Subject Guide
How to Use This Research Guide
This guide provides instruction and links for various resources related to the Theatre Arts provided to student by the Chester Fritz Library:
- Tips on finding plays either through the library catalog or select databases
- Library locations for theatre related literature
- Musical Theatre and Drama Education DVDs
- Best bet databases for theatre arts research
General Theatre Resources
Encyclopedias, Handbooks, and Reference Manuals
Encyclopedias and reference manuals help you get started on your research. Here you can find general background information, definitions, and history on many art and design and concepts. Also use to find a topic for a paper or project.
Online Encyclopedias
- Search Credo Reference
Searches over 800 online reference books, including ones for performing arts.
- Grove Art Online/Oxford Art Online This link opens in a new windowSearch for definitions, biographies, themes, time periods in Art History. Only 5 LIMIT 5 SIMULTANEOUS USERS.
- Grove Music Online/Oxford Music Online This link opens in a new windowSearch for definitions, biographies, themes, time periods in Music. LIMIT 3 SIMULTANEOUS USERS.
- Gale Literature This link opens in a new windowGale Literature – cross-search platform to simultaneously search through Dictionary of Literary Biography, Literature Criticism (Contemporary Literature Criticism and Twentieth Century Literary Criticism), Something About the Author, Contemporary Authors and other literary Gale eBook titles.
- Gale Literature Criticism This link opens in a new windowGale Literature Criticism – a reference tool that offers over 1,000 discovery portals for browsing Gale literature titles, beyond what is owned by the library. Includes articles, suggested reading lists, bibliographies and other avenues for research.
Print Encyclopedias
The Oxford companion to American theatreCall Number: Reference PN2220 .B6 2004
The Oxford Encyclopedia of Theatre and PerformanceCall Number: Reference PN2035 .O94 2003
Historical
Encyclopedia of Tudor EnglandCall Number: CFL Floor 2 Reference (DA315 .E65 2012 )Other historical eras have their own encyclopedias in this section.
- American Decades Series
Salem Press online references from 1920s to the 1990s.
Biographies
Literary
- Oxford English Dictionary (OED) This link opens in a new windowA historical dictionary documenting the evolution of the English Language.
- Literature (Salem Press)
Salem Press reference works that includes Critical Insights and Critical Surveys in Literature
Handbooks
Dramaturgy: a revolution in theatreCall Number: Floor 3 General Stacks: PN2053 .L75 2006
Censorship of the American theatre in the 20th centuryCall Number: Floor 3 General Stacks: PN2044.U62 H68 2003
