
Wisconsin Association of Community Theatre
http://www.wactweb.org/
The local chapter of the National Association of Community Theatre, featuring a calendar of local Wisconsin performances, annual meeting information, the association newsletter, and links to other local and national theatre information.
Videos
Broadway, the American Musical
College Library Main Collection: ML 1711.8 N3 B76 2004
The Drama of Ancient Greece
College Library Main Collection: PA 3201 G738 2005
Introduction to Creative Drama and Improvisation
College Library Main Collection: PN 2071 I5 I58 1990
Organizations
American Association of Community Theatre
http://www.aact.org/index.html
Founded in 1986, this organization "represents the interests of more than 7,000 theatres across the United States and its territories, as well as theatre companies with the armed forces overseas."
Canadian Institute for Theatre Technology
http://www.citt.org
This not-for-profit organization serves designers, technicians and craftspeople, managers, educators and students, consultants and architects, and suppliers and manufacturers in the theatre industry.
League of Historic American Theatres
http://www.lhat.org
Founded in 1976, the league is a not-for-profit network of people dedicated to rehabilitating historic theatres.
National Alliance for Musical Theatre
http://www.namt.net
This organization was founded in 1985 and is the only national service organization for musical theatre. Its membership includes theatres, booking and presenting organizations, universities, and independent producers. They are located throughout 33 states, Canada, Finland, Germany, Spain, and the United Kingdom.
Theatre Communications Group (TCG)
http://www.tcg.org
A not-for-profit organization, it's mission is to "strengthen, nurture and promote the not-for-profit professional American theatre." TCG has more than 425 theatre members in 47 states, 17,000 individual members, 100 Trustee Leadership Network members and a growing number of university affiliates.