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Free Theatre Web Sites

Databases and Encyclopedias

IBDB - Internet Broadway Database
http://www.ibdb.com/ This is a link to another web site
General information, statistics and fun facts about Broadway shows, theatres and people. Includes currently playing shows as well as past productions.

The Lortel Archives Internet Off-Broadway Database
http://www.lortel.org/LLA_archive/index.cfm This is a link to another web site
Similar to IBDB, only featuring information about Off-Broadway productions. Archives go back to 1958 (as of November 2007).

Musicals101.com
http://www.musicals101.com/ This is a link to another web site
The Cyber Encyclopedia of Musical Theatre, TV and Film.

 

General Theatre Sites

Artslynx International Arts Resources
http://www.artslynx.org/ This is a link to another web site
Provides links to hundreds of resources for theatre and dance, including original resources, many of which provide excellent basic information for students.

Digital Librarian
http://www.digital-librarian.com/performing.html This is a link to another web site
Presents a large variety of links for performing arts.

ELAC Online TheatrePedia: Internet Theatre Library
http://perspicacity.com/ This is a link to another web site
This library of World Wide Web sites is extremely thorough, containing links to both theater production (acting, directing, writing, etc.) and research sites. A subject index is available for those who are not sure which site might contain the information they are seeking

KMC: A Brief Guide to Internet Resources in Theater and Performance Studies
http://www.stetson.edu/csata/custom/thr_guid.html This is a link to another web site
Maintained by Kevin McCoy, PhD of Steston University in Florida. Starts with general helpful resources, moving on to resources by topic (actors and acting, stagecraft and technical theatre, etc.), finding primary materials and other guides.

The New York Public Library for the Performing Arts: Theatre
http://www.nypl.org/research/lpa/internet/lpa.cfm?Trg=1&d1=129&d3=Theatre This is a link to another web site
A collection of useful links for full text play sources, theatre history, musical theatre, design and technology, and others.

Voice of the Shuttle - Drama, Theater & Performance Arts Studies
http://vos.ucsb.edu/browse.asp?id=782 This is a link to another web site
Provides links to resources in areas of drama, theater and screenwriting.

World Wide Arts Resources - Theater Arts
http://wwar.com/categories/Theater/ This is a link to another web site
The largest site for contemporary art, art news, art history, contemporary artist and gallery portfolios, online since 1995

World Wide Web Virtual Library - Theatre and Drama
http://vl-theatre.com/ This is a link to another web site
Provides links to resources in more than 50 countries around the world, for professionals, amateurs, academics and students of all ages.

 

Acting

Actingbiz: Online Actor’s Resource
http://www.actingbiz.com/ This is a link to another web site
Created by actors for actors. Resources, guides, articles and advice. You must register to search for casting calls, but it’s free.

The Actor’s Checklist
http://www.actorschecklist.com/ This is a link to another web site
Covers everything from headshots, resumes and preparing for an audition, to business and legal considerations or joining a union. Each section has an essential checklist.

AWOL: Acting Workshop Online
http://redbirdstudio.com/AWOL/acting2.html This is a link to another web site
Free acting lessons, access to monologs online, current audition postings, and more.

Yesand!com
http://www.yesand.com/ This is a link to another web site
For those interested in improvisational theatre and comedy. Features include online discussion forums, full descriptions of improv games, groups by state or country (however the groups list has not been updated since 2003), and a bookstore.

 

Technical Theatre & Production

Costume Design

 

The Costume Gallery
http://www.costumegallery.com/ This is a link to another web site
Host to over 10,000 web pages and more than 45,000 images. Features a free online costume encyclopedia and a photo collection provided by site users, then dated and presented chronologically online.

The Costume Page
http://www.costumepage.org/tcpinfo4.html This is a link to another web site
Contains sites featuring the art of performance costuming, for live theater (including drama, dance, opera, sport, and stage performers) and film (motion pictures and television).

The Costume Site
http://www.milieux.com/costume/ This is a link to another web site
This website gathers a phenomenal number of links for the costuming student or professional. Extremely useful are the links providing designs and images.

History of Costume Index
http://www.siue.edu/COSTUMES/COSTUME1_INDEX.HTML This is a link to another web site
This site is based on the German publication, "Zur Geschichte der Kostume" printed in Munich from 1861 to 1880. This is a good source for researching fashion during the Victorian era and includes both formal and folk dress.

Timeline of Costume History
http://costumes.org/history/100pages/timelinepages/timeline.htm This is a link to another web site

The University of Virginia Collection of Historic Dress
http://cti.itc.virginia.edu/~dress/ This is a link to another web site This is a link to another web site
An index to selected images used in the study of fashion and costume.

 

General Stagecraft, Technical and Production

 

Backstage World
http://www.backstageworld.com/ This is a link to another web site
Highlighted topics include stage and film products, lighting and audio links, manuals and tips, and an extensive job list. Links are provided for twelve different countries.

The Internet Public Library: Stagecraft/Technical Theatre
http://www.ipl.org/div/pf/entry/48529 This is a link to another web site
A pathfinder divided into online sources and print sources. Provides ample listings for those interested in working behind the scenes.

Pigments Through the Ages
http://webexhibits.org/pigments/ This is a link to another web site
A reference guide to the history and creation of colors.  The site provides the origin of basic colors and in depth information about how to make and use pigments.

Proppeople.com
http://proppeople.com/index.php This is a link to another web site
Prop master Sean McArdle has created a blog containing numerous articles and links about how to “Do It Yourself”, from making an electric generator to creating a green lantern ring. Up to date issues, such as the effects of smoking on stage are well addressed.

Sounddogs.com
http://sounddogs.com/default.asp This is a link to another web site
Offers over 320,000 sound files for download through its sound effects library. Purchase is required for full effects, but there are free samples.

Stage Lighting Tech Pages
http://business.virgin.net/tom.baldwin/ This is a link to another web site
The technical data presented can be used by amateurs or professionals. Included are resources on specific lighting instruments, a great guide to light bulbs, and a list of worldwide theatre lighting organizations.

Theatrecrafts.com
http://www.theatrecrafts.com/ This is a link to another web site
In association with the University of Exeter, UK drama department, content is also pertinent to USA students. Completely devoted to technical theatre, the site includes information for beginners and amateurs. Book suggestions are also provided.

 

Electronic Play Texts

Alex Catalog of Electronic Texts
http://infomotions.com/alex/ This is a link to another web site
Although this site is no longer being maintained, it is still a useful index to plays in electronic form available on the web. Works are usually those in the public domain (not covered by copyright) and include authors such as Shakespeare, Ibsen, Jonson and Euripides.

Comedia
http://www.comedias.org/texteng.html This is a link to another web site
Organized and maintained by the Association for Hispanic Classical Theater, Inc., this site provides access to a number of Hispanic play texts, organized by playwright. Other resources related to Hispanic theater are also available. This site can be read in either English or Spanish.

The Complete Works of William Shakespeare
http://shakespeare.mit.edu/works.html This is a link to another web site

Project Gutenberg
http://promo.net/pg/index.html This is a link to another web site
An additional source for E-texts which include plays and incorporate a search feature.

The eServer Drama Collection
http://drama.eserver.org/ This is a link to another web site
This site contains a collection of original plays and screenplays, criticism and links to other sites concerned with theatre.

 

Theatre History

American Variety Stage: Vaudeville and Popular Entertainment, 1870-1920
http://memory.loc.gov/ammem/vshtml/vshome.html This is a link to another web site
A multimedia anthology selected from various Library of Congress holdings. This collection illustrates the vibrant and diverse forms of popular entertainment, especially vaudeville, that thrived from 1870-1920.

The New Deal Stage: Selections from the Federal Theatre Project 1935-1939
http://memory.loc.gov/ammem/fedtp/fthome.html This is a link to another web site
Featured here are stage and costume designs, still photographs, posters, and scripts for productions of Macbeth and The Tragical History of Dr. Faustus as staged by Orson Welles, and for Power, a topical drama of the period (over 3,000 images).

Theatre History on the Web
http://www.videoccasions-nw.com/history/jack.html This is a link to another web site
This website is useful for period research, from classical to contemporary. Also contains specific links for costumes, design and computer assisted design, lighting and technical theatre. Maintained since 1996 by Jack Wolcott, former Associate Director and Graduate Program Coordinator of the University of Washington School of Drama.

PBS: Changing Stages
http://www.pbs.org/wnet/changingstages/timeline1900.html This is a link to another web site
A timeline organized by decade covering major events in twentieth century theatre history.

Theatre History Sites on the WWW (maintained by Oscar Brockett)
http://www.win.net/kudzu/history.html This is a link to another web site

 

More theater history resources from Artslynx.com ... This is a link to another web site

 

Shakespeare

The Folger Shakespeare Library
http://folger.edu/ This is a link to another web site
Home to the world’s largest collection of Shakespeare materials. The Discover Shakespeare section provides pertinent information about his life and works, Shakespearian theaters, FAQs and links to other Shakespeare sites. Teach and Learn features lesson plans, study guides and Shakespeare for Kids.

The Furness Shakespeare Library
http://dewey.library.upenn.edu/sceti/furness/ This is a link to another web site
One of the collections at the University of Pennsylvania’s Schoenberg Center for Electronic Text and Image. Contains virtual copies of early works by William Shakespeare and multimedia tutorials for Romeo & Juliet, The Merchant of Venice, Richard III and King Lear.


Mr. William Shakespeare and the Internet
http://shakespeare.palomar.edu/ This is a link to another web site
A comprehensive and well annotated site. Includes a Shakespeare Timeline, HTML and text complete websites, study guides, festivals and theatre companies, Shakespeare’s renaissance contemporaries, and a great deal more.

 

Professional Organizations & Associations

American Society for Theatre Research
http://www.astr.org/ This is a link to another web site
The American Society for Theatre Research (ASTR) is a U.S.-based professional organization that fosters scholarship on worldwide theatre and performance, both historical and contemporary.

Theatre Communications Group
http://www.tcg.org/ This is a link to another web site
Mission: To strengthen, nurture and promote the professional not-for-profit American theatre.

Theatre Library Association
http://tla.library.unt.edu/ This is a link to another web site
Supports librarians and archivists affiliated with theatre, dance, performance studies, popular entertainment, motion picture and broadcasting collections.

More Professional Organizations from Artslynx.com ... This is a link to another web site

 

Theatre Reviews & News

Aisle Say
http://www.escape.com/~theanet/AisleSay.html This is a link to another web site
This theater review source covers productions from New York City to San Francisco. Links to regional theater review sources are also provided.

Broadway.com
http://www.broadway.com/ This is a link to another web site

OffBroadway.com
http://www.offbroadway.com/ This is a link to another web site
Both sites offer information about current productions, feature articles and reviews. Broadway.com has a link to what’s happening on the London stage.

The New York Times Theater Reviews
http://www.nytimes.com/pages/theater/reviews/index.html This is a link to another web site
Recent reviews published in the New York Times are available, full text, at this site.  You must first subscribe to the New York Times online service before these reviews are available to you.

Playbill On-line
http://www.playbill.com/ This is a link to another web site
Contains playbill information for Broadway, off-Broadway, regional, and London theaters is. Ticket ordering information, recent theater news, and other features concerned with current theater are also available.

Talkin’ Broadway
http://www.talkinbroadway.com/ This is a link to another web site
Information about Broadway, off-Broadway and regional theatre, with reviews and chat message boards.