Encyclopedias

• The reader's encyclopedia of world drama - Ref PN1625 G3 1969 - Treats drama as literature, giving biographical data and critical material on playwrights; historical surveys of national dramas; precis of major plays.
• McGraw-Hill Encyclopedia of World Drama - Ref PN 1625 M3 1984 - This 5-volume set includes a bibliography and index of people, places, productions, and stagecraft of world theatre.
• The Biographical Encyclopaedia & Who's Who of the American Theatre - Ref PN 2285 R5 - Detailed biographies of 3500 persons active in the American theater since 1900. Includes complete credits, publications, and recordings.

Dictionaries

• International Dictionary of Theatre - Ref PN 1655 I5 1992 - Contains good, concise essays with bibliographies. Set consists of 3 volumes: v.1 - Plays, v.2 - Playwrights, v.3 - Actors.
• The Drama Dictionary - Ref PN 1625 H64 1988 - A general theater dictionary with brief descriptions.
• Shakespeare's Theatre: a Dictionary of His Stage Context - Reviews the current knowledge of the character and operation of theatres in Shakespeare's time, with an explanation of their origins.

• The Oxford Companion to the Theatre - Ref PN 2035 H3 1983 - A fairly extensive one-volume guide that includes music, dance, and design. Includes a great bibliography as well.
• Cambridge Guide to Theatre - Offers a wealth of information on the history and present practice of theatre in all parts of the world.
• Critical Survey of Drama - Ref PR 623 C75 2203 - A 8-volume survey of American and British drama, including critical essays, bibliographical references, and an index.
• National Theatre Critics' Reviews - Ref PN 1601 N4 - "Theatre critics' reviews brings you the complete reviews from these New York publications and stations whenever covered by the critic: New York daily news, Wall Street journal, Time, New York post, Women's wear daily, WABC-TV, CBS-TV, New York times, Christian Science monitor, Newsweek."
• How to Locate Reviews of Plays and Films : A Bibliography of Criticism From the Beginnings to the Present - Ref Z 5781 S19 - A guide for locating theatre and film criticism in books, newspapers, and magazines.

Surveys

• Shakespeare Survey - A yearbook of Shakespeare studies and production, begun in 1948. Each volume is devoted to a theme, or play, or group of plays; each also contains a section of reviews of that year's textual and critical studies, and of the year's major British performances.

Bibliographies

• English Theatrical Literature, 1559-1900: A Bibliography - Z 2014 D7 A7 - Includes opera, pantomime and music halls.
• World Shakespeare Bibliography Online - Comprehensive record of Shakespeare-related scholarship and theatrical productions published or produced worldwide between 1960 and 2011. An essential tool for anyone engaged in research on Shakespeare or early modern England.
• Bibliography of the American Theatre, Excluding New York City - Z 1231 D7 S8 - A good way to find sources on theater outside of the typical Broadway fare.
• American Drama Criticism - Ref Z 1231 D7 P3 - Source guide of dramatic criticism, including numerous supplemets up to 1996.
• American Theater and Drama Research - Ref Z 1231 S53 1991