Theatre Arts Research: Finding Sources

Search for books in the EIU Library Catalog by author, title, keyword or subject. 
 Limit results under the "Tweak your results" section.  “Subjects” are especially useful.

Use online indexes to locate journal articles online, in print at Booth Library or available through InterLibrary Loan.
 

Top Picks

Gale Literature
Topics: Literary Criticism for Authors and their Works | Cross-searchable with Children's Literature Review - Dictionary of Literary Biography - Literature Criticism Online - Something About the Author | Great Sources of Information about the Lives of Authors and their Works

• Humanities International Complete 
  Topics: Authors | Artists | Musicians | Literature & Theater Criticism | Fiction, Short Story, Poetry, Drama Criticism | Photography | Painting | Music | Theater | Graphic Arts | Film | Contemporary Arts | Society & Culture
• JSTOR 
  Topics: Broad Range of Disciplines in the Humanities, Social Sciences & Field Sciences
• MLA International Bibliography 
  Topics: Criticism of Authors & Their Works | Fiction | Short Stories | Drama | Poetry | Rhetoric & Composition | Literary Theory | History, Theory and Practice of Teaching Language and Literature | Includes Indexing for Book Chapters and Dissertations in the Discipline
• Project Muse 
  Topics: Literature and Criticism | History | Visual and Performing Arts | Cultural Studies | Education | Political Science | Gender Studies | Social Sciences.
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• Academic Search Ultimate 
  Topics: Broad Subject Coverage | Area Studies | Ethnic & Multicultural Studies | General Sciences | Social Sciences | Law | Politics & Government | Women`s Studies | Popular Culture

Search online Reference Resources for background information on your topic.

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The Reference Room, located on the 3000 Level of Booth Library also offers many handy reference titles that can help you with your research. A few examples are listed below, but you may also want to browse the shelves. Most theatre-related materials are shelved in the PN call number range.

 
The A to Z of African American theater            
REF PN2270 .A35 H53 2009

Broadway: an encyclopedia of theater & American culture  
REF PN 2277 .N5 B62 2010

Broadway: its history, people, and places: an encyclopedia  
REF F128.65 .T5 B56 2004 

Broadway musicals: the biggest hit and the biggest flop of the season – 1959 to 2009       
REF ML1711.8.N3 F55 2010
            
The Columbia encyclopedia of modern drama                      
REF PN1861 .C65 2007

Encyclopedia of Asian theatre                                              
REF PN2860 .E53 2007

Encyclopedia of Latin American theater                                
REF PQ7082 .D7 E63 2003

Encyclopedia of the New York stage, 1920-1930                  
REF PN2277 .N5 L36 1985 

Encyclopedia of the New York stage, 1930-1940                  
REF PN2277 .N5 L364 1989 

Encyclopedia of stage lighting                                                
REF PN2091 .E4 B66 2003

Historical dictionary of Chinese theater                                  
REF PN2871 .Y46 2008

New Penguin dictionary of the theatre                                  
REF PN2035 .N49 2001

Oxford encyclopedia of theatre and performance                  
REF PN2035 .O92 2003x

The Shakespeare encyclopedia                                            
REF PR2892 .C68x 2009

Vaudeville old & new: encyclopedia of variety performers    
REF PN1996 .U5 C85 2007

Dictionary of Literary Biography            
REF PN451 D53x
 
British dramatists since World War II                               v.13           
British and Irish dramatists since World War II. Second series  v.233
British and Irish dramatists since World War II. Third series      v.245 
British dramatists since World War II. Fourth series           v.310           
Elizabethan dramatists                                                              v.62
French dramatists, 1789-1914                                                   v.192 
Jacobean and Caroline dramatists                                             v.58
Latin American dramatists. First series                                      v.305 
Modern British dramatists, 1900-1945                                        v.10   
Nineteenth-century British dramatists                                         v.344
Restoration and eighteenth-century dramatists. First series       v.80  
Restoration and eighteenth-century dramatists. Second series   v.84
Restoration and eighteenth-century dramatists. Third series       v.89  
Russian literature in the age of Pushkin and Gogol.                    v.205   
Twentieth-century American dramatists. First series                   v.7 
Twentieth-century American dramatists. Second series              v.228  
Twentieth-century American dramatists. Third series                  v.249
Twentieth-century American dramatists. Fourth  series               v.266
Twentieth-century American dramatists. Fifth series                    v.341
Twentieth-century French dramatists                                            v.321
Twentieth-century German dramatists, 1889-1918                       v.118 
Twentieth-century German dramatists, 1919-1992                       v.124  
William Shakespeare: A documentary volume                              v.263
 
In addition to print, access to the Dictionary of Literary Biography is availabe in: Gale Literature

A biographical dictionary of actors, actresses, musicians, dancers,
managers & other stage personnel in London, 1660-1800            
REF PN2597 .H5
 
A dictionary of actors, and of other persons associated with the public representation of plays in England before 1642.      
REF PN2597 .N8 1971
 
Famous actors and actresses on the American stage                
REF PN2285 .Y6 1975B 

Ivan R. Dee guide to plays and playwrights                                
REF PN2035 .G73 2004

Notable names in the American theatre                                      
REF PN2285 .N6 1976 

Profiles of African American stage performers & theatre people, 1816-1960 
REF PN2286 .P46 2001 

Who's who in contemporary world theatre    
REF PN2035 .W485 2000

Who was who in the theatre, 1912-1976                                    
REF PN2597 .W52

Browse the shelves in Reference (3000 Level, Booth Library) or in the Bookstacks (1000 Level, Booth Library) in these call number areas:

PN1600-3307:  Literature -- Drama
 
By Period:
PN2131-2145… . Ancient
PN2152-2160 ……Medieval
PN2171-2179 ……Renaissance
PN2181-2193 …….Modern
 
Selected Subject Ranges:
 PN2061-2071....…Art of acting
 PN2085-2091…....Stagecraft (lighting, sound, set design, etc.)
 PN 2080….............Monologues
 
Related call number ranges:
 
ML 1711-ML 2600...............Musical Theater
PR 3091...............Shakespeare on the stage

PQ 1-9999…..................Romance literatures
              (French literature -- PQl-3999)
              (Spanish literature -- PQ6001-8929)
 
PR 1-9680…....……..English literature
PS 1-3565…………..American literature
PT 1-9999…………..Germanic literature
 

American Association of Community Theatre
The American Association of Community Theatre (AACT) is the national voice of community theatre, representing the interests of its members and over 7,000 theatres across the U.S. and with the armed forces overseas.
http://www.aact.org/
 
American Society for Theatre Research
The American Society for Theatre Research (ASTR), established in 1956, provides an organization and public voice for theatre scholars and promotes the cause of theatre as a field for serious scholarly study and research.
http://www.astr.org/
 
The Educational Theatre Association
 https://schooltheatre.org/

International Federation for Theatre Research
The International Federation for Theatre Research exists to promote collaboration and the exchange of information between individuals and organizations concerned with theatre research. To this end the Federation supports conferences and publications and assists its members in all such activities and projects.
http://www.iftr.org/

Museum of the City of New York: Theater Collection
The Theater Collection at the Museum of the City of New York contains over 200,000 accessioned objects that document theatrical performance in New York City from 1785 to present day Broadway productions.
https://mcny.org/collections/theater-collection
 
The New York Public Library for the Performing Arts
http://www.nypl.org/about/locations/lpa

New York Public Library Digital Collections
https://digitalcollections.nypl.org/
Of particular interest for theatre researchers is the Acclaimed Theatrical Photographers collection. The collections also hold a huge trove of photos and videos covering the history of theater and dance performance in New York.

Theatre Library Association
The Theatre Library Association is a non-profit, educational organization established in 1937 to promote the collection, preservation, and use of theatrical and performing arts materials. Membership includes librarians, scholars, curators, archivists, performers, writers, designers, historians, collectors, and students.
http://www.tla-online.org/

 

Cambridge companion to the musical        
REF ML2054 .C35 2002

Cambridge guide to Asian theatre                 
REF PN2860 .C35 1993 

Chronology of American musical theater                              
REF ML1711.8.N3 N67 2002

Companion to Shakespeare                           
REF PR2910 .C66 1999

Oxford companion to American theatre        
REF PN2220 .B6 2004

Oxford illustrated history of theatre                
REF PN2111 .O95 2001x

Theatre backstage from A to Z                      
REF PN2091.M3 L68 1999  

The Best plays and the year book of the drama in America (1894-present)                    
REF PN2266.A2 B4

The New York Times theater reviews (1920-2000)               
REF Z6935 .N48 1973

Annual magazine subject-index (includes the Dramatic Index), 1909-1949
REF INDEXES AI3 .M26
 
Readers' Guide to Periodical Literature (1900-2008) REF INDEXES AI3 .R4