World Theatre Project: Reference Sources | Articles | Books
African-American Theatre Project: Reference Sources | Articles | Books
Your Comments

The purpose of this course research guide is to acquaint you with some of the resources in the University Library and on the World Wide Web useful for doing research for this course. Should you have questions, stop by the Reference Desk on the first floor. You may also call the Reference Desk at (334) 229-4110 during the hours the Library is open.

World Theatre Project

Reference Sources

Reference books and similar sources online are a great place to start your research because they provide background information on your topic. Reference books about the theatre are located on the first floor in Main Reference. Those listed below are a selection of books you may wish to explore. Browse the shelves around them for additional books.

Theatre in General

• The Penguin Dictionary of the Theatre
  Main Reference: PN 2035 .T3 1993
• International Dictionary of Theatre
  Main Reference: PN 2035 .I49 1992
• The Cambridge Guide to the Theatre
  Main Reference: PN 2035 .C36 1995
• The Oxford Companion to the Theatre
  Main Reference: PN 2035 .O9 1983
• The World Encyclopedia of Contemporary Theatre
  Main Reference: PN 1861 .W67 1996
• McGraw-Hill Encyclopedia of World Drama
  Main Reference: PN 1625 .M3 1984
• Theater Pictorial: A History of World Theater as Recorded in Drawings, Paintings, Engravings and Photographs
  Main Reference: PN 2111 .A4
• Historic Costume for the Stage
  Main Reference: PN 2067 .B3 1963
• Literature Resource Center (ASU)
• Scribner Writers Series (ASU)

The Theatre in America & Elsewhere

• A Pictorial History of the American Theatre 1860-1970
  Main Reference: PN 2266 .B585
• The Oxford Companion to the American Theatre
  Main Reference: PN 2220 .B6 1992
• Annals of the New York Stage
  Main Reference: PN 2277 .N504
• Notable Women in the American Theatre: A Biographical Dictionary
  Main Reference: PN 2285 .N65 1989
• The Elizabethan Stage
  Main Reference: PN 2589
• The English Stage from the Restoration 1660-1830
  Main Reference: PN 2581 .G4
• Kabuki Encyclopedia: An English-Language Adaptation of Kabuki Jiten
  Main Reference: PN 2924.5.K3 L44
• Kabuki Costume
  Main Reference: GT 1745.J3 S5
• Literature Resource Center (ASU)
• Scribner Writers Series (ASU)

Magazine & Journal Articles

The best method for finding magazine and journal articles is to use one of the Library's online article databases or print indexes. The databases are easily accessible in the residence halls and off campus by clicking on the database name and typing in the information requested. If you need additional assistance with accessing the databases, contact Cedric Davis at (334) 229-6998.

Some of the article databases include the entire text of articles. If the text of an article is not available in a database, check for the magazine or journal title in:

• Serials Solutions (ASU) - Is it available in another database?
• HORNetCat - Is it available in the Serials Department on the Library's third floor?

Databases

• Academic Search Premier (ASU)
• MLA Bibliography (ASU)

Print Indexes

• Readers' Guide to Periodical Literature
  Serials - 3rd floor

Books

Because of their length, books provide a more in-depth look at topics than articles do. You'll also find play scripts in books. To find books in the University Library and e-books (electronic books) you'll need to use these:

• HORNetCat
• netLibrary
• Twayne's Authors Series

African Americans in the Theatre

Reference Sources

The reference books listed below are located in Special Collections on the first floor of the Library. These books can not be removed from Special Collections.

Books

• Dictionary of the Black Theatre: Broadway, Off-Broadway, and Selected Harlem Theatre
  Special Collections Reference: PN 2270 .A35 W64 1983
• Early Black American Playwrights and Dramatic Writers
  Special Collections Reference: PS 153 .P44 1990
• Blacks in Opera: An Encyclopedia of People and Companies, 1873-1993
  Special Collections Reference: ML 102 .O6 S6 1995
• Afro-American Writers After 1955: Dramatists and Prose Writers
  Special Collections Reference: PS 153 .N5 A34 1985 v.38
• Encyclopedia of African-American Culture and History
  Special Collections Reference: E 185 .E53 1996

Databases

• African-American Biographical Database (ASU)
• African-American History & Culture (ASU)
• Literature Resource Center (ASU)
• Scribner Writers Series (ASU)

Magazine & Journal Articles

The best method for finding magazine and journal articles is to use one of the Library's online article databases or print indexes. The databases are easily accessible in the residence halls and off campus by clicking on the database name and typing in the information requested. If you need additional assistance with accessing the databases, contact Cedric Davis at (334) 229-6998.

Some of the article databases include the entire text of articles. If the text of an article is not available in a database, check for the magazine or journal title in:

• Serials Solutions (ASU) - Is it available in another database?
• HORNetCat - Is it available in the Serials Department on the Library's third floor?

Databases

• Academic Search Premier (ASU)
• MLA Bibliography (ASU)

Print Indexes

• Readers' Guide to Periodical Literature
  Serials - 3rd floor

Books

Because of their length, books provide a more in-depth look at topics than articles do. To find books in the University Library and e-books (electronic books) you'll need to use these:

• HORNetCat
• netLibrary
• Twayne's Authors Series

Your Comments

Please take a few minutes to let us know what you think about this guide. Has it helped with your research? Do you have any suggestions for improving the guide? You may e-mail Barbara Hightower at bhightower@alasu.edu or call her at (334) 229-6839 with your comments and suggestions.