Davidson College Library   Research Guide for Theatre 355

Fundamentals of Directing Professor Prestigiacomo Fall 2004 Reference Works Other Sources of Information (including Indexes & Databases) Questions? Please contact Susanna Boylston (704.894.2494). Reference Works General | Biographical Information | Performance Reviews | Costume | Stage Sets, Lighting, & Design General Cambridge Guide to American Theatre. Ed. Don Wilmeth and Tice Miller. New York: Cambridge Univ. Press, 1993. Reference R 792.0973 C178 The Cambridge Guide to the Theatre. Ed. Martin Banham. New ed. New York: Cambridge Univ. Press, 1995. Reference R792.03 C178 A Companion to Post-War British Theatre. Philip Barnes. Totowa, NJ: Barnes & Noble, 1986. Reference R 792.0942 B261c Critical Survey of Drama. Ed. Carl Rollyson. 2nd rev. ed. 8 vols. Pasadena, CA: Salem Press, 2003. Reference R 809.2 C934 Encyclopedia of American Theatre, 1900-1975. Edwin Bronner. San Diego, CA: Barnes, 1980. Reference R 792.09 B869e McGraw-Hill Encyclopedia of World Drama. Ed. Stanley Hochman. 2nd ed. 5 vols. New York: McGraw-Hill, 1984. Reference R 809.2 M147, 1984 The Oxford Companion to American Theatre. Gerald Bordman. 2nd. ed. New York: Oxford Univ. Press, 1992. Reference R 792.0973 B729o The Oxford Companion to the Theatre. Ed. Phyllis Hartnoll. 4th ed. New York: Oxford Univ. Press, 1983. Reference R 792.03 H33o4 The Oxford Encyclopedia of Theatre and Performance. Ed. Dennis Kennedy. 2 vols. Oxford: Oxford Univ. Press, 2003. Reference R 792.03 O98 The Oxford Illustrated History of Theatre. Ed. John Russell Brown. New York: Oxford Univ. Press, 1997. Reference R 792.09 O98 The World Encyclopedia of Contemporary Theatre. Ed. Don Rubin. 6 vols. New York: Routledge, 1994-2000. Reference R 792.03 W927 Biographical Information American National Biography. Ed. John A. Garraty and Mark C. Carnes. 24 vols. New York: Oxford University Press, 1999-2002. Reference R 920.073 A512 Biography Reference Bank. H.W. Wilson, 2003- . The Broadway Design Roster: Designers and their Credits. Bobbi Owen. Westport, CT: Greenwood, 2003. Reference R 792.02 O97b British Playwrights, 1956-1995: A Research and Production Sourcebook. Ed. William Demastes. Westport, CT: Greenwood, 1996. Reference R 922.09 B862 Contemporary Authors. Gale, 2001- . The E.H. Little Library also has copies of the print volumes from 1967-2003; they are shelved in Reference at call number R 928 C76. Contemporary Dramatists. Ed. Thomas Riggs. 6th ed. New York: St. James Press, 1999. Reference R 822.09 C761 1999 Contemporary Theatre, Film, and Television. Detroit, MI: Gale, 1984- . Reference R 927.9 C761 International Dictionary of Theatre. Ed. Mark Hawkins-Dady. 3 vols. Chicago, IL: St. James Press, 1992. Reference R 792 I61 Theatrical Directors: A Biographical Dictionary. Ed. John Frick and Stephen Vallillo. Westport, CT: Greenwood, 1994. Reference R 927.9 T374 Who was Who in the Theatre, 1912-1976. 4 vols. Detroit, MI: Gale, 1978. Reference R 927.92 W621 Performance Reviews A Guide to Critical Reviews. James M. Salem. 2nd ed. 3 vols. New York: Scarecrow, 1973-1979. Reference R 016.8 S163g2 The New York Times Theater Reviews, 1870-1919. 6 vols. New York: New York Times, 1975. Reference R 792.09 N54 The New York Times Theater Reviews. New York: New York Times, 1971 - . Covers reviews from 1920 to 2000. For more recent reviews, consult LexisNexis (see below). Reference R 792.09 N532 Performance Reviews can also be found in the following databases: LexisNexis Academic (Approx. 1980 to present) Includes the full text of articles from local, national, and international newspapers, magazines, and trade journals. To locate theatre reviews, do a "Guided News Search," choose "Arts & Sports News" as the news category (first drop-down menu), and then select "Book, Movie, Music, & Play Reviews" as the news source (second drop-down menu).    Search Syntax     Truncation: use an exclamation point.     Phrase searching: use double quotation marks " ".     Wildcard: use an asterisk *. New York Times Available online (1851-2001): Historical Newspapers: The New York Times Available on microfilm (1851 to present) Index (1851 to present): Reference Index Area R 071 N53 Personal Name Index: Reference Index Area 071 N53p Readers' Guide Abstracts (1890 to present) Indexes articles in popular periodicals; also includes citations to book and film reviews.    Search Syntax     Truncation: unnecessary when using "All - Smart Search"; otherwise, use an asterisk *.     Phrase searching: use double quotation marks "".     Wildcard: do not use with "All - Smart Search"; otherwise, use a question mark ?. Costume Costume Index: A Subject Index to Plates and to Illustrated Text. Ed. Isabel Monro and Dorothy E. Cook. Ann Arbor, MI: University Microfilms, 1975. Reference R 016.391 M752c The Encyclopaedia of Fashion. Georgina O'Hara. New York: H.N. Abrams, 1986. Reference R 391 O36e The Historical Encyclopedia of Costumes. Albert Racinet. New York: Facts on File, 1988. Reference R 391 R121c-T The Illustrated Encyclopaedia of Costume and Fashion: from 1066 to the Present. Jack Cassin-Scott. London: Studio Vista, 1994.,br> Reference R 391 C345i Stage Sets, Lighting, & Design Encyclopedia of Stage Lighting. Jody Briggs. Jefferson, NC: McFarland, 2003. Reference R 792.025 B854e Theatre Backstage from A to Z. Warren C. Lounsbury. 4th ed. Seattle, WA: Univ. of Washington Press, 1999. Reference R 792.025 L889t Other Sources of Information, Including Indexes & Databases General Theatre Research | Production History | Dramatic & Literary Criticism Research into Historical Time Periods, &c. General Theatre Research American Theatrical Periodicals, 1798-1967: A Bibliographical Guide. Carl J. Stratman. Durham, NC: Duke Univ. Press, 1970. Reference R 016.79 S899a Note: The Little Library has many theatre periodicals, including Playbill (1998 to present), Plays & Players (1966-1980, 1982-2000), and Theatre World (1952-2001), among others. International Bibliography of Theatre. Brooklyn, NY: Theatre Research Data Center, Brooklyn College, CUNY, 1982- . Reference R 016.79 I611 United States Theatre: A Bibliography from the Beginning to 1990. Robert Silvester. Romsey, England: Motley Press, 1993. Reference R 016.792 S587u Production History American Theatre: A Chronicle of Comedy and Drama. Gerald Bordman and Thomas Hischak. New York: Oxford Univ. Press, 1994-2001. The Library has volumes for 1869-1914, 1914-1930, 1930-1969, 1969-2000. Reference R 792.0973 B729a The London Stage ... A Calendar of Plays and Players. J.P. Wearing. Metuchen, NJ: Scarecrow Press, 1976- . The Library has volumes for 1890-1899, 1900-1909, 1910-1919, 1920-1929, 1930-1939, 1940-1949, 1950-1959. Reference R 792.0942 L847 You may also wish to consult newspapers and magazines as well as theatrical periodicals, such as those listed in American Theatrical Periodicals, 1798-1967: A Bibliographical Guide. Carl J. Stratman. Durham, NC: Duke Univ. Press, 1970 (Reference R 016.79 S899a). Note: The Little Library has many theatre periodicals, including Playbill (1998 to present), Plays & Players (1966-1980, 1982-2000), and Theatre World (1952-2001), among others. Dramatic & Literary Criticism Print American Drama Criticism: Interpretations, 1890-1977. Comp. Floyd Eugene Eddleman. 2nd ed. Hamden, CT: Shoe String Press, 1979. reference R 016.81 P174a2 American Drama Criticism: Supplement I to the Second Edition. Comp. Floyd Eugene Eddleman. Hamden, CT: Shoe String Press, 1984. Reference R 016.81 P174a2-s American Drama Criticism: Supplement II to the Second Edition. Comp. Floyd Eugene Eddleman. Hamden, CT: Shoe String press, 1989. Reference R 016.81 P174a2-s2 Annual Bibliography of English Language & Literature (ABELL). Cambridge: Bowes & Bowes, 1924 - . Reference R 016.82 M689a Indexes journal articles and books published from 1920 to present; also includes citations to book reviews. ABELL is particularly good source of information about books published in the U.K. Many of these works do not appear in the MLAIB. Modern Drama Scholarship and Criticism, 1966-1980: An International Bibliography. Charles A. Carpenter. Toronto: Univ. of Toronto Press, 1986. Reference R 016.8 C295m Online MLA International Bibliography (1963 to present). Indexes journal articles, books, and doctoral dissertations in the fields of English, American, European, Asian, African, and Latin American linguistics, modern languages and literatures, film studies, and folklore. Note: To locate articles from earlier time periods, consult the MLA International Bibliography, 1925-1962 (Reference R 016.4 M16m).    Search Syntax     Truncation: use an asterisk *.     Phrase searching: use double quotation marks "".     Wildcard: use a question mark ?. Humanities Abstracts (1907 to present). Indexes articles in over 500 English-language journals in the fields of archaeology, art, classics, communication, film, folklore, history, languages and literatures, music, philosophy, religion, and theatre. Also includes citations for book, theatre, and film reviews as well as interviews, obituaries, and some original creative works. Includes the full text of selected articles from 1995 to the present.    Search Syntax     Truncation: unnecessary when using "All - Smart Search"; otherwise, use an asterisk *.     Phrase searching: use double quotation marks "".     Wildcard: do not use with "All - Smart Search"; otherwise, use a question mark ?. PCI: Periodicals Contents Index (c 1770 to 1995) Indexes articles from humanities and social sciences periodicals from their first issues to 1995. Particularly useful for locating references to articles from the 18th, 19th and early 20th centuries. International in scope.    Search Syntax     Truncation: use an asterisk *.     Phrase searching: automatic. Essay & General Literature Index Indexes essays published in books and edited collections. Covers the fields of art, economics, education, history, law, linguistics, literature, music, philosophy, political science, and religion, among others. Particularly strong in the humanities and social sciences.    Search Syntax     Truncation: unnecessary when using "All - Smart Search"; otherwise, use an asterisk *.     Phrase searching: use double quotation marks "".     Wildcard: do not use with "All - Smart Search"; otherwise, use a question mark ?. Research into Historical Time Periods, &c. Reference books can be helpful for background information. Examples include: Dictionary of American History, Countries & Their Cultures, and a host of other resources. Ask a librarian for assistance in finding these tools. Primary source materials can also be useful sources of information. The Library has many periodicals from the nineteenth and twentieth centuries, including Life; don't overlook photographs and advertisements in magazines. The Library also has complete runs of The New York Times and the [London] Times on microfilm; for online coverage of The New York Times, see Historical Newspapers: The New York Times. Additional primary sources are listed in the Library catalogue and on the History Indexes & Databases page. Ask a librarian for assistance in finding these tools. America: History & Life (prehistory to present [historical time period covered]; 1964 to present [publication date of articles and books indexed]) Indexes scholarly articles, review of scholarly books, and doctoral dissertations on U.S. and Canadian history.    Search Syntax     Truncation: use an asterisk *.     Phrase searching: use double quotation marks " ".     Wildcard: use a question mark ?.     Time period searches: search by decade or century only.         To search for a decade, use the format xxxxD (example: 1940D).         To search for a range of decades, use the format xxxxD xxxxD or the format xxxxD OR xxxxD.         Note: For more than five decades, search by century (see below).         To search for a century, use the format xxxxH (example: 1900H).         To search for a range of centuries, use the format xxxxH xxxxH. Historical Abstracts (1450 to present [historical time period covered]; 1954 to present [publication date of articles and books indexed]) Indexes scholarly articles, review of scholarly books, and doctoral dissertations on world history, excluding the history of the U.S. and Canada.    Search Syntax     Truncation: use an asterisk *.     Phrase searching: use double quotation marks " ".     Wildcard: use a question mark ?.     Time period searches: search by decade or century only.         To search for a decade, use the format xxxxD (example: 1940D).         To search for a range of decades, use the format xxxxD xxxxD or the format xxxxD OR xxxxD.         Note: For more than five decades, search by century (see below).         To search for a century, use the format xxxxH (example: 1900H).         To search for a range of centuries, use the format xxxxH xxxxH.

Library Home

Ask a Librarian