Finding books

Search the library catalog (via the library home page)

TIP: Start with simple keyword searches before narrowing your search. 

Articles and more 

  • Covers a wide variety of publications but NOT EVERYTHING
  • Works best with specific or unique search
  • Use FindIt to obtain full text articles from newspapers, magazines, journals

Books and more -- Productions, History, Photographs

  • Play title or playwright in quotation marks: “measure for measure” "albee, edward"
  • Combine with “dramatic production” -- “stage history” -- "pictorial" -- "perform*"
  • Use facets from the right column to focus the search

Resources by Subject: Theatre (via library home page)

Find images for the Visual File:

broadway_new_york_09.jpg  

ARTstor * [B.C.-present] Searchable database of more than 300,000 digital images and associated catalog data. ARTstor covers many time periods and cultures, and documents the fields of architecture, painting, sculpture, photography, decorative arts, and design, as well as many other forms of visual culture. Users can search, view, and download images.

Google Images

Theatre World.  (var. publishers) Annual. 1946, 1951 --. One of the best places to find cast information and photographs of Broadway plays, off-Broadway plays and regional theatre plays.
 PN2277.N5 A17 4th floor. IN PRINT

North American Theatre Online

Selected Reference Books (online or in print)

 The Oxford encyclopedia of theatre & performance / edited by Dennis Kennedy. Oxford; New York : Oxford University Press, 2003. 2 v.

Provides comprehensive, authoritative, and up-to-date information about theatre and performance from ancient Greek theatre to the latest developments in London, Paris, New York, and around the globe.”
Reference – Online (Subject guides: Theatre / Dictionaries, etc.)

McGraw-Hill encyclopedia of world drama : an international reference work in 5 volumes / Stanley Hochman, editor in chief. New York, N.Y. : McGraw-Hill, c1984. 2nd ed. 5 v.
Contains photographs.
Reference PN 1625.M3 1984 IN PRINT

History (in print)

Theatre World.  (var. publishers) Annual. 1946, 1951 --. One of the best places to find cast information and photographs of Broadway plays, off-Broadway plays and regional theatre plays.
 PN2277.N5 A17 4th floor. IN PRINT
   
 Costumes and settings for staging historical plays / Jack Cassin-Scott. Boston: Plays, 1979.
Table of Contents: v. 1. The Classical period, v. 2. The Mediaeval period, v. 3. The Elizabethan and Restoration period, v. 4. The Georgian period.
Reference  PN2067.C33 1979   IN PRINT

A directory of Shakespeare in performance New York: Palgrave Macmillan, 2007.
PR3100 .O36 2007 4th floor. 3 vols. IN PRINT
Productions by play: Spanning the entire Shakespeare canon, the nearly 1,200 entries are arranged alphabetically by play, then chronologically, providing a comparative, evolutionary overview of productions for 1970-2005. Entries list opening, broadcast or release date, venue, company, production credits, complete cast lists, and usually three review excerpts (with references) focusing on interpretation, performances, and design.
 
The Greenwood companion to Shakespeare: a comprehensive guide for students / edited by Joseph Rosenblum. Westport, Conn.: Greenwood Press, 2005. 4 volumes.
PR2976 .G739 2005 (4th floor) IN PRINT
Includes a production history for each of Shakespeare’s plays.

Living Greek theatre : a handbook of classical performance and modern production / J. Michael Walton. New York : Greenwood Press, 1987.
Reference PA3201.W36 1987  IN PRINT
(For more on this topic, search the library catalog with one of the following subjects:  Theater--Greece—History; Theater--Production and direction; Greek drama--History and criticism).

A pictorial history of the American theatre, 1860-1980 / by Daniel Blum; enlarged by John Willis. New York : Crown Publishers, 1981.
PN2266.B585 1981  (4th flr)  IN PRINT
Subject(s):     Theater--United States--History--Pictorial works.

Documents of American theater history / William C. Young. Chicago : American Library Association, 1973.
Table of Contents: v. 1. Famous American playhouses, 1716-1899, v. 2. Famous American playhouses, 1900-1971.
NA6830.Y67 1973a (3rd floor) IN PRINT

THE FOLLOWING PROVIDE PRODUCTION DATES:

North American Theatre Online

American theatre: a chronicle of comedy and drama, 1869-1914 / Gerald Bordman. New York: Oxford University Press, 1994.
Reference PN2256.B6 1994

American theatre: a chronicle of comedy and drama, 1914-1930/ Gerald Bordman. New York: Oxford University Press, 1995.
Reference PN2266.3.B67 1995

American theatre: a chronicle of comedy and drama, 1930-1969 / Gerald Bordman. New York: Oxford University Press, 1996.
Reference PN2266.B64 1996

American theatre: a chronicle of comedy and drama, 1969-2000 / Thomas S. Hischak. Oxford ; New York : Oxford University Press, 2001.
Reference PN2277.N5 H57 2000

American musical theatre : a chronicle / Gerald Bordman. 3d ed. Oxford; New York : Oxford University Press, 2001.
Reference ML1711 .B67 2001
(For more on this topic, search the library catalog using this subject: Musicals--United States)

Complete book of the American musical theater; a guide to more than 300 productions of the American musical theater from The black crook (1866) to the present, with plot, production history, stars, songs, composers, librettists, and lyricists. New York, Holt [1958]
ML1711.E9 -- 3d floor IN PRINT

Reviews

See the Theatre Subject Guide / Reviews on the library home page for online reviews

A guide to critical reviews by James M. Salem. Scarecrow Press, 1984-1991. American Drama, 1909-1982; The Musical, 1909-1989; Foreign Drama, 1901-1977.
Reference Non - Circulating, First Floor  PN2266 .S16 1984 IN PRINT

The New York Times directory of the theater / introd. by Clive Barnes. [New York] : Arno Press, [1973]
Contains the appendix and index to The New York Times theater reviews, 1920-1970.
PN2277.N5 N52 (4th flr) IN PRINT

New York theatre critics' reviews. (Also Critics' theatre reviews (1940-1942) and National theatre critics' reviews (1995-1996)). New York, N.Y.: Critics' Theatre Reviews, Inc., 1940-1955 on microfilm; 1956-1996 in reference.
"Theatre critics' reviews brings you the complete reviews from these New York publications and stations whenever covered by the critic:  New York daily news, Wall Street journal, Time, New York post, Women's wear daily, WABC-TV, CBS-TV, New York times, Christian Science monitor, Newsweek."
PN2000.N76  Located in Falvey West stacks.  IN PRINT

Helpful Tip

Printing from the Times (London).

Sample Citation: The Times, Tuesday, Sep 25, 1928; pg. 12; Issue 45007; col B. "The Threepenny Opera." A Berlin Burlesque. (FROM OUR BERLIN CORRESPONDENT.)

Go to the Times (London) on Database A-Z  list on the library home page.

  • Select Advanced Search; type in threepenny as a Keyword; limit publication years to 1927 to 1929.
  • The results are displayed.
  • Open your chosen article and go to the bottom of the page. There you will see

 Acrobat Reader — Full Content —

View and print full newspaper page containing the article from Acrobat™ Reader.

[1 page portrait]  [2 (½) pages landscape]  [4 (¼) pages portrait]

  • Use the 4 1/4 page option. Open it. Print those pages: the type size will be readable. Or, select what you want to save. Select beyond the margins to avoid losing text. Save it as an image. If the article is larger than one page, save it as multiple images. Open Word. Using Insert / Picture, insert those images into your Word document.
  • Write in the citation from the database as well, since this is not provided on the image.

Identifying Peer Reviewed Journals

How can you tell if a journal article is scholarly?

 There are several ways to tell.  Some database search engines (like EBSCO's) allow you to limit your searches to peer reviewed results by checking a box.  Another way is to look at who publishes the journal; often, journals are published by a university press like Johns Hopkins, Duke, or Oxford.  If so, the journal and articles in it are scholarly and peer reviewed.  Another way to decide is to look at the front matter in each journal issue (in print or on the journal website).  Often journals will have editorial policies and submission guidelines that tell you whether or not a journal is scholarly.

How are scholarly journal articles different from regular articles?  

Scholarly articles always go through a process of blind submission and peer review.  This means that all articles are judged solely on the quality of content and are published only if other experts in a given field decide that the article contributes something worthwhile.  If you are reading an article in a peer-reviewed journal, you can be assured that it's already been looked at by multiple experts, most of whom are established scholars.

Is there a way to tell which journals are better than others?  

There are several options you have.  You can search the journal title inWorldCat and see how many libraries worldwide access it.  The more libraries that access it, the more likely the journal is important.  Other journals advertise their impact factor, which is a measure of how often the journal is cited.  Otherwise, ask your professors which journals they think are most important.

What are the features of scholarly journal articles?

  • Often directed toward a narrow audience that has specific research interests.
  • Always have information cited in text or in footnotes.
  • Provide extensive bibliographies and overviews of existing research.

Remember, scholarly journal articles are just one of many kinds of articles out there.  If you still have questions, ask a librarian or your professor.