Research Guides: TSEM 102: Worlds of a Play (Witt): Find Scholarly Reference Sources

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Why Background Information?

Curious about a topic? Want to learn a brief summary of the issue from past to present without a lot of jargon? What else to do but... Google it! The first result is likely to be Wikipedia, a free online encyclopedia. In fact, Wikipedia is one of five most popular websites because it makes a lot of information available to anyone with an internet connection. Wikipedia is useful even for academic research! Although you shouldn't cite the Wikipedia entry, you should check its References and explore the Further Reading.

Electronic Encyclopedias and Handbooks

The Oxford Encyclopedia of Theatre and Performance by Dennis Kennedy (Editor)
Covers dance, opera, radio, film, television, and popular performance.
The Continuum Companion to Twentieth Century Theatre by Colin Chambers (Editor)
ISBN: 9781847146120
Publication Date: 2006-05-14
Electronic encyclopedia of plays, playwrights, actors, and essays related to twentieth century theatre.
The Concise Oxford Companion to the Theatre
Contains entries on theatrical styles, dramatists, performers, and directors, as well as information on theatres, festivals, and such technical topics as lighting, sound, and method acting.
The Oxford Companion to American Theatre by Gerald Martin Bordman; Thomas S. Hischak
Includes important people, places, and events in American theatre history
The Oxford Companion to Theatre and Performance
Companion volume to the Oxford Encyclopedia of Theatre and Performance, but with an emphasis on biographies of actors, playwrights, directors, and designers.

Encyclopedias, Dictionaries, and Guides for Dramatic Criticism

Oxford English Dictionary This link opens in a new window
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Search word derivations, etymologies, and literary references for the English language. Excellent for Shakespeare study.
Gale in Context: Biography This link opens in a new window
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A comprehensive database of biographical information on more that 150,000 people from throughout history, around the world, and across all disciplines and subject areas.
LION: Literature Online This link opens in a new window
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LION provides texts, and criticism of over 350,000 works of poetry, prose and drama from the 8th to the 21st century including thousands of literary articles, essays, biographies and encyclopedia entries. Search by playwright name or work title.
Gale Literature This link opens in a new window
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This collection represents a range of modern and historical views on authors and their works across regions, eras and genres, and includes the e-versions of Drama Criticism, Poetry Criticism and Short Story Criticism.
Oxford Music Online This link opens in a new window
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Universally acknowledged as the unsurpassed authority on all aspects of music. Grove Music Online comprises the full text of The New Grove Dictionary of Music and Musicians, second edition, edited by Stanley Sadie and John Tyrrell (London, 2001), The New Grove Dictionary of Opera, edited by Stanley Sadie (London, 1992), and The New Grove Dictionary of Jazz, second edition, edited by Barry Kernfeld (London, 2002).

Encyclopedia of Clothing and Fashion by Valerie Steele
Articles on the history articles of clothing, specific types of costume, and dress throughout history.

Library of Congress Performing Arts Encyclopedia
Offers biographical essays, digitized content, photographs, and other special materials from the Library of Congress
London Stage Database
Grant funded database which includes information on the theatrical culture of London, from the reopening of the public playhouses following the English civil wars in 1660 to the end of the eighteenth century.
Array 101
Online lesson guides correlate with Array film releases.

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TSEM 102: Worlds of a Play (Witt)

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Why Background Information?

Electronic Encyclopedias and Handbooks

Encyclopedias, Dictionaries, and Guides for Dramatic Criticism