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Theatre: Explore a Topic

This guide provides information for Theatre majors at Brevard College.

Background Sources

Find Background Information

Good places to find background information:
  • Your textbook or class readings
  • Encyclopedias and reference books
  • Credible websites
  • And of course ...

Library Reference Sources

Clarify Your Question

Broad resources like the ones in the Exploration tab help to place your topic in the context of the broader discipline that you study, reveal useful search terms, and - best of all - stimulate questions that inspire your writing.

Important Considerations
  • The shorter the paper, the more specific the topic.
  • Is there a specific area within the broader topic that you're curious about or even irked by?
  • Is there a cause-effect relationship that you're curious about?
  • Look for unanswered questions.
  • Are there time periods or groups of people within the discipline that strike a chord for you?
  • If you think you've got a topic worth writing about, try to explain it informally to a friend. Are there gaps in what you know? Did any questions come up?
Are there books on your topic?

When a reference tool is too broad, it can be useful to seek out a book, and sometimes scholars get together to tackle a subject, breaking it apart into chapters written by experts on that specific subtopic. We call those books anthologies, and they can be very helpful in choosing a rabbit hole, so to speak.

Theatre Book Databases

More Reference Databases

Handbooks, Encyclopedias, & Dictionaries

Oxford Dictionary Plus Performing Arts

Entries on styles, dramatists, performers, companies, and organizations related to the performing arts

Historical Dictionary of Contemporary American Theater

Covers the ever-changing history of the American theater with emphasis on major movements, persons, plays, and events.

The Oxford Encyclopedia of Theatre and Performance

R 792.03 O98k
Information about theatre and performance from ancient Greek theatre to the latest developments around the globe. Available in print only.

Theories of the Theatre

Beginning with Aristotle and the Greeks and ending with semiotics and post-structuralism

The Columbia Encyclopedia of Modern Drama

R 809.2003 C726c

Places playwrights and plays within their social, cultural, and historical contexts. Available in print only.

The Oxford Companion to Theatre and Performance

A particularly strong focus on biographies of actors, playwrights, directors, and designers.