LibGuides: African American Theatre: Find Books

Sidney Poitier on stage

Print Titles @ FAMU

Bodies in dissent : spectacular performances of race and freedom, 1850-1910
COLEMAN LIBRARY African-American Collection - 4th Floor, Room 403 -- PN2270.A35B77 2006

Check out some titles from our catalog!

The development of black theater in America : from shadows to selves
COLEMAN LIBRARY African-American Reserve - 4th Floor, Room 403 -- PS338.N4S26 1988
A history of African American theatre
COLEMAN LIBRARY African-American Collection - 4th Floor, Room 403 -- PN2270.A35H55
The impact of race : theatre and culture
COLEMAN LIBRARY African-American Collection - 4th Floor, Room 403 -- PN2270.A35K54 2003
A sourcebook of African-American performance : plays, people, movements
COLEMAN LIBRARY African-American Collection - 4th Floor, Room 403 -- PN2270.A35S68 1999
The Theater of Black Americans : a collection of critical essays
COLEMAN LIBRARY African-American Collection - 4th Floor, Room 403 -- PN2270.A35T48
Their place on the stage : Black women playwrights in America
COLEMAN LIBRARY African-American Collection - 4th Floor, Room 403 -- PS338.N4B76
The color of Black theatre : a critical analysis of the Black theatre movement of the 1960s and 1970s
COLEMAN LIBRARY Microforms - 2nd Floor, Room 207 -- PN2270.A35W55 1980b

Search Terms

Use these terms in the 'Subject Heading' field:

African American theater
American drama -- African American authors -- History and criticism
Harlem Renaissance

Time Period:

20th Century
19th Century
1775 - 1865

Find Resources

e-Books @ FAMU

A Sourcebook on African-American Performance by Annemarie Bean (Editor)
ISBN: 0415182352
Publication Date: 1999-06-28
A Sourcebook on African-American Performance is the first volume to consider African-American performance between and beyond the Black Arts Movement of the 1960s and the New Black Renaissance of the 1990s. As with all titles in the Worlds of Performance series, the Sourcebook consists of classic texts as well as newly commissioned pieces by notable scholars, writers and performers. It includes the plays 'Sally's Rape' by Robbie McCauley and 'The American Play' by Suzan-Lori Parks, and comes complete with a substantial, historical introduction by Annemarie Bean. Articles, essays, manifestos and interviews included cover topics such as: * theatre on the professional, revolutionary and college stages * concert dance * community activism * step shows * performance art. Contributors include Annemarie Bean, Ed Bullins, Barbara Lewis, John O'Neal, Glenda Dickersun, James V. Hatch, Warren Budine Jr. and Eugene Nesmith.

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Ain't Nothing Like the Real Thing : how the Apollo Theater shaped American entertainment by National Museum of African American History and Culture (U.S.) Staff; Kinshasha Holman Conwill (Editor); Richard Carlin (Editor); Smokey Robinson (Foreword by)
Publication Date: 2010
Celebrates the 75 year history of the Apollo Theater, Harlem's landmark performing arts space and the iconic showplace for the best in jazz, blues, dance, comedy, gospel, R & B, hip-hop, and more since it opened its doors in 1934.
Darkening Mirrors : imperial representation in Depression-era African American performance by Stephanie Leigh Batiste
Publication Date: 2011
Historical Dictionary of African American Theater by Anthony D. Hill; Douglas Q. Barnett
Publication Date: 2009
The A to Z of African American Theater by Anthony D. Hill; Douglas Q. Barnett
Publication Date: 2009
The African American Theatre Directory, 1816-1960 by Bernard L. Peterson
Publication Date: 1997
The First Black Actors on the Great White Way by Susan Curtis
Publication Date: 1998
Theorizing Black Theatre : art versus protest in critical writings, 1898-1965
Publication Date: 2010
This volume seeks a critical engagement with black theatre artists and theorists of the twentieth century. It reveals a comprehensive view of the Art or Propaganda debate that dominated twentieth century African-American dramatic theory.

Find Scripts @ FAMU

When searching the FAMU Library Catalog, click the ADVANCE SEARCH button. In the first box type in AFRICAN AMERICAN DRAMA and choose the "Subject Heading" field. In the second box type AFRICAN AMERICAN AUTHORS and choose the "Subject Heading" field. This will result in play titles and collections. You can use the Publication Date selection to find plays in your date range. We cannot limit the results to the words PLAYS. Your list will also contain anthologies, bibliographies and research texts.

Go to the 'Find Articles' tab and find the 'Black Drama' database listed in the left box. This database contains over 1400 plays by over 200 playwrights. Also included information on related productions, theaters, companies and more.

Non-FAMU Resources

FL State University Libraries - UBorrow
Allows you to request materials directly from participating libraries within Florida’s state university system. This unmediated borrowing service increases your access to the collections of the other universities in Florida.

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