Olin Reference Collection
Subject encyclopedias are great for:
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Reference Sources for Literature, Theater, and Critical Terms
- Encyclopedia of Literary and Cultural TheoryCall Number: Print copy: Olin Reference PN 81 E435 2011Publication Date: Malden, Mass.: Wiley-Blackwell, 2011Arranged in three volumes covering Literary Theory from 1900 to 1966, Literary Theory from 1966 to the present, and Cultural Theory, this encyclopedia provides accessible entries on the important concepts, theorists and trends in post-1900 literary and cultural theory.
- Johns Hopkins Guide to Literary Theory and CriticismCall Number: Print copy: Olin Reference PN81 J554 2005+Publication Date: 2004Contains signed, in-depth overviews of the major schools of literary theory Useful for understanding literary concepts, e.g., Postcolonial Cultural Studies, Multiculturalism, Race and Ethnicity, etc.
- Routledge Companion to Critical and Cultural TheoryCall Number: Olin Reference PN81 R68 2013Publication Date: 2013Examines some of the most complex and fundamental theories in modern scholarship including: Marxism, Trauma, Theory, Ecocriticism, Psychoanalysis, Feminism, Posthumanism, Gender and Queer Theory, Structuralism, Narrative, Postcolonialism, Deconstruction, Postmodernism, etc.
- Dictionary of Literary Terms and Literary TheoryCall Number: Olin Reference PN41 C83 2013+Publication Date: 5th ed. John Wiley & Sons, 2013This new edition expands on the previous edition to incorporate the most recent literary terminology. New material is particularly focused in areas such as gender studies and queer theory, postcolonial theory, post-structuralism, postmodernism, narrative theory, and cultural studies.
- Theatre Backstage from A to ZCall Number: Olin Reference PN2091 M3 L68x 1999Publication Date: University of Washington Press, c1999. 4th edAn encyclopedia of all the technical aspects of stagecraft for both beginners and old hands. Considers construction, design, lighting, painting, properties, sounds, stage managing and other areas down to such details as tying a knot and constructing a flat. Includes over 300 illustrations.
- Gale LiteratureA literature database combining biographical, bibliographical, and contextual
information on authors and their works (fiction, nonfiction, poetry, drama, history, and journalism). Includes both textual and visual material from the Dictionary of Literary Biography, Contemporary Authors, and Contemporary Literary Criticism.
Theater Reference Sources
For more theater reference sources than are listed below, see the Theater subject guide.
- Cambridge Guide to Asian Theatre byCall Number: Kroch Asia Reference PN2860 C35x 1993+Publication Date: Cambridge University Press, 1993Nine scholars provide entries on performance in twenty countries from Pakistan in the west, through India and Southeast Asia to China, Japan and Korea in the east. An introductory pan-Asian essay explores basic themes - they include ritual, dance, puppetry, training, performance and masks. The national entries concentrate on the historical development of theatre in each country, followed by entries on the major theatre forms, and articles on playwrights, actors and directors. The entries are accompanied by rare photographs and helpful reading lists.
- Columbia Encyclopedia of Modern DramaCall 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.
- Encyclopedia of Latin American TheaterCall Number: Print copy: Olin Reference PQ7082 D7 E63x 2003 +Publication Date: Greenwood Press, 2003.Traces the history of Latin American theater, including the Nuyorican and Chicano theaters of the United States, and surveys its history from the pre-Columbian period to the present. Sections cover individual Latin American countries. Each section features alphabetically arranged entries for playwrights, independent theaters, and cultural movements.
- International Dictionary of TheatreCall Number: Olin Reference PN2035 I59 1995Publication Date: St. James Press, c1992-1996. 3 vols.International and historical in scope, this reference includes nearly 1,500 entries and is divided into three volumes: Volume 1: Plays focuses on 600 of the world's most significant plays, with an authoritative essay on each play and more than 300 photographs. Volume 2: Playwrights contains biographical and bibliographical information and essays on 485 playwrights. Volume 3: Actors, Directors and Designers, features a capsule biography, descriptions: of roles and theatre productions and bibliographic information on 300 entrants.
- McGraw-Hill Encyclopedia of World DramaCall Number: Olin Reference PN 1625 M14+ 1984Publication Date: 2nd ed., McGraw-Hill, c1984. 5 vols."The purpose of the book is to present, in the clearest possible format, factual information and critical evaluations of numerous dramatists' work and stature." (Preface) Most entries contain a biographical sketch, a brief critique of the dramatist's work, a selection of synopses of his/her plays, a bibliography of editions and usually a list of critical and biographical works. Emphasis is on English and Western European playwrights. Includes some general essays on drama of the world as well as many photographs taken during actual productions.
- Oxford Encyclopedia of Theatre and PerformanceCall Number: Print copy: 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. The 4300 entries are complemented by over 100 illustrations. Coverage ranges from ancient Greek theatre to 21st century developments in London, Paris, New York, and around the globe. Pays special attention to non-Western styles through articles on theatre and performance throughout Asia and Africa, often written by practitioners or critics from those areas. Dance, opera, performance art, radio, film, and television are covered at length. Also embraces para-theatrical, non-drammatic, and popular performance, including ritual, carnivals, parades, the circus, and public executions. Biographical entries cover the lives and work of major figures from the past and present: actors, playwrights, directors, designers, and critics. Entries on cities and regions place performance in its local social and political context.
- World Encyclopedia of Contemporary TheatrePublication Date: Routledge, 1994-2000. 6 vols.Beginning with 1945, surveys the "range of national theatrical activity on a country-by-country basis from a specifically national standpoint." (intro) Each article covers a nation's theatrical history, artistic trends, structure of its theatre community, artistic profile, dance theatre, youth theatre, puppet theatre, theatre space and architecture, theatrical training, theatre criticism, scholarship and publishing. Bibliographies included. The 6 volumes are dispersed among several campus libraries:
v 1. Europe, v 2. Americas, v.4 The Arab World, v 6. Bibliography/Cumulative index, Olin Reference PN1861 W67w 1994+
v 3. Africa, Africana Reference PN1861 W67x 1994
v 5. Asia, Kroch Library Asia Reference PN1861 W67x 1994