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Finding Books
Catalyst
Catalyst is the shared online catalog of the libraries of Carleton College and St. Olaf College. It provides an access point to the books, periodicals, government documents, and electronic resources available at Carleton or St. Olaf.
Library of Congress Subject Headings are the words and phrases you can use to do a subject search in Catalyst (as opposed to a keyword search, where you may use any words you like).
When starting out, it is often helpful to do a keyword search on your topic, and then to examine the subject headings of the results you find relevant. Catalyst displays these subject headings as links and clicking on one of them will automatically conduct a subject search for that particular topic. If you have trouble finding relevant sources using a keyword search, ask a librarian for help.
WorldCat
Search WorldCat, an online catalog for libraries throughout the world, to take your search beyond Northfield.
Getting Started: Online Reference Books
Use these sources at the beginning of your research to get an overview of a topic or to identify synonyms or related terms that will apply to your topic. Later, return to these sources to clarify concepts or define new vocabulary. These sources also include bibliographical references that may prove helpful.
- The Cambridge Guide to Theatre byThe Cambridge Guides are comprehensive guides to the history and practice of theater arts and include information on major playwrights, works, theatrical traditions, theory, theatrical companies and practitioners, venues, and events. They also include entries on the origins of theater traditions, including folk drama and street theater; the work of actors, directors, and designers; and theatrical production including lighting and sound, technical theater, theater architecture, and theater design.
The Oxford Encyclopedia of Theatre and Performance by ISBN: 0198606729Publication Date: 2003-01-01Authoritative information about theater and performance from Ancient Greece to the present. Covers performance in theater, dance, opera, radio, film, and television. Includes definitions of terms; detailed overviews of genres, movements, and critical approaches; and entries on cities and regions as well as social and political contexts.- Oxford Reference Online: Performing Arts
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Selected Oxford University Press reference books available online and searchable as a group. Includes The Oxford Companion to American Theatre, The Oxford Companion to Shakespeare, and The Concise Oxford Companion to the Theatre. You may also wish to search Oxford Reference Online: Literature which includes several guides to world literature as well as The Concise Oxford Dictionary of Literary Terms and A Dictionary of Writers and Their Works. - The Cambridge History of the American Theatre by
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An authoritative and wide-ranging history of American theater in all its dimensions, from theater building to play writing, directors, performers, and designers. - The Cambridge History of British Theatre by
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An authoritative and wide-ranging history of British theater in all its dimensions, from theater building to play writing, directors, performers, and designers.
Getting Started: Selected Reference Books
Use these sources at the beginning of your research to get an overview of a topic or to identify synonyms or related terms that will apply to your topic. Later, return to these sources to clarify concepts or define new vocabulary. These sources also include bibliographical references that may prove helpful.
- Brewer's TheatreCall Number: Ref PN2035 .B74 1994bISBN: 0304342343Availability and more information from Catalyst...
A glossary of general and technical terms, theater jargon and slang, as well as brief biographies of major world dramatists, capsule summaries of major plays, and facts about famous theaters and drama companies. - International Dictionary of TheatreCall Number: Ref PN2035 .I49 1992Availability and more information from Catalyst...
Concise essays on major plays. Includes bibliographic information for further research. - The Cambridge Guide to African and Caribbean Theatre byCall Number: Ref PN2969 .C36 1994Availability and more information from Catalyst...
- The Cambridge Guide to American Theatre byCall Number: Ref PN2221 .C36 2007Availability and more information from Catalyst...
- The Cambridge Guide to Asian Theatre byCall Number: PN2860 .C35 1993 (note: not shelved in Reference Room)Availability and more information from Catalyst...
- The World Encyclopedia of Contemporary Theatre byCall Number: Ref PN1861 .W67 1994Availability and more information from Catalyst...
Exhaustive, six-volume encyclopedia documenting artistic development in theater around the world from 1945 to the present. Includes articles on playwriting, music theater, dance theater, theater for young audiences, puppet theater, design, architecture, technology, training, criticism, and scholarship. Includes volumes devoted to European theater, North and South American theater, African theater, theater of the Arab world, and Asian and Pacific theater. The final volume is a combined bibliography and index. - McGraw Hill Encyclopedia of World Drama byCall Number: Ref PN1625 .M3 1984Availability and more information from Catalyst...
Dated but useful encyclopedia includes brief biographies of playwrights and critical analyses of their major plays. Entries also include complete playlists for dramatists and bibliographic information for further research. - The Reader's Encyclopedia of World Drama byCall Number: Ref PN1625 .G3Availability and more information from Catalyst...
Classic but idiosyncratic guide that treats drama as literature, not as theater, excluding information about the performance of dramatic works. Includes information on playwrights and their major plays as well as short surveys of national dramas. 
Dictionary of Literary BiographyCall Number: REF PN451 .D4This is one of the best places to get overviews of the author's life, writings, and critical reception. Each entry ends with a bibliography to point you toward further reading in on the topic.
