Important News for Amateurs: Prime Directive (Obsession)

I have made mention here before that Prime Directive (Obsession) is now dedicated to the memory of Steve Hilder.

I have though long and hard about this play and what it means to me. It will always be very important to me, as it was the first two-act play that I committed to paper. But it takes on a new level of significance to me, as I will always read Dick’s lines and hear Steve saying them. It also reminds me of the best things about amateur theatre; it makes me detest the term Amateur.

It was in the production with Steve that I realised that reinforced my opinion that to perform a play well, you have to ignore the tag ‘amateur’ with a passion – as after all, what is amateur about a performance that you expect people to pay to see it. Money is changing hands, so if you conduct your production as amateurs, you’re doing your audience a disservice.

In light of these facts, I have changed the performance rights rules for Prime Directive (Obsession). If you wish to produce this play as an ‘amateur’ performance (with the exception of performance at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival) there will be no performance fee. Instead, I would request that a donation be made to Taste of Adventure (level dependant on your company’s finances).

Taste of Adventure has been chosen by Steve’s parents as the charity best reflects Steve’s life – and I can’t think of anything more fitting.

If you are interested in producing this play under this arrangement, please visit the website and email me. More information about Prime Directive (Obsession) can be found there as well.