Here's a weird situation

[David Akin]

>I have been approached by a labour organization about the possibility of
>commissioning a play.
>
>I know what you're thinking. As far as I can tell so far they want somthing
>non-propagandistic about the story of standing up against the forces of
>the hegemony (my description).

Everything old is new again. The small troupes that toured Canada earlier
this century (1930s/40s?), frequently enacted 'plays for the people' that
had overtly propagandistic/political overtones. If I remember correctly,
the recently published collection of Canadian theatre history essays
edited by York's Don Rubin had some interesting pieces about the types of
pieces performed.

It may not help you in your quest to figure out a pay scale. Most of the
pieces (again, I'm going from memory) were original pieces designed and
written by the troupe as a collective. Certainly, if there was one
author, that author wasn't thinking about writing those plays for a
living.

Other list members might be able to point to some terrific resources on
this fascinating period in Canada's cultural history.

David Akin                  VOX: 807/343-6255
Staff Reporter              FAX: 807/343-9409
The Chronicle-Journal  Internet: jdakin at foxnet.net
Thunder Bay, Ontario, CANADA  P7B 1A3