Drama: 54-281: Foundations of Drama II: 20th Century Productions: Research Best Practices

Intrigue! (Research is rarely ever well-achieved in a straight line)

Explore diverse resources to make the strongest case for your production paper.

Critical Monographs
Historical monographs
Biography/Autobiography
Articles and reviews in journals and newspapers
Sourcebooks
Casebooks
Annuals
Encyclopedias
Surveys
Timelines
Audio and/or visual resources
People!
Archives
Organizations
Special Collections...

Start with critical monographs dedicated to a play, musical or practitioner 

• Search for them in library catalogs such as Cameo and WorldCat or other library catalogs at the very beginning of your research. It will more quickly put you on your way to understanding the history and context of your chosen production.
• Google Books
• Dissertations and Theses Global
• American Doctoral Dissertations 1933-1955 This link opens in a new window
• Dissertations and Theses @ Carnegie Mellon
   

Not sure what production you want to research?

• Explore production annuals or theatre encyclopedias
   

Search all pertinent journal databases for reviews and articles

• Exhaust the suggested article databases in this guide.
• Google Scholar

Log your keyword strategies when searching databases to minimize search replication in:

• library catalogs (such as Cameo and WorldCat)
  See the Cameo and WorldCat Search Tips page in this guide.
• article databases such (such as International Theatre of Bibliography and Dance)
• search engines (such as Google)

Evaluate resources

• Identify the source and analyze content for authority, objectivity, accuracy, currency, and breadth.

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Eileen Darby. Keystone Features. Getty Images

Related Guides:
Drama
Musical Theatre
Plays and Monologues
Art
Music
History