In 1979, Scarecrow Press published J. P. Wearing's American and British Theatrical Biography: A Directory, which enabled users to quickly locate biographical information about figures--both major and minor--who are or were connected with British and American theatre. In American and British Theatrical Biographies: An Index, Wearing has revised and extensively expanded the previous work.
This edition draws upon more than 130 sources and 500 volumes that have been surveyed and indexed, providing information on more than 90,000 individuals from the earliest times to the present. For each person listed in the index, the following is provided where available: