Theatre Arts Resources

Books and Media

Earlham Libraries Catalog
Catalog of books and other materials available in the Earlham Libraries, with the option to search catalogs in the Private Academic Library Network of Indiana (PALNI).

WorldCat
The world's largest library catalog, covering books and other materials available in OCLC member libraries around the globe.

Articles

Academic Search Premier
Comprehensive index to scholarly journals and general periodicals in all subject and interdisciplinary areas, including full text. Coverage prior to 1990 is sparse.

JSTOR
Full text of hundreds of scholarly journals in all disciplines dating back to the 1700s. Coverage is usually up to last 3-5 years.

Project MUSE
Full text of over 300 scholarly journals in the humanities, arts, and social sciences. Coverage is usually from the last 3-5 years to the present.

Theater History

Best Plays of .... [year]
In Lilly's circulating collection: PN 2266.A2 .B4
Multivolumed series published yearly. This long-lasting series (it began in 1894) covers each year's 10 best plays with critical essays recounting their performances and dramatic worth, plus information about hundreds of plays offered on and off Broadway. We own an index to all the plays covered from 1894 to 1971 in the Reference collection: Ref PN1655 .G84 1971

Internet Broadway Database
This database covers Broadway shows from the earliest days to the most current. Great searching capabilities. Created by the League of American Theatres and Producers.

Internet Off-Broadway Database (Lortel Archives)
This database covers produced Off-Broadway shows from 1958 to the most current that have played in theaters seating over 100 to open audiences and were intended to run for more than a week.Created by the Lortel Foundation with the League of Off-Broadway Theatre and Producers.

Medieval & Renaissance Drama in England
Multivolumed series published yearly. In Lilly's circulating collection: PR621 .M43

Shakespeare Survey
Multivolumed series published yearly. In Lilly's circulating collection: PR 2888 .C3

Studies in Theatre History and Culture
Multivolumed series published 1-3 times a year. In Lilly's circulating collection, each volume is placed in a different location, depending on its topic. To find all volumes, search catalog using this series title.

Current Journals

Paper is indicated by p; electronic is indicated by e:
American Theatre (p) -- Asian Theatre Journal: ATJ (p)(e) -- Comparative Drama (p) -- Latin American Theatre Review (p) -- Live Design (previously TCI, Entertainment Design) (p) -- Modern Drama (p)(e) -- Modern International Drama (p) -- PAJ : a Journal of Performance and Art (e) -- TD & T: Theatre Design and Technology (p) -- TDR: The Drama Review (previously Carleton DR, Tulane DR) (p)(e) -- Theater (p)(e) -- Theatre Crafts (p) -- Theatre Journal (p)(e) -- Theatre Survey ***NEW!*** (p)(e) -- Theatre Topics (e) -- Western European Stages (p).

Finding Aids for Plays

Inter-Play: An Index to Plays in Collections, Anthologies, and Periodicals
Indexes plays by author and title, and identifies books and periodicals in which the play is located. You will then need to obtain the items either from the library's collection or interlibrary loan.

Play Index
Iin Lilly's Reference Collection: Ref PN 1655 .W4
A much more thorough index than Inter-Play (above). Includes cast size and break-down into male/female. Volumes cover years from 1949 to 1997.

LitFinder
A resource comprising two databases, PoemFinder and StoryFinder. Use them to locate where individual poems or stories are collected in published works. Includes the full text of thousands of poems and stories, as well.

Dramatists Play Service, Inc.
Publisher of thousands of plays in "acting editions," including full-length,, short, musicals, collections, and not-yet-published. To search their offerings, you can use the PlayFinder found on their homepage.

Samuel French, Inc.
Publisher of thousands of plays in "acting edition" [same scope as Dramatists Play Service above]. A search engine is included on their homepage.

Tams-Witmark Music Library, Inc.
Tams licenses and offers scripts, musical scores, orchestrations, prompt books, and conductor scores for musical theatre productions.

MTI: Musical Theatre International
MTI is another large purveyor of materials for musical theatre productions.

Theatre Arts & Crafts

Theatre Design Resources
A page from the portal of Artslynx International Arts Resources, developed by Richard Finkelstein. Includes links to sites covering costumes, lighting, scenery, and much more

Acting and Performance Resources
Another page from Artslynx. Includes links to sites for those aspiring to be professionals, plus sites on improv, speech and accents, acting techniques, and more.

Directing for the Theatre
Yet a third page from Artslynx. Includes to links to sites on directing techniques, plus links to sites on individual directors.

Musical Theatre Resources
Another voluminous page from Artslynx to information ranging from musicals-in-print to "Musicals 101" (see below).

Musicals 101.com
A "cyber encyclopedia of musical theatre, TV and film" compiled by John Kenrick. Artslynx gave this site 2 stars.

Didaskalia
A site all about Greek and Roman drama, dance, and music currently in performance. Includes an online journal, listings of current productions, and a study area for further research.

Performing Arts in America, 1875-1923
A site, created and maintained by The New York Public Library, making available in visual and audio formats 16,000 primary documents on the history of theatre, music, and dance.

Current Productions

RICHMOND:
Richmond Civic Theatre
Richmond's own community theater established after World War II by Norbert Silbiger, a refugee from Nazi Germany. RCT now offers three different types of theater: 6 Main Stage productions, 3 Stage One Youth Theatre offerings, and 2 Studio Ten stagings of smaller (and riskier) contemporary drama stagings. Over the years, Earlham faculty, staff, and students have all been involved with these productions.

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INDIANAPOLIS:
Indiana Repertory Theatre (IRT)
The only fully professional resident not-for-profit theatre in the state, IRT is located in downtown Indianapolis.

Phoenix Theatre
Located in the historic Chatham Arch neighborhood of downtown Indy.

Murat Centre
Venue housing the Murat Theatre and the Egyptian Room, the center hosts mainly musical performances and shows by the Broadway Across America Touring Company.

American Cabaret Theatre
Specializing in musical theatre and live entertainment with cabaret-style seating, the ACT is located in the historic Athenaeum building in downtown Indianapolis.

Madame Walker Theatre Center
Venue located 3 miles north of downtown Indianapolis, the Center offers theatre,dance, music, lectures, and discussions focused on African-American performating arts.

Clowes Memorial Hall of Butler University
Venue for dance, music, spoken word, and theater productions, including those by the Broadway Across America Touring Company and the Indianapolis Opera.

IndyFringe Festival
Describing itself as "outrageous outbursts of fun, 10 days of edgy performances and visual arts," this annual event takes place in late August-early September in Indianapolis' Mass Ave. arts and theatre district.

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DAYTON:
The Victoria Theatre in downtown Dayton stages productions in The Loft Theatre (same location) and the Schuster Performing Arts Center.

Human Race Theatre Company
This company calls The Loft Theatre their home stage at the Victoria Theatre (see above).

Dayton Theatre Guild
High-quality community theatre, with all-volunteer casts, crews and administration.

Encore Theatre Company
Devoted to new American musical theatre.

Dayton is also home to two interactive mystery theaters, with two resident troupes: Random Acts, and Mayhem Mystery Theatre.

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CINCINNATI:
League of Cincinnati Theatres
Includes news on productions from local Cincinnati, Dayton, and touring companies, including: Clear Stage Cincinnati, Know Theatre of Cincinnati, Playhouse in the Park, Cincinnati Shakespeare Company, Ensemble Theatre of Cincinnati, Xavier University's Studio Series, Mad Anthony Theatre Company, and Showboat Majestic (on the Ohio River).

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CHICAGO:
Chicago Theatre Home Pages Z to A
A list (really arranged from Z to A) of homepages for around 150 theaters in the incredibly theatre-rich Chicago area (list compiled by Marilyn Knapp Litt).

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NEW YORK:
Playbill
All the news on the NYC theatre scene that's fit to print.

Off-Broadway.com
All the news of the NYC off-Broadway scene that's fit to print.

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CANADA:
Stratford Festival of Canada
A variety of offerings including Shakespeare and contemporary plays. Performed by the Festival Theatre in 4 different theaters located in Stratford, Ontario (not far from Toronto).

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LONDON, ENGLAND:
London Theatre Guide
Off to London for a semester or a break? Check this site on theatre news, reviews and tix before you leave.