Theatre & costume resources

Comprehensive sites

McCoy's Guide to Theatre and Performance Studies

http://www2.stetson.edu/csata/thr_guid.html

A brief guide to internet resources organized by Ken McCoy of Stetson University. Links to comprehensive sites, unique or special interest sites and sites providing valuable research tools.

Theatre Library Association - Theatre Resources

http://www.tla-online.org/links/resources.html

Links to a variety of resources including theatre resource guides, performing arts publishers, electronic texts, theatre & professional organizations, awards lists and more.

Voice of the Shuttle: Drama, Theater, & Performance Art Studies (U.of CA/Santa Barbara)

http://vos.ucsb.edu/browse.asp?id=782

Links to a variety of resource lists, electronic publications, information regarding theatre companies and current productions, festivals, theater reviews, scripts., screenwriting, etc.

Yahoo's List on Theater

http://dir.yahoo.com/Arts/Performing_Arts/Theater/

Theatre news, reviews & jobs

Artsearch

Search theatre job postings online. The library's print subscription to Artsearch:The National Employment Bulletin for the Arts (available on the library shelf) includes online access to job listings and various resources from Theatre Communications Group. (Requires login with Webster or Eden ID.)

Finding Theatre Reviews (PDF document)

A library guide listing reference books, print indexes, databases, and websites useful for locating theatre reviews.

Aisle Say: The Internet Magazine of Stage Reviews and Opinion

http://www.aislesay.com/

Gives the text of theater reviews, as well as some book and recording reviews. Be sure to scroll down to see the links to reviews from major U.S. and international cities. Updated weekly.

Backstage Online

http://www.backstage.com/bso/index.jsp

Web version of the popular weekly for theater people with news, reviews, and job opportunities.

Curtain Up

http://www.curtainup.com/

A theater magazine offering reviews, features, and annotated listings.

Playbill on-line

http://www.playbill.com/index.php

Commercial site with theatre listings for On & Off-Broadway, regional, touring, London, & summer stock. Useful for locating and acquiring tickets for productions worldwide. Information on casting & job opportunities.

New York Times Theater Reviews

http://theater.nytimes.com/pages/theater/index.html

Links to reviews from the New York Times for current Broadway and Off Broadway theater productions.

Variety.Com

http://www.variety.com/

Online version of the trade publication covering the entertainment world. For reviews of theatre productions (Broadway, off-Broadway, and regional), follow the "Legit" link under Reviews. Subscribers have access to additional reviews.

top of page ↑

Costume / design / theatre technology

American Memory, HistoricalCollections for the National Digital Library

http://memory.loc.gov/ammem/

The Library of Congress site provides access to thousands of photographs in its collection. Follow the link to "photos & prints". A number of photo collections record life during the Civil War, nineteenth and turn of the century America, small town and rural life during the Depression, architecture and design from the 1930's to the 1950's and more.

Architecture, Interiors and Furniture (Webster-Eden use only)

Access to 1,900 images of architecture and interior decoration covering 2800 B.C. to late twentieth century from the eight volume slide collection Architecture, Interiors and Furniture by Stephen Sbarge. Textual description for images of each period is included as a PDF.

Cleveland Press Shakespeare photographs, 1870-1982

http://www.ulib.csuohio.edu/shakespeare/

This site is an archive of over 400 digitized photographs of professional Shakespeare productions on stage, screen, television, ballet and opera. This site may be of special interest to theatre costume specialists.

Costume & Design for Theatre Bibliography (PDF file)

http://library.webster.edu/libresearch/bibcostume.pdf

Lists reference books in the Eden-Webster Library collection that are helpful for costume and theatre design research. Includes tips for searching the library catalog to locate pictures in books.

The Costume Gallery

http://www.costumegallery.com/

This gallery created by costumer Penny E. Dunlap Ladnier offers over 2,500 images of fashion and costume from the Byzantine and Medieval period to the 20th century.

La Couturière Parisienne

http://www.marquise.de/en/index.html

Period costume from the Middle Ages to early 20th century with 4,000 costume pictures, articles and some period patterns.

The Costume Site

http://milieux.com/costume/

Links to information on ethnic, theatrical, science fiction, and fantasy costumes. Includes museums as well as "how-to sites", and sources for supplies.

The Costumer's Manifesto

http://www.costumes.org

Links to a number of sites for costume and art. There is a helpful "Timeline of Costume History" with information and links to costume resources covering ancient Babylon to twentieth century western costume.

Elizabethan Costuming Page

http://www.elizabethancostume.net/

Excellent source for information on the history and design of Elizabethan costume.

The History of Costume (Braun & Schneider)

http://www.siue.edu/COSTUMES/history.html

Includes 500 designs for historical dress from ancient times through the 19th century. Note: heavy graphics.

History of Costume (Button & Sbarge) (Webster-Eden use only)

Access to 1,488 images of costumes through the ages from the six volume slide collection History of Costume by Jeanne Button, Patricia Quinn Stuart and Stephen Sbarge.

International Theatre Design Archive

http://www.siue.edu/ITDA/

This site from the U.S. Institute for Theatre Technology presently links to 2000 scenic, costume and lighting designs archived on the Internet. Searchers may browse the 3 categories (scene, lighting, costume) by title, playwright, designer, or producer.

The Picture Collection Online (New York Public Library)

http://digital.nypl.org/mmpco/index.cfm

Over 30,000 digitized images from the New York Public Library Picture Collection. Most of the images were created before 1923. Many costume categories are covered (clothing & dress, fashion drawings, fur fashions, gloves, hats, hairdressing, hosiery, shoes) but additional categories cover American life and history.

The Regency Fashion Page

http://locutus.ucr.edu/~cathy/reg3.html

Links to over 100 images of regency clothing from the period 1790 - 1825. Images are from period fashion plates, portraits, and real regency clothing in museum collections.

Theatrecrafts.com

http://www.theatrecrafts.com/

This site developed by University of Exeter's School of Performance Arts with the help of Jon Primrose is a good resource for technical theatre information. It links to sites and book resources for props, lighting, rigging, sound, stage management and other topics. An online glossary contains over 1400 theatre terms.

Library guides

Finding Theatre Reviews (PDF file)

A library guide listing reference books, print indexes, databases, and websites useful for locating theatre reviews.

Costume & Design for Theatre Bibliography (PDF file)

Lists reference books in the Eden-Webster Library collection that are helpful for costume and theatre design research. Includes tips for searching the library catalog to locate pictures in books.

Musical theatre

The Broadway Musical Cast Album Database

http://www.eur.com/musicals/

This database provides information about cast albums of stage musicals and recordings of film and TV musicals which were released on long-playing records and compact discs. Useful for researching productions as information includes year of premiere, subsequent productions, cast names, and a list of songs.

Internet Broadway Database

http://www.ibdb.com/

Created by the research department of the League of American Theatres and Producers, the IBDB provides information and statistics on past and current Broadway shows. The goal of the site is to "serve as a comprehensive history of Broadway for the benefit of League members, press, theatre professionals and enthusiasts."

Musicals101.com

http://www.musicals101.com

This site created and maintained by John Kenrick has information on the history, development, and current traditions of musical theater. It also offers brief "courses" on great names in musical theater and a section with reviews of cast recordings of current and past productions.

Musicals.Net

http://musicals.net

Provides information on popular Broadway musicals. Shows are described indepth with a synopsis, song lyrics, and links to related web sites and discussion forums.

National Alliance for Musical Theatre

http://www.namt.net/

Organization's site offers a licensing catalog of new original works in musical theatre available for production. There is also information on member companies.

Gilbert and Sullivan Archive

http://math.boisestate.edu/gas/index.html

Site provides a wealth of Gilbert and Sullivan information including about 50 librettos in the public domain, audio files, a photo archive of Gilbert and Sullivan stars, and parodies of Gilbert and Sullivan.

top of page ↑

Theatre history

The American Variety Stage

http://lcweb2.loc.gov/ammem/

This multimedia anthology of documents on vaudeville and popular entertainment, 1870-1920, drawn primarily from the Rare Books and Special Collections Division of the Library of Congress is part of the American Memory Collection. To locate this particular collection, link to the collection finder and select the topic Performing Arts. There is also a collection for The Federal Theatre Project.

The New Deal Stage

http://lcweb2.loc.gov/ammem/fedtp

This Library of Congress site offers primary source documents of government sponsored theatrical productions produced by the Federal Theatre Project(FTP) from 1935 to 1939. Digital images include scripts, stage and costume designs, photographs, posters, and FTP administrative records.

Perseus Digital Library

http://www.perseus.tufts.edu

The Classics Department of Tufts University provides links to resources on the ancient world. If your interest is Greek theatre there are links to full text of Greek plays by Aristophanes, Euripedes, Sophocles and others.

Shakespeare

Cleveland Press Shakespeare photographs, 1870-1982

http://www.ulib.csuohio.edu/shakespeare/

This site is an archive of over 400 digitized photographs of professional Shakespeare productions on stage, screen, television, ballet and opera. This site may be of special interest to theatre costume specialists.

Mr. William Shakespeare and the Internet

http://shakespeare.palomar.edu/

A well designed, annotated guide to scholarly and other Shakespeare resources on the internet. Includes a Shakespeare timeline, geneology, Charles and Mary lamb's Tales from Shakespeare, and the prefatory materials from the First Folio.

top of page ↑

Booksellers, publishers & licensing sites

Applause Theatre & Cinema Books

http://www.applausepub.com/index.jsp

Broadway Play Publishing Inc

http://www.broadwayplaypubl.com

Specializes in full-length contemporary American plays. Some extras at this site include a playwright photo gallery and list of theatre book stores in North America.

Dramatists Play Service

http://www.dramatists.com/

Publisher and theatrical licensing agency.

Hal Leonard

http://www.halleonard.com/

Music, theatre, and cinema publications.

Methuen

http://www.methuen.co.uk/drama.html

British publisher offering publications on theatre and drama.

Samuel French

http://www.samuelfrench.com/

Source for purchase of plays, screenplays, books on acting, film, technical aspects of theatre and more.

Smith and Kraus, Inc.

http://www.smithkraus.com

Publishing categories include: contemporary playwrights, great translations, career development, monologue and scene anthologies, and young actors.

St. Louis theatre attractions

Conservatory of Theatre Arts (Webster University)

http://www.webster.edu/depts/finearts/theatre/Assets/Conservatory/Conservatory/Welcome.html

Dance St. Louis

http://www.dancestlouis.org/main.htm

Edison Theatre (Washington University)

http://artsci.wustl.edu/~edison/

Fox Theatre

http://www.fabulousfox.com/

Hot City Theatre

http://www.hotcitytheatre.org/

The Muny

http://www.muny.org/

New Jewish Theatre

http://www.jccstl.com/index.php/programs/arts-culture/new-jewish-theatre/

New Line Theatre

http://www.newlinetheatre.com/

The Repertory Theatre of St. Louis

http://www.repstl.org/

Shakespeare Festival of St. Louis

http://www.shakespearefestivalstlouis.com/

Stages St.Louis

http://www.stagesstlouis.com/

top of page ↑

Additional Sites

Speech Accent Archive

http://accent.gmu.edu/

Site by Steven H. Weinberger (George Mason University) offers speech accents from a variety of languages.