Black Drama

Connect to Black Drama

Black Drama contains the full text of 1,200 plays written from the mid-1800s to the present by more than 150 playwrights from North America, English-speaking Africa, the Caribbean, and other African diaspora countries. Many of the works are rare, hard to find, or out of print. James Vernon Hatch, the playwright, historian, and curator of the landmark Hatch-Billops Collection, is the project's editorial advisor. Nearly a quarter of the collection will consist of previously unpublished plays by writers such as Langston Hughes, Ed Bullins, Willis Richardson, Amiri Baraka, Randolph Edmonds, Zora Neale Hurston, and many others.

Each play is extensively and deeply indexed, allowing both keyword and multi-fielded searching. The plays are accompanied by reference materials, significant ancillary information, a rich performance database, and images. The result is an exceptionally deep and unified collection that illustrates the many purposes that black theater has served: to give testimony to the ancient foundations of black culture; to protest injustices; to project emerging images of the New Black; and to give voice to the many and varied expressions of black creativity.

Key to Icons

Information
Restricted Resource Campus Faculty, Staff & Students only
Some full text available Some full text
Open Access Resource Open Access (freely available to anyone)
Trial Free Trials

Newest Databases

Information User Restrictions

Use of the LSU Libraries' electronic resources is subject to U.S. Copyright Law. Excessive downloading, printing, and/or electronic dissemination of resource content by the user is prohibited. Restrictions on other uses may apply. Electronic information subsidized by the LSU Libraries is for use in LSU classes and research. Databases are restricted to academic use only. Fair use guidelines are specifically applicable to use of information in a University setting. These are included in the Libraries Copyright Policy.

See the Database Access Policy for information regarding authorized users.