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    Theatre - Subject Guide

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    Sections in this category: General Resources | Biographies | Career Help | Costume Resources | Criticism and Reviews | Dictionaries | Encyclopedias | Indexes to Plays | Plot Outlines and Characters

    General Resources

    Acting with an Accent
    By David Stern. Allen Library A/V [MX PE1712 S77] Check Status

    Cambridge Guide to Theatre
    Information on the history and present practice of theatre in all parts of the world. Also available in print: Mortensen Library Reference [PN2035 .C27 1995]

    The Cambridge History of American Theatre
    Edited by Don B. Wilmeth and Christopher Bigsby. Mortensen Library Shelves [PN2221 C37 1998] Check Status

    Continuum Companion to Twentieth Century Theatre
    Coverage includes individuals--performers, playwrights, directors, designers, choreographers, composers--theater companies, countries, trends and genres.

    Regional Theatre Directory
    By Jill Charles. Allen Library Reference [REF PN2289 R44 2001] Check Status

    Shakespeare for Students
    Each entry includes an introduction; a plot synopsis; a character list; a discussion of the work's principal themes; information about the style and literary devices used; a conversation about the work's historical context; and a critical overview.


    Biographies

    African American Women Playwrights: A Research Guide
    Mortensen Library Reference [PS153.N5 G29 1999] Check Status

    Ancient Writers: Greece and Rome
    Edited by T. James Luce. Mortensen Library Reference [REF PA3002 A5 1982] Check Status

    Contemporary Theatre, Film and Television: A Biographical Guide
    Biographical reference providing information on individuals active in the theatre, film, and television industries. Covers not only performers, directors, writers, and producers, but also behind-the-scenes specialists such as designers, managers, choreographers, technicians, composers, executives, dancers, and critics from the United States, Canada, Great Britain, and the world.

    Latin American Dramatists
    Representative collection of playwrights from the sixteenth century to the present, serving as a summary introduction to the range of work carried out in Latin American drama.

    Twentieth-Century American Dramatists
    The careers of playwrights whose works achieved notable popularity as well as critical success are presented in some detail. Emphasis is placed on biography and a synthesis of the critical reception of authors' works.
    Available online or in print: Check Status

    Twentieth-Century French Dramatists
    Essays on twentieth-century French playwrights who were largely influenced by non-French traditions, during the greatest age of French theater since the mid 1700s.


    Career Help

    Acting as a Business: Strategies for Success
    Mortensen Library Shelves [PN2055 .O54 2014] Check Status

    Career Opportunities in the Fashion Industry
    Career Services Shelves [TT507 .V63 2007] and Mortensen Library Reference [TT507 .V63 2002] Check Status

    Career Opportunities in the Film Industry
    Career Services Shelves [PN1995.9.P75 Y34 2009] Check Status

    Creative Careers in Fashion: 30 Ways to Make a Living in the World of Couture
    Career Services Shelves [TT507 .H243 2007] Check Status

    Great Jobs for Theater Majors
    Mortensen Library Reference [PN2074 .G66 2005] Check Status

    Resumes for Performing Arts Careers
    Career Services Shelves [PN1580 .R47 2004] Check Status


    Costume Resources

    Costume Design: Techniques of Modern Masters
    Mortensen Library Shelves [TT507 .P39 1999] Check Status

    Costumes for the Stage: a Complete Handbook for Every Kind of Play
    Mortensen Library Shelves [PN2067 .J28 2001] Check Status

    Handbook of Stage Costume
    Mortensen Library Shelves [PN2067 .B53 2006] Check Status

    The Visual History of Costume Accessories
    Mortensen Library Shelves [GT2050 .C86 1998] Check Status


    Criticism and Reviews

    Classical and Medieval Literature Criticism
    Now online in the Literature Resource Center. Also available in print: Mortensen Library Reference [REF PN610 C53 v.1-107] Check Status

    Contemporary Literature Criticism
    Now online in the Literature Criticism Online database. Also available in print: Mortensen Library Reference [REF PN771 R53 v.1-178] Check Status

    Critical Survey of Drama
    Edited by Carl Rollyson. Mortensen Library Reference [REF PN 1625 C68 2003] Check Status

    Literary Criticism from 1400 to 1800
    Now online in the Literature Criticism Online database. Also available in print: Mortensen Library Reference [REF PN86 L53 v.1-159] Check Status

    Twentieth-Century Literary Criticism
    Now online in the Literature Criticism Online database. Also available in print: Mortensen Library Reference [REF PN771 G27 v.1-213] Check Status


    Dictionaries

    Costume Language: a Dictionary of Dress Terms
    Mortensen Library Reference [GT507 .D38 1994] Check Status

    Dictionary of Shakespeare
    A comprehensive dictionary that covers the plays, poems, characters and background to Shakespeare's works.

    OED Online (Oxford English Dictionary)
    Search the definitive dictionary of the English language, complete and continuously updated. Provides definitions, etymology, and history of usage with examples over time. UofH users only. Full text. Click "Check Status" for access. Check Status

    Shakespeare's Theatre: A Dictionary of His Stage Context
    Coverage includes the practices of Elizabethan actors and script writers: methods of characterization; gesture, blocking and choreography, including music, dance and fighting; actors' rhetorical interaction with audiences; and use of costumes, stage props, and make-up.


    Encyclopedias

    Encyclopedia of Clothing and Fashion
    Design and style of fashion and clothing throughout history.

    Encyclopedia of Stage Lighting
    By Jody Briggs. Mortensen Library Reference [REF PN2091 E4 B66 2003] Check Status

    Illustrated Encyclopedia of World Costume
    Mortensen Library Reference [REF GT507 .Y37 2011] Check Status

    McGraw Hill Encyclopedia of World Drama
    Mortensen Library Reference [REF PN1625 M3 1984] Check Status

    The Oxford Companion to American Theatre
    By Gerald Martin Bordman. Mortensen Library Shelves [PN2220 B6 1992] Check Status


    Indexes to Plays

    1/2/3/4 for the Show: a guide to small-cast one-act plays
    By Lewis W. Heniford. Mortensen Library Shelves [Z5781 H46 1995] Check Status

    Ottemiller's Index to Plays in Collections
    By John H. Ottemiller. Mortensen Library Reference [REF Z5781 O8 1988] Check Status

    Play Index
    Mortensen Library Reference [REF Z5781 P72] Check Status


    Plot Outlines and Characters

    A Digest of 500 Plays; plot outlines and production notes
    Edited by Theodore Shank. Mortensen Library Reference [REF PN6112.5 S52 1966] Check Status

    Drury's Guide to Best Plays
    By Francis K. W. Drury. Mortensen Library Shelves [Z5781 D8 1978] Check Status

    Masterplots
    By Frank N. Magill. Mortensen Library Reference [REF PN44 M33 1971 v.1-18] Check Status


    Sections in this category: General Resources | Specific Topics


    Below are call number ranges for areas within this topic. Use these call numbers to browse the library shelves when you have a general idea of what you want, but don't have a specific item in mind.

    General Resources

    PA
    Classical (Greek & Latin) languages and literature

    PJ
    Oriental languages and literature (Egyptian, Semitic, Hebrew, Aramaic, etc.)

    PL
    Eastern Asian, African, and Oceanic languages and literature

    PN
    General literature

    PQ1 - PQ3999
    French literature

    PQ4001 - PQ5999
    Italian literature

    PQ6001 - PQ8999
    Spanish literature

    PQ9000 - PQ9999
    Portuguese literature

    PR
    English literature

    PS
    American literature

    PT1 - PT4897
    German literature

    PT5000 - PT9999
    Other Germanic literature (Dutch, Scandinavian, etc.)


    Specific Topics

    PN2091 .E4
    Stage Lighting

    PN2091 .M3
    Stage Rigging

    PN2091 .M6
    Stage-setting and scenery

    PN2091 .S6
    Sound (in Theatre)


    Sections in this category: General Resources | Film Resources | Literature Resources | Music Resources | Newspapers

    General Resources

    Academic Search Premier
    Indexing and abstracts for over 8,000 journals in all subject areas, with full text of articles from nearly 4,600. Includes some popular magazines as well as scholarly journals.

    Gale Virtual Reference Library
    Search the tables of contents or full text of selected reference books in business, education, the environment, medicine biology, and the social sciences.

    Humanities Abstracts
    Strong resource index for all aspects of the Humanities including: Archaeology, Area Studies, Art, Classical Studies, Communications, Dance, Film, Folklore, Gender Studies, History, Journalism, Linguistics, Literary & Social Criticism Literature, Music, Performing Arts, Philosophy, Religion and Theology

    JSTOR Arts and Sciences
    Searchable full text of articles from selected scholarly journals in fields including area studies, anthropology, ecology, economics, education, history, language and literature, mathematics, philosophy, political sciences, sociology and statistics. No current issues available. Historical coverage varies, but database includes some titles from before 1950.

    OED Online (Oxford English Dictionary)
    Search the definitive dictionary of the English language, complete and continuously updated. Provides definitions, etymology, and history of usage with examples over time. UofH users only. Full text.


    Film Resources

    FedFlix (US Government produced Film Database)
    Featuring the best movies of the United States Government, from training films to history, from our national parks to the U.S. Fire Academy and the Postal Inspectors, all of these fine films are available for reuse without any restrictions whatsoever.

    Film & Television Literature Index
    Bibliographic database covering all aspects of film and television theory, preservation, writing, production, technical aspects, and reviews. Abstracts with selected full text.

    Film Literature Index
    Years Covered: 1976-2001
    Annually indexes 150 film and television periodicals from 30 countries cover-to-cover and 200 other periodicals selectively for articles on film and television (coverage from 1976-2001).


    Literature Resources

    Dictionary of Literary Biography
    Lengthy, full text biographical and critical essays on world literary figures from all eras and genres. Limited number of simultaneous users. Be sure to close when finished searching.

    Essay & General Literature Index with Retrospective
    Years Covered: 1900-
    Essay & General Literature offers access to tens of thousands of essays that are otherwise all but inaccessible. This resource also unlocks a wealth of information in thousands of collections and anthologies, making your library more valuable to researchers in a wide array of fields.

    Literature Criticism Online
    Extensive compilation of literary commentary available.

    Literature Resource Center
    Biographies, bibliographies and critical analysis of more than 90,000 authors, poets, journalists and other writers. Search by name, title, genre, literary movement or literary theme. Provides access to essays in the literary themes. Made available by iCONN.org, the Connecticut Digital Library. Selected full text available.

    MLA Bibliography
    International index of books and journals. Covers modern languages, literature, linguistics, and folklore. For information about the periodicals included, consult the MLA Directory of Periodicals.

    World Shakespeare Bibliography
    Annotated bibliography of scholarly and popular materials on Shakespeare.


    Music Resources

    DRAM
    Listen online in this audio database that contains over 2,000 albums by American composers and artists, from folk to opera, Native American to jazz, nineteenth-century classical to early rock, music theater, and contemporary music. It includes the complete catalog of New World Records; repertoire from CRI , Albany Records, Innova Recordings; and liner notes and essays from these labels. UH access only.

    Music Index Online
    Years Covered: 1973-Present
    Identifies articles in over 700 music journals. Covers classical, jazz, popular, folk, and world music, including musicology, ethnomusicology, theory, applied and professional topics, music education, music industry, and reviews. Allen Library also has printed volumes: 1949-1998, [Ref] ML113 M9. UH access only.

    RILM
    Years Covered: 1967-Present
    RILM (Répertoire International de Littérature Musicale) describes scholarly writings on music and related disciplines, including dance. Includes citations and abstracts for journal articles, essays, Festschriften, dissertations, books, scholarly reviews, etc. International coverage, including non-English languages. The Allen Library also has printed volumes from 1967-1994.


    Newspapers

    Historical New York Times
    Full images of the complete New York Times from 1851 to 2002. Search by keyword, by date, etc. Images of specific articles or full pages available..

    ProQuest Newspapers
    Search the text of major newspapers including the Boston Globe (1980- ), Christian Science Monitor (1990- ), Hartford Courant (1992- ), Los Angeles Times (1985- ), New York Times (1999- ), including the Book Review and Magazine), Wall Street Journal Eastern Edition (1984- ), and Washington Post (1987- ). Full text available.



    Search below titles here to find complete library holdings.
    Journal Title:
    Format:         

    Aisle Say

    American Drama
    Online (2002-2007)

    American Theatre
    Online (1992-present); Mortensen Library Periodicals PN2000 .A437 (1985-1996)

    Applied Theatre Researcher

    Back Stage

    Canadian Theatre Review

    Comparative Drama

    CurtainUp

    Drama

    Dramatics

    International Journal of Arts Management
    Online | Print: Check Status

    Modern Drama

    Modern International Drama

    New Theatre Quarterly

    New York Times Theater Reviews

    Performing Arts Journal (print)
    Check Status

    Performing Arts Review

    Check Status
    Playbill Online

    Renaissance Drama

    Shakespeare Quarterly

    TDR: The Drama Review

    Theater Magazine
    (Yale School of Drama)

    Theatre History Studies

    Theatre Journal

    Theatre Research International

    Theatre Topics


    Variety

    Online | Print: Check Status



    Use these subject headings to search by general topic in our Library catalog. Copy the subject heading into the search box and use the drop down menu to search by "Subject". There are many more possible subjects than what we have listed here, but these should get you started.

    Sections in this category: General Resources | Career Guides | Comprehensive Sites | Encyclopedias | Funding | Medicine & Health | Monologues | Plays & Scripts | Specialized Sites | Theatrical Design

    General Resources

    Broadway.com (formerly Broadway Theater Online)
    Lists current productions on and off Broadway as well as a history of Broadway.

    Fashion-Era
    Contains 750 content rich, illustrated pages of Fashion History, Costume History, Clothing, Fashions and Social History.

    Internet Broadway Database
    This site provides information about past and current Broadway shows, including cast listings for multiple productions of the same show. Based primarily on theater programs as well as media reports and interviews.

    Labyrinth (Georgetown University)
    Indispensable guide to the Medieval world online, with extensive links to texts, images, and archival databases. A truly extraordinary resource.


    Career Guides

    Career Guides
    This lengthy list of web sites includes those with information about searching for a job and sites listing available jobs in all fields. Maintained by Mortensen Library.

    Current Jobs for Graduates
    National employment bulletin. Updated monthly. UH access only.

    Current Jobs in Performing Arts
    National employment bulletin for the performing arts professions. Updated monthly. UH access only.

    NYFA Classifieds
    This New York Foundation for the Arts site lists Jobs in the Arts and Opportunities for Artists.

    WESTAF ArtJob
    A fee-for-service of the Western States Arts Federation, ArtJob lists full- and part-time employment, internships, grants, public art projects, residencies which can be searched by region, art discipline, type of organization, etc.


    Comprehensive Sites

    Alliance of Artists Community
    Service organization for the field of artists' communities. Lists residences in the performing and media arts and opportunities for interdisciplinary collaboration; offers workshops, research, financial resources, and advocacy.

    Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts
    Comprehensive site that includes information about resident companies, festivals, broadcasts, programs, box office, etc.

    New York Public Library: CATNYP
    Search the Research Libraries Online Catalog.

    Theatre History on the Web
    This site contains directories of scholarly sites, categorized by era and type.


    Encyclopedias

    The Cambridge Encyclopedia of Stage Actors and Acting
    Edited by Simon Williams. Online access only.

    Canadian Theatre Encyclopedia
    Information on plays, playwrights and theatre practitioners.

    Performing Arts Encyclopedia
    Guide to musical, theatrical, and dance collections available at the Library of Congress. Includes collections, databases, online presentations, exhibits, and finding aids.


    Funding

    Alliance of Artists Community
    Lists residences in the performing and media arts.

    National Assembly of State Arts Agencies

    National Endowment for the Arts

    New England Foundation for the Arts
    News and information on grants, job opportunities, and the arts in New England.


    Medicine & Health

    Alexander Technique
    Includes a full description of the technique, recommended publications, and links to societies.

    Performing Arts Medicine Association
    Official website of PAMA. Follow the link under the Education tab for a good list of related websites.

    Performing Arts Medicine at Ithaca College
    Developed by Ithaca College's School of Health Science and Human Performance and the School of Music, this site has links to various topics of interest.


    Monologues

    Actorama
    A searchable database of over 500 monologues.

    Monologue Archives
    Monologues from classic plays.

    Shakespeare's Monologues


    Plays & Scripts

    Cohan: George M. Cohan Collection, Museum of the City of New York
    Digital images of over 70 of Cohan's plays, musicals, and sketches.

    Complete Works of William Shakespeare
    The web's first edition of the Complete Works of William Shakespeare, including internet resources, a discussion area, quotations, and a glossary.

    Drama Book Shop
    Searchable database of scripts in stock at The Drama Book Shop.

    Dramatists Play Service, Inc.
    This site is handy for identifying and purchasing specific plays. Users can apply for licenses online. Search by cast size, gender, length, keyword, author, title. Includes links to relevant theatre sites.

    Internet Classics Archive
    This site is an award-winning, searchable collection of over 400 classical Greek and Latin texts (in English translation) with user-provided commentary and trivia sections.

    Inter-play
    An on-line index to plays in collections, anthologies and periodicals.

    Samuel French, Inc.
    Published scripts, ranging from Broadway and England's West End to unsolicited scripts submitted by unpublished authors. Sales catalogue includes all genres of drama as well as theatre educational materials.


    Specialized Sites

    BBC Voices
    Contains recordings of accents and dialects in both English and Scots from over 303 locations across the UK, Channel Islands, and the Isle of Man.

    CastingAudition.com
    Free online database.

    Didaskalia: ancient theater today
    Contains articles about the roots and the modern uses of ancient drama and theatre, reviews of modern productions of classic texts, and information about conferences.

    Stage Agent
    This site offers national coverage for show synopses and castings, current production listings, audition and callback announcements, classified ads, and a bulletin board.

    UK Theatre Web
    The UK Theatre Web has current and comprehensive coverage of theatre in Britain. Includes links to ticketing, competitions, festivals, agents, jobs, gossip, consultants, supplies, etc.

    vasta.org
    Website of the Voice and Speech Trainers Association, Inc. includes information about conferences, vocal coaches, and publications.


    Theatrical Design

    New Deal Stage: Selections from the Federal Theatre Project, 1935-1939
    This online presentation includes over 3,000 images of items such as stage and costume designs, still photographs, posters, and scripts for productions of Macbeth and The Tragical History of Dr. Faustus as staged by Orson Welles. Additional documents from the collection will be added.

    New York Public Library Picture Collection Online
    A collection of 30,000 digitized images from books, magazines, and newspapers as well as original photographs, prints, and postcards, mostly created before 1923.