Research Guides: Theater: Home

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Access to Print Resources (as of 3/20/20)

As part of UCLA's transition to remote instruction, and the Library's necessary decision to close all Library locations, access to print resources and special collections is not available. Please take advantage of electronic resources such as ebooks and article databases. The UCLA community can connect to these online resources off-campus via the VPN or proxy server. Interlibrary loan is still available for electronic journal articles; however, ebooks cannot be borrowed on interlibrary loan.

For help with any of our resources, please schedule an appointment with a librarian (audio/video Zoom appointments available), contact your subject librarian directly, or use our 24/7 chat service.

Major Online Sources: Find Articles and More

These online sources are good places to start searching for articles and reference information on theater. Most are subscription resources from the Library, so you will need to make sure your computer is configured for off-campus access if you are researching from home.

Performing Arts Periodicals Database
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Articles and reviews from a broad spectrum of the arts and entertainment industry - including dance, drama, theater, stagecraft, circus, opera, pantomime, puppetry, magic, performance art, film, television, and more. Former database title: International Index to Performing Arts (IIPA) Full Text.
Academic Search Complete
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Indexes major journals across many disciplines.
JSTOR
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Full text back issues of major academic journals from a range of disciplines.
Project MUSE
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Full text of current issues of scholarly journals published by university presses, chiefly in the arts, humanities and social sciences.
MLA International Bibliography
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Indexes worldwide publications on literature, language, linguistics, folklore, film, television, and theater from 1923 to the present. See also the MLA Directory of Periodicals.
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Gale Literature Criticism
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Full text reprints from volumes of Drama Criticism, Shakespeare Criticism, Contemporary Literary Criticism, and more. Search specific suthors or general topics.

African American literature; African literature; American Indian literature; American literature; Asian American literature; Authors; Bibliograpy; Biographies; Biography; Black literature; Book reviews; Chicano literature; English literature; Eurpean literature; French literature; Italian literature; German literature; Latin American literature; Mexican American literature; Native American literature; Western literature; LRC
Gale Literature Resource Center
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Biographies, bibliographies, and critical analysis of authors from every age and literary discipline. Covers more than 120,000 novelists, poets, essayists, journalists, and other writers. Combines the core Gale Group literary databases: Contemporary Authors, Contemporary Literary Criticism, and Dictionary of Literary Biography. Complements Literature Criticism Online.
African American literature; African literature; American Indian literature; American literature; Asian American literature; Authors; Bibliograpy; Biographies; Biography; Black literature; Book reviews; Chicano literature; English literature; Eurpean literature; French literature; Italian literature; German literature; Latin American literature; Mexican American literature; Native American literature; Western literature; LRC; literature resource center

African American literature; African literature; American Indian literature; American literature; Asian American literature; Authors; Bibliograpy; Biographies; Biography; Black literature; Book reviews; Chicano literature; English literature; Eurpean literature; French literature; Italian literature; German literature; Latin American literature; Mexican American literature; Native American literature; Western literature; LRC
Theatre in Context Collection
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A reference source that covers multiple aspects of the international theater, including full text of major reference materials and records for individual plays, people, theaters, productions, and production companies. Also includes images, playbills, postcards, scrapbooks and other ephemera. Formerly titled North American Theatre Online.

Hemispheric Institute of the Americas
Digital project from NYU Libraries and NYU's Hemispheric Institute of Performance and Politics that "provides a digital venue for documenting the expression of social and political life through performance."

Selected Free E-Resources

Free Musicals and Plays You Can Now Stream During the Coronavirus Outbreak
From Filmed on Stage, a list of temporarily unlocked streaming performances from PBS, Cirque du Soleil, and more.
Watch Live Theatre and Music Performances From Your Home
List of selected free streaming performances set up to provide an alternative while in person performance is prohibited due to COVID-19.
The Social Distancing Festival
An online artists' community made to celebrate and showcase the work of the many artists around the world who have been affected by the need for social distancing that has come about due to the spread of Coronavirus (COVID-19).
Personal Library Loan: Helping Theatre Grad Students
A temporary sharing page for Theater graduate students who are in need of a specific source while libraries are closed or offering limited services.

Librarian

Arts Library Virtual Reference Desk

The Arts Library offers a virtual reference desk from 11:00-4:00 on weekdays. Appointments can be scheduled in 20 minute installments, and patrons will receive a Zoom link in their confirmation e-mail. Contact us for research in the fields of art and art history, architecture, architectural history, design media arts, fashion and costume, film and television studies, photography, theater, and urban design.

The mission of the UCLA Library is to provide access to and delivery of information resources to UCLA students, faculty, and staff in support of the research and instructional mission of the university. Relying on its highly skilled staff, the Library encourages innovation, capitalizes on appropriate technologies, forges effective partnerships and aggressively promotes excellence.