National licences

These databases can be used free of charge by library users throughout Germany. The prerequisite is that the library through the network of which you want to access the database activates it for its users once. You can find out whether this has already happened via the database information system (DBIS). If your home library does not appear in the list of libraries with inventory records, please contact your local colleagues. Alternatively, you can apply for a single-user license at Nationallizenzen.de.

Eighteenth Century Drama. Censorship, Society, and the Stage

The extensive collection of material offers an insight into the social life, the world of theatre and its censorship in the 18th century. The collection goes back to John Larpent, who was the Inspector of Plays (Lord Chamberlain's Office) from 1778 to 1824 and was responsible for the implementation of the Licensing Act (1737). Larpent has kept not only the censored but also the original versions of the plays examined, 2,500 of which are available digitally in the database. The material is supplemented by the diaries of Larpent's wife Anna, in which she recorded her criticism of plays as well as insights into theatre culture and English society.

Homepage

Shakespeare in Performance. Prompt Books from the Folger Shakespeare Library

The database provides access to over 1,100 digitized theatre manuscripts (prompt books) from the Folger Shakerspeare Library in Washington, DC on Shakespeare performances that were performed in theatres in Great Britain, the United States and internationally between the 17th and 20th centuries (as of 10/2016). They give an impression of how Shakespeare's plays were interpreted and performed at the time. The manuscripts usually contain all the important details about the production and are provided with personal notes, sketches, and notes on the use of lighting and music, scenery, and costume design as well as acting.

Homepage

Victorian Popular Culture

The database provides access to a wide range of source material on popular culture in America, Great Britain, and Europe from 1779 to 1930, the Victorian era. The material includes (rare) books and magazines, ephemera, posters, playbills, photos, and illustrations. There are also a number of video clips that document the entertainment culture at the beginning of cinema.

Homepage

Teatro Espanol del Siglo de Oro / TESO [Spanish Theatre of the Golden Age]

Here one can find 850 works by the 16 most prominent representatives of the Spanish Golden Age in full text, including Cervantes, Lope de Vega, Calderon de la Barca. The period between 1500 and 1700 represents the high point of intellectual and artistic creation in Spain. An international editorial team is responsible for the selection. The search can be carried out using either an English or Spanish interface.

Homepage

FID Licences

Free registration is required to use the licensed offerings. A relevant research interest related to the performing arts is essential.

Alexander Street Drama

The package contains seven databases

Asian American Drama brings together more than 250 plays, along with related biographical, production and theatre information.
Black Drama: Second Edition contains the full texts of 1,462 plays by 233 authors from North America, English-speaking Africa and the Caribbean from the mid-19th century to the present.
Latino Literature includes more than 100,000 pages of poetry, short stories, novels and more than 450 plays.
North American Theatre Online covers topics related to theatre from colonial times to the present.
North American Women's Drama contains 1,500 plays written by American or Canadian women.
North American Indian Drama contains more than 240 works of dramatic literature by North American authors of indigenous descent of the 20th century, including many previously unpublished and therefore difficult to find works.
Theatre in Video is an online service with live recordings and film adaptations of over 250 performances of mainly English-language plays using streaming video.

Homepage

Dance Online: Dance Studies Collection

Dance Online: Dance Studies Collection presents the historical context of dance in the 20th and 21st centuries using 150,000 pages of exclusive magazines, reference works, books, dance notations and photographs.

Homepage

transcript e-books Performing Arts

transcript publishing house is a specialist academic publisher with a focus on cultural and social sciences. transcript offers a comprehensive range of publications for theatre, dance, and performance studies. The frontlist titles from 2015 to 2017 were licensed as an e-book package from 2015 to 2017.

Homepage

Other specialist databases from the database information system (DBIS)

DBIS is a digital service that supports you in selecting the right academic database for your research. DBIS is maintained and developed cooperatively. All participating libraries and research institutions work together on the same data pool, thus ensuring the high quality of the data.