Theatre, Drama, and Performing Arts Subject Guide

This resource is one of the largest and most popular theatre pages on the Web, reaching a wide audience (amateur, student, and professional) with its listings of theatre-related sites. With a focus on current and future theater happenings in New York City and the United States, Playbill gives readers a sense of the contemporary theater community.

From the League of American Theatres and Producers, "IBDB is the official database for Broadway theatre information. IBDB provides records of productions from the beginnings of New York theatre until today. Details include pertinent people involved as well as interesting facts and production statistics. Get a list of every production of Hamlet on Broadway or a list of your favorite actor's credits. Find out what played at a particular theatre or what shows opened in a specified Broadway season.

The sheer size and comprehensive quality of this site requires its inclusion here. Not all of the many links remain current, and a number of the links go to commercial sources, but the depth given in each topic is notable. Example: on the "Make-Up and Mask Supplies" page, surfers can visit an academic essay on make-up design for the stage, or visit a commercial theatrical mask dealer. The site requires browsing but is clearly worth the effort.

"On this site you will find the British Library’s 93 copies of the 21 plays by William Shakespeare printed in quarto before the theatres were closed in 1642." Aside from the plays themselves, the site offers biographical information on Shakespeare, a glossary, references, background on the writing of the plays as well as their original performance history, and links to other sites.

In association with the University of Exeter Drama Department, "the aim of theatrecrafts.com is to eventually be the best resource for practical information and advice about technical theatre techniques for theatre folk at any level."

This union of American theater actors and stage managers include a "Casting Call" link that makes photo and resume requests for openings in shows currently up or in pre-production. Limited information is provided about the ad sponsors.

Online listing of current openings across the U.S. and the world, organized by category. The "Contact Sheets" section, where users can submit their background and contact information, is a little tricky to access but you can get to it.

Hosted by the long running theatre publication Playbill, these job listings include a variety of positions currently available in the New York area. Jobs range from telephone ticket salespeople to performers, scenic design specialists, and more.