Olin Reference Collection
Subject encyclopedias are great for:
- choosing a topic
- educating yourself quickly
- perspective on a topic
- variant spellings, vocabulary, terminology
- bibliography
General Reference Sources in Theater
The Cambridge Guide to Theatre
Call Number: Olin Reference PN2035 C17 1995Publication Date: Cambridge ; New York : Cambridge University Press, 1995Alphabetic listing of theatre culture and history, attempting to present "a comprehensive view of the history and present practice of theatre in all parts of the world, thus pointing to the dynamic interaction of performance traditions from all cultures in present day theatre."(Preface)Columbia Encyclopedia of Modern Drama
Call Number: Print copy: Olin Reference PN1861 .C65 2007+Publication Date: Columbia University Press, c2007Covers 1860 to the present. Entries emphasize the cultural context of dramatic works and their authors and their relationship to significant social, political, artistic, and philosophical movements. Includes articles on emerging authors and the conventional and experimental theater worldwide.Oxford Encyclopedia of Theatre and Performance
Call Number: Print: Olin Reference PN2035 O92x 2003+Publication Date: 2 vols. Oxford Univ. Press, 2003Provides information about theatre and performance internationally, through history and in the present. Coverage ranges from ancient Greek theatre to 21st century developments around the globe. Dance, opera, performance art, radio, film, and television are covered, as are para-theatrical, non-dramatic, and popular performance.Oxford Companion to American Theatre
Call Number: Print copy: Olin Reference PN2220 B72 2004Publication Date: Oxford Univ. Press, 2004. 3rd ed.A guide to the American stage from its beginnings to the present, the volume includes playwrights, plays, actors, directors, producers, songwriters, famous playhouses, dramatic movements, etc. It covers classic works as well as commercially successful plays, plus entries on foreign figures that have influenced dramatic development in the US. New entries include relevant developments and issues including AIDS in American theatre, theatrical producing by Disney, and the rise in solo performance. (Publisher's description, abridged)
Don't Forget the Music Library
Located in Lincoln Hall on the Arts Quad, the Sidney Cox Library of Music and Dance has an excellent collection containing approximately 131,000 periodicals, books, scores, and parts; 56,000 sound and video recordings, as well as material on psychoacoustics, ethnomusicology, and other sound-related subjects.
Musical Theater Reference Sources
Oxford Companion to the American Musical
Call Number: Print copy: Music Library Reference ML102.M88 H593 2008Publication Date: Oxford Univ. Press, 2008With more than two thousand entries, this book offers information on musicals, performers, composers, lyricists, producers, choreographers, and more. Many musicals written specifically for television are included, and many entries follow a work as it moves across genres, from stage, to film, to television.The Companion also includes cross references, a comprehensive listing of recommended recordings, and a useful chronological listing of all the musicals described in the book.Oxford Handbook of Musical Theatre Screen Adaptations
Call Number: Print copy: Olin stacks PN1995.9.M86 O94 2019Publication Date: Oxford Univ. Press, 2019Traces how the genre of the stage-to-screen musical has evolved, examining specific screen adaptations in depth.The World of Musicals
Call Number: Music Library Reference ML102.M88 R63 2014Publication Date: Greenwood, 2014This two-volume encyclopedia offers 700 alphabetically arranged entries on musicals in theatre, film, and television, spanning the history of musical theatre from Gilbert and Sullivan operettas in the late 1800s to the present. Includes a selected bibliography, discography, and videography as well as a chronology capturing key events in the history of the musicalEncyclopedia of Musical Theater
Call Number: Music Library Reference ML102.M88 G21 2001+Publication Date: Schirmer Books, 2001The Encyclopedia of Musical Theatre has been fully revised and updated with 500 new articles, more than 4,000 revised articles and dozens of color photos.Queer Encyclopedia of Music, Dance, and Musical Theater
Call Number: Music Library Reference ML100 .Q44 2004Publication Date: Cleis Press, 2004Features over 200 articles showcasing composers, singers, musicians, dancers and choreographers across eras and styles of gay musical production.Stage It with Music
Call Number: Music Library stacks ML102.M88 H67Publication Date: Greenwood Press, 1993Coverage extends from the genre's nineteenth century beginnings to the present day. Included are entries on over 300 individual shows, musical series, performers, composers, lyricists, librettists, directors, designers, music directors, orchestrators, choreographers, producers, producing companies and other theatrical institutions.
Multi-disciplinary Refererence sources
- Sage KnowledgeA database of reference books published by SAGE covering the social sciences and education, including such areas as African American studies, aging & gerontology, anthropology, business and management, communication and media studies, counseling and psychotherapy, criminology and criminal justice, economics, education, environment, family studies, gender & sexuality studies, geography, health and social welfare, history, politics and international relations, psychology, research methods and evaluation, science, philosophy, and theology, social issues, social work and social policy, and sociology, and urban studies and planning.
- Oxford ReferenceContains the texts of more than 100 reference titles published by Oxford University Press.
- Gale eBooksProvides searchable full-text e-book versions of many reference works, including multi-volume encyclopedias, biographical collections, business plan handbooks, company history compilations, consumer health references, and specialized handbooks, dictionaries, encyclopedias, etc. in a wide range of subject areas. Subject categories include arts, biography, business, education, environment, history, law, literature, medicine, multicultural studies, nation and world, religion, science, and social sciences.