Play Reviews, UM Libraries



Guides to Info. Resources > Research Guides by Subject Discipline > Play Reviews
Last revised: July 2007 Play Reviews Scope: This guide lists resources for locating reviews of historical and contemporary play performances. The guide is divided into two sections: Reviews of Plays before 1900. Reviews of Plays after 1900. Some resources are listed in both sections and many of them provide full text of the review, while others may provide a bibliographic citation. The access points, or keywords or the best strategies to use are provided for most titles, but can change and vary. Additional sources such as author bibliographies and criticism will often have reviews. Email Judy Markowitz, the subject area specialist at judym@umd.edu or call 301-314-1316 for more information. Table of Contents Identifying Production Dates Reviews of Productions Prior to 1900 Reviews of Productions From 1900-Present Identifying Production Dates To locate the production date or dates of a play, use the following sources. If the play is not located, please consult with a reference librarian. Black Drama African-American plays written from the mid-1800s to the present by playwrights from North America, English-speaking Africa, the Caribbean, and other African diaspora countries. Bordman, Gerald. The Oxford Companion to American Theatre. NY: Oxford University Press, 1984 LOCATION: PA LIB REF, MCKREF STKS CALL NUMBER: PN2220.B6 1992 Cassell Companion to Theatre. London: Cassell, 1997. (rev ed of Brewer's Theatre, 1994 (MCK REF PN2035.B74 1994) LOCATION: PA LIB REF CALL NUMBER: PN2035.B74 1997 International Dictionary of Theatre. Chicago: St. James Press, 1992-1996. LOCATION: PA LIB REF CALL NUMBER: PN2035.I49 Internet Broadway Database (http://www.ibdb.com/) Provides records of productions from the beginnings of New York theatre until today. McGraw-Hill Encyclopedia of World Drama. NY: MCGraw-Hill, 1984. LOCATIONS: PAL LIB REF, MCKREF STACKS CALL NUMBER: PN1625.M3 1984 North American Theatre Online Information on United States and Canadian productions from Colonial times to the present. return to top Reviews of Productions Prior to 1900 American Periodicals Series Full text images of over 1,100 colonial and early American magazines and periodicals spanning from colonial times to the mid 20th century. Best strategy: *name of play in quotes and (theat or drama); "the octoroon" and (theat* or drama) Eddleman, Floyd, comp. American Drama Criticism: Interpretations, 1890-1977. Hamden, CT: Shoe String Press, 1979. LOCATIONS: PA LIB REF, MCKREF STACKS CALL NUMBER: PS332.E34 This source, along with the supplements, provides reviews and other criticisms of plays up to 1990. Marks, Patricia. American Literary and Drama Reviews: An Index to Late 19th Century Periodicals. Boston, MA: G.K. Hall, 1984. LOCATIONS: PA LIB REF, MCKREF STACKS CALL NUMBER: PN2256.M37 1984 Provides reviews of plays from 13 American periodicals published after the Civil War. Meserve, Walter. American Drama to 1900. A Guide to Information Sources. Detroit, MI: Gale Research Company, 1980. LOCATIONS: PA LIB REF, MCKREF STACKS, MCK STACKS CALL NUMBER: PS345.M45 Moses, Montrose Jonas. The American Theatre as Seen by its Critics, 1752-1934. LOCATION: PA LIB REF, PA LIB STKS, MCK STKS CALL NUMBER: PN2221.M7 1967 Provides criticism and reviews of American drama and dramatists. New York Times Historical (1851-2001) LOCATION: NETWRK WWW Provides the full page and article images with searchable full text back to the first issue. Includes digital reproductions providing access to every page from every available issue. Best strategy: ti(name of play); ti(black crook) New York Times Theater Reviews. 1870-1994. LOCATION: PA LIB REF CALL NUMBER: PN 1581.N4 Reprints the entire review that appeared in the New York Times. There is a cumulated index for the years 1870-1919. Nineteenth Century Reader's Guide to Periodical Literature. LOCATION: MCKREF STACKS CALL NUMBER: AI3.R496 Indexes reviews from 1890 to 1899, with supplementary coverage from 1900-1922. Approximately 51 periodicals are indexed with access under dramas-criticism, plots, etc., and by playwright's name. Palmer's Index. 1790-1907. LOCATION: MCKREF STACKS CALL NUMBER: AI21.T5 This is an index to the early years of The Times. London. For later coverage of The Times, see entry below. Access under theatres. Periodicals Index Online LOCATION: NETWRK WWW Indexes almost 2,000 periodicals in the humanities and social sciences from their first issues (some back to 1770) to 1995. Best strategy = name of play and Performing Arts in the Journal Subject. Poole's Index to Periodical Literature. 1802-1896. LOCATION: MCKREF STACKS CALL NUMBER: AI3.P7 This index provides coverage of periodicals from the 19th century. Access by playwright's name and subject headings such as drama or theater. Washington Post Historical The Washington Post (1877-1988) offers full page and article images with searchable full text back to the first issue. The collection includes digital reproductions providing access to every page from every available issue. Best strategy: ti(name of play); ti(uncle tom's cabin)*. If retrieve too many citations that are not relevant add: theat Wolter, Jurgen, ed. The Dawning of American Drama: American dramatic criticism, 1746-1915. LOCATION: PA LIB REF CALL NUMBER: PN2221.D38 1993 Reprints criticism of early plays as well as early American theatre. return to top Reviews of Productions From 1900-Present Academic Search Premier (Ebsco) LOCATION: NETWRK WWW This is a multidisciplinary index providing access to play reviews, some full-text. Best strategy: adding the word drama to the name of the play and following the link: (name of play) Theatrical Production Access. The Supplementary Index to Periodicals. three times a year. 1975-. LOCATION: MCKREF STACKS CALL NUMBER: AI3.A2 This index provides reviews from publications that are not in the Readers' Guide to Periodical Literature (see entry below). Regional and city magazines are included as well as general and special interest titles. Access is by name of the play. Alternative Press Index. LOCATIONS: NETWRK WWW (1991 -;) Print version: Alternative Press Index. quarterly. 1969-. LOCATION: MCKREF STACKS CALL NUMBER: AI3.A27 Alternative, radical, independent periodicals are indexed in this source. Best strategy: name of the play and theater reviews as the Article Type. Arts and Humanities Search LOCATIONS: NETWRK WWW (1980- ); Print version entitled Arts & Humanities Citation Index: MCK FOLIO (1976 -1998) CALL NUMBER: NX1.A7 Indexes articles from over 1,100 of the world's leading arts and humanities journals, plus relevant articles from an additional 5,000 social science and science journals. Best strategy: name of the play and limit the search to theater review in the Article Type Phrase. British Humanities Index. quarterly. 1962-. LOCATION: MCKREF STACKS CALL NUMBER: AI3.B7 This index provides references to play reviews from approximately 380 British journals. It is a continuation of Subject Index to Periodicals (see below). Reviews are found under the playwright's name and then productions. Cumulated Dramatic Index. Boston, MA: G.K. Hall, 1965. LOCATION: MCKREF STACKS CALL NUMBER: Z5781.C62 vols.1-2 This is a cumulation of the 41 annual volumes of the Dramatic Index. Over 150 American and British periodicals are indexed covering the years 1909 to 1949. Eddleman, Floyd, comp. American Drama Criticism: Interpretations, 1890-1977. Hamden, CT: Shoe String Press, 1979. LOCATIONS: PA LIB REF, MCKREF STACKS CALL NUMBER: PS332.E34 This source, along with the supplements, provides reviews and other criticisms of plays up to 1990. Elsom, John. Post-war British Theatre Criticism. London: Routledge & Kegan Paul, 1981 LOCATIONS: PA LIB REF, MCKREF STACKS CALL NUMBER: PN2595.E4 1981 Provides reviews of 46 plays produced in Britain after the Second World War. Ethnic Newswatch 1990-. LOCATION: NETWRK WWW This is a bilingual database which includes over 46,000 full-text newspaper and magazine articles from more than 70 publishers of the American ethnic and minority press. Retrieve articles in English or Spanish. Access is by name of the play. Humanities International Complete LOCATIONS: NETWRK WWW (2/84- ); Print version entitled Humanities Index: MCKREF STACKS (1974-1998) CALL NUMBER: AI3.R493 Indexes approximately 400 publications that make up the core literature in the field of the humanities, including theatre. Best strategy = name of the play and limit search to theater reviews as a Descriptor Phrase. International Bibliography of Theatre and Dance LOCATION: NETWRK WWW 1984 - Best search strategy for reviews: name of play and review* in the AB Abstract or Author-Supplied Abstract field International Index to Periodicals. 1907-March 1965. LOCATION: MCKREF STACKS CALL NUMBER: AI3.R49 This index provides access to periodicals not generally indexed in the Reader's Guide to Periodical Literature. Access under the following: drama, dramas, college plays, school plays, and playwright's name - staging and acting of plays. LexisNexis Academic LOCATION: NETWRK WWW Full-text magazines, newspapers, and transcripts. Dates of coverage depend on the individual publication, with most going back to the late 70's or early 1980's. Best strategy: National Theatre Critics Reviews. bi-monthly. 1995-1996. LOCATION: PA LIB FOLIO CALL NUMBER: PN1601.N4 This is a continuation of the New York Theatre Critics' Reviews (see entry below). Reviews of New York and regional productions are reproduced from a variety of sources including: New York Times, Wall Street Journal, New York Post, Village Voice, Variety, New Yorker, New York, Newsweek, and regional papers. New York Theatre Critics' Reviews. bi-monthly. 1940-1994. LOCATION: PA LIB FOLIO CALL NUMBER: PN1601.N4 This source has changed title to National Theatre Critics Reviews (see entry above). Cumulative indexes are available in the PA LIB STACKS for the years: 1940-1960; 1961-1972; and 1973-1986. New York Times Directory of the Theater. NY: Arno Press, 1973. LOCATION: PA LIB REF CALL NUMBER: Z6935.N48 1973 This is an index to all the reviews published in the New York Times from 1920 to 1970. New York Times Historical (1851-2001) LOCATION: NETWRK WWW Provides the full page and article images with searchable full text back to the first issue. Includes digital reproductions providing access to every page from every available issue. Best strategy: ti(name of play; ti(raisin in the sun) Use LexisNexis Academic for reviews after 2001. See above entry. New York Times Theater Reviews. 1870-1994. LOCATION: PA LIB REF CALL NUMBER: PN 1581.N4 Reprints the entire review that appeared in the New York Times. The following years are not available: 1975-76, 1979-80, and 1983-84. There is a cumulated index for the years 1870-1919 and starting with 1971, each volume has an index. Nineteenth Century Reader's Guide to Periodical Literature. LOCATION: MCKREF STACKS CALL NUMBER: AI3.R496 Indexes reviews from 1890 to 1899, with supplementary coverage from 1900-1922. Approximately 51 periodicals are indexed with access under dramas-criticism, plots, etc., and by playwright's name. Periodicals Contents Index Online LOCATION: NETWRK WWW Indexes almost 2,000 periodicals in the humanities and social sciences from their first issues (some back to 1770) to 1995. Best strategy: name of play and Performing Arts in the Journal Subject. Readers' Guide to Periodical Literature. LOCATION: MCKREF STACKS (1900- ) CALL NUMBER: AI3.R48 This source provides references to reviews appearing in general interest and popular magazines. Review of the Arts. Performing Arts. July 1984-1997. LOCATION: MCKREF STACKS CALL NUMBER: PN1560.P442 This is a part of the Newsbank Index, a collection of articles from regional newspapers from over 450 cities. Access is by playwright's name or name of play. The actual articles are on m-fiche in McKeldin Periodicals. Salem, James. A Guide to Critical Reviews. Metuchen, NJ: Scarecrow Press, 1984. LOCATIONS: PA LIB REF, MCKREF STACKS CALL NUMBER: PN2226.S254 1984 Parts I-IV list reviews of American plays on the New York stage from 1909-1982, musicals from 1909-1974, foreign dramas produced in New York from 1909-1977, and screenplays from 1927-1980. Slide, Anthony, ed. Selected Theatre Criticism. Metuchen, NJ: Scarecrow Press, 1985. LOCATIONS: PA LIB REF, MCKREF STACKS CALL NUMBER: PN2277.N5S44 Reprints selected reviews on New York stage productions from 1900-1950. Stanley, William. Broadway in the West End. An Index of Reviews of American Theatre in London, 1950-1975 Westport, CT: Greenwood Press, 1978 LOCATION: PA LIB REF CALL NUMBER: PN2596.L6S73 1978 Indexes reviews of American plays, musical shows and revues produced in the West End from 1950-1975. Review sources include newspapers and magazines such as: Daily Express, Daily Mail, Evening Standard, The Observer, and Spectator. The Times. (London). Index. monthly. 1906-. LOCATION: MCKREF STACKS CALL NUMBER: AI21.T46 / AI21.T462 Access by theatre - reviews and titles. The London Times may also be searched through the Lexis/Nexis database, see entry above. For earlier coverage see entry for Palmer's Index. Washington Post Historical The Washington Post (1877-1988) offers full page and article images with searchable full text back to the first issue. The collection includes digital reproductions providing access to every page from every available issue. Best strategy: ti(name of play); ti(death of a salesman). If retrieve too many citations that are not relevant add: theat* Use LexisNexis Academic for reviews after 1988. See above entry. return to top


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