You’ll need... 

• A script to give to each of your actors, 
• A script each for the Director, prompt, stage manager and the lighting and sound crew
• (For musicals) you’ll need a vocal score for all the actors or chorus that sing. 

We call this ‘Rehearsal Material’ as it allows the cast and crew to learn their lines, learn their songs and prepare for the performances.

For musicals, you’ll also need some accompaniment for the actors to sing to, and this is either provided by one or more live musicians who will need musical scores to read, (aka orchestrations or band parts), or by using backing tracks. This is all known as ‘Performance Material’.

You will also need a Licence To Perform to comply with Copyright legislation (see below). 

PLEASE NOTE: Unless stated otherwise, the royalty payment made in order to obtain a Licence To Perform does not include the provision of any scripts, vocal scores, orchestrations, backing tracks, cast recordings or video recordings.

For all our plays you can either buy a traditional printed script (A5 size), or a downloadable e-script (A4 pdf file). These scripts are licensed for personal use only, so if your production organisation decides to stage a production, it will need to buy either a full set of printed scripts, or a script copying licence (which can be used with either the printed script or the e-script).

For pantomimes we only sell the downloadable e-script (A4 pdf file) version so if your production organisation decides to stage a production, it will need to buy a script copying licence.

For musicals, we provide a Data CD (called a Rehearsal Master Set) on which will be the script/libretto and piano/vocal score as A4 pdf files, and some or all of: mandatory logos, images from other shows, helpful programme hints etc.

Of course! All our plays and pantomimes have a free Preview Script available for download as an A4 pdf file that contains 60-75% of the full script. If you like what you read in that then you can buy an inexpensive e-script of the entire play (generally costing under half the price of a traditional printed script) which is licensed to you for your personal use. Purchasing a script copying licence allows you to make a just sufficient quantity of copies to support rehearsals and performances.

All our musicals are included in our perusal service. Under this, representatives of producing organisations can request a USB Stick of Perusal Material  which comprise the script/libretto and piano/vocal score as pdf files; a Cast (or Studio) Recording as mp3 files and (where available) an mp4 file video of either the premiere production or of a subsequent production.

Some titles have the facility to read the entire script online on our website.

The simple answer is, yes. Under the international laws of copyright, you must be in possession of a valid, unexpired, licence before performing any piece of theatre unless the owner or managers of the copyright has waived their rights. (See 'Copyright Questions' below).

The first step is to apply for a Royalties Quotation for the show your organisation is interested in. You’ll need to supply us with your contact details, the name of the organisation you represent, the venue details, and the date(s) on which you’d like to perform the show. You can ask for a quotation by completing a paper form and sending it to us, or by entering the information onto the online form on our website.If the quotation meets with your approval and you wish to proceed towards a production, simply pay the advance royalties, and, other things remaining equal, we’ll issue your organisation with a non-exclusive licence to perform the relevant show for a set number of times within a defined period.

When you request a quotation, it is logged in our system, it forms part of an orderly queue and protects your place in that queue should multiple licensing requests occur for the same show.

For most of our shows, we have agreed with the copyright owner(s) that videos can be made of their play, musical or panto. So, yes you can video, but you need to buy a Licence To Record. The licence conditions allow you to make a video for your cast and crew; also to sell it, post production, to your audiences, but it does not allow you or any person obtaining a copy of that video to place any or all of the video on any publicly available social media without our permission.

We only issue these licences when your producing organisation either already has a Licence To Perform, or simultaneously when payment for your Licence To Perform is submitted.

Where available, and once you have a Licence To Perform you can request a Licence To Record on our website (see ‘Pay Royalties’).

Of course! We provide scripts and scores and we licence our shows around the world.

If you live in Australia or New Zealand, please check with David Spicer Productions first, as we have an arrangement with them for many of our shows.

If you live in Ireland, USA, Canada or South Africa, please know that we licence shows in your countries all the time. If you live anywhere else, please contact us.

We have licensed plays, musicals and pantomimes to many countries around the world in the past and we’d love to help you produce one of our shows.

When a play or pantomime is written, or a musical is written and composed, the creators use their intellect in that creative process with a result that can be seen when written in a script or in a musical score. What they have created is known as intellectual property and it belongs to them just like owning any other tangible asset such as a house or a car.

The UK Copyright Act 1988 (and its later amendments) states in law that intellectual property (which generally in the theatre is known as 'copyright') is the same as physical property and can be protected, sold or rented in exactly the same way. This means that the copyright owner(s) can decide exactly what happens to his/her intellectual property – whether it can be performed, whether the script may be copied, whether he/she manages such decisions themselves or contracts with an agent to do it for them, as well as a number of other related aspects.

The vast majority of authors and composers require that a charge is made if their scripts or scores are bought and/or copied, and that a licence is issued for each performance of their play or musical.

The payment made for the issue of a licence is known as a royalty.

The rule on that is that you can use any gender of actor to play a role, but you cannot change the portrayed sex of a character in a play without permission.

Most of our playwrights are happy to consider requests such as this as, for example, they realise the difficulty of finding male actors. However, they generally want to ensure that no unintended consequences occur, nor would there be any risk to the integrity of their work by making such a change.

Please contact us with a detailed request and we'll check with the playwright for you.

Yes, they do. The UK is a signatory to the Berne Convention which is an agreement between 167 countries of the world (inc UK, USA, Australia, Canada, South Africa, New Zealand, and all EU countries) to recognise the copyright of works of authors from other signatory countries, and to treat those works in the same way as it treats the copyright of its own citizens.

There are 193 member states of the United Nations, so it’s highly likely that your country is a signatory to the Berne Convention, and as such, protection against copyright infringement, will be in force.

The vast majority of amateur, professional and educational producing organisations respect the author’s copyright and they purchase scripts and performing licences for their productions. Nevertheless, despite our policy of affordable prices, it is regrettable that a small minority feel it is acceptable practice to purchase a single script, photocopy that script and then put on a production without obtaining a performing licence.

In such cases, there can be no other reasonable conclusion than that this is a deliberate act of copyright infringement as the first page of every script we sell clearly states the rules that apply.In cases of copyright infringement, amateur drama group officers (Director, Producer, Treasurer, Secretary and Chairperson) or school teachers, or professional producers, may be held personally liable for damages.

Stagescripts Ltd will fulfil our obligation to our client writers to protect their copyright, including taking court action in cases of clear copyright infringement.

When you buy a downloadable e-script, it is licensed for your personal use only – you can read it, but you cannot copy it and use those copies to rehearse the play or panto.

If you want to rehearse, you can either ask everybody else in the cast to buy a copy of the e-script to use at rehearsals, or, in the name of your producing organisation, you can buy a Script Copying Licence which allows that organisation to make a sufficient quantity of copies to satisfy the needs of rehearsals (generally your cast) and performances (generally your crew and prompt).

The licence is issued to a production organisation (amateur group/school/producer etc) and it allows that organisation, or members/employees of that organisation, to make a sufficient quantity of copies to allow rehearsals (for actors etc) and performances (for prompt/crew/lighting etc) to take place.

You many not make copies to sell, or to give away to other organisations or to individuals who are not members or employees.

It’s valid forever, so if you decide to produce the show again, then as long as you keep the e-script pdf file, you’ll be all set for making copies of the script for that future production.

Remember though, that even though you may have a continuing licence to copy, you MUST obtain a licence to perform for EACH performance given in the future.

On the left side of the screen you’ll find those three types of show in our ‘Categories’ list, which we’ve then divided into a number of sub-categories.

For plays we show Full Length (two or three acts) and One Act split into Comedy, Drama etc and for musicals we show Fully Developed or Awaiting Development split again into Comedy, Drama etc.

For pantomimes we display the scripts by Author, and also by Title.

You can do this in several ways.

EITHER you can print out the e-mailed pdf quotation we sent you and then, having signed it, send it back to us with one of our suitable methods of payment (See our FAQ: ‘What Methods Of Payment Can I Use?’)

OR you can pay online at our website (in which case you don’t need to send the form back). To use this method look on the left hand side of the screen in the Categories box where you’ll see Pay Royalties. Click/Press this and you get to the Pay Royalties page that has three options: ‘In Advance’, ‘Video Licence’ and ‘Closing’. Select ‘In Advance’ and follow the instructions carefully. If you initialled the Videography Royalties box, please add the ‘In Advance’ amount to your basket, then go back and add the ‘Video Licence’ amount to your basket and make the payment.

For Plays and Pantomimes - you should make sure you have the rights to stage the play or panto no later than four weeks prior to the first performance, however it is quite possible that between asking for a formal quotation and the point at which you pay the royalties we have to either restrict a title (no licences are currently being issued), or it becomes unavailable to you for other reasons (possibly a competing production close to yours in either time or distance. We recommend therefore that royalties are paid immediately after auditions or before rehearsals start.

For Musicals - You should pay the advance royalties as soon as you have decided to proceed with a production. On receipt of the advance payment we will issue you with a licence that contractually binds you to pay the balance no later than 21 days after your last performance. We will not release any scripts, libretti, vocal scores or orchestrations until the advance royalties have been paid.

We accept offline payments by cheque (UK Customers only) and by bank transfer. We also have bank accounts that accept local currency bank transfers in Australia (in AUD), Canada (in CAD), in EU Countries (In EUR), in New Zealand (in NZD) and the USA (in USD).

Another quick and easy way to pay is to use a debit or credit card and place an order on our website. We offer two payment options there: WorldPay and Paypal – both of which use highly secure transaction methods. (If you use this method, please read the instructions carefully before proceeding).

Go to the 'Apply For Royalties Quotation' page on our website (top menu) and complete a form for each venue that you will be performing at (right up to the finals if you want). We'll then send you a combined quotation/application for each one. You then 'cash' these in by paying the royalties for each round you enter. If you're not successful at any round, then you simply discard the unused quotations.

Yes it does. The Copyright Act applies to all educational establishments, just as it does to amateur dramatic and musical societies, community theatres, professional producers and theatres, businesses and the general public.

Where a college or university has a student drama club, then that is classed as amateur for licensing purposes.

Yes it does, with a few exceptions. The Copyright Act allows an exception to paying royalties if a performance is given within an educational establishment by students for students and/or staff (or for a visiting examiner) as long as there are no parents or other invited members of the public in the audience.

To learn more about copying licences, please visit the UK CS website here

If you have any further questions, please don't hesitate to get in touch here.

Yes. Many of our musicals have backing tracks that can be used for rehearsals and/or performances.

Yes there is one.

If your school performs a coprighted play or musical and no parents are admitted (ie it's a student-to-student production) then no royalties are payable.

This applies whether it's an in-class workshop performance, or as a full on-stage performance.  Parent 'helpers' or anybody who is not a student nor a member of the school staff are classed as the general public making performances they attend a public performance for which royalties are payable.

Yes it does. The UK Copyright Act is recognised in and applies to all educational establishments in the USA and Canada, just as it does to amateur dramatic and musical societies, community theatres, professional producers and theatres, businesses and the general public.

Where a college or university has a student drama club, then that is classed as amateur for licensing purposes.

Yes, of course. We’re an international company and we regularly sell and licence our shows to USA, Canada, South Africa, Australia and New Zealand – pretty much anywhere where English is the country’s first language.

The process works best like this:

1. Get a royalties quotation for each title here on our website
2. If the royalty fees are OK, buy a full e-script for each title, and make sure that the content of the play is acceptable for your school.
3. If it is, then pay the royalties for each title, and buy a script copying licence for each title.

This all requires a number of payments and by far the easiest way to do that is by credit/debit card on our website. If your school has a 'corporate' purchasing card then they can be tasked to make the transaction, but check first that the card is approved by the issuer for international purchases. If your school doesn't have that facility, then they may be prepared to let you make the purchases on your personal card and claim the money back as 'expenses incurred'.

The other, more old-fashioned, but still very acceptable way, is to get a check written in British Pounds from your bank (or the school's bank) and payable to Stagescripts Ltd, and send that to us in the mail. It's slower, and involves more effort, but sometime the old-fashioned ways work better than hi-tech ones!

A virtual performance is one in which the actors do not appear together on a conventional theatre stage but are generally in one or more physically separate locations to the audience. These performances are shown to the audience on social media sites (eg Facebook/Messenger Rooms or WhatsApp) or using video conferencing software (eg Zoom, Skype, Google Meet) or where individually each character’s part is recorded and edited together to form a composite video and then uploaded to a website or a social media platform (eg YouTube or Vimeo).

NOTE: a Virtual Performance licence is completely different to our separately available ‘Videography Licence’ or ‘Licence To Record’ which is available only as a supplementary licence to a traditional licensed performance where the actors and audience share the same theatre space.

There are four…

• a ‘closed user group’ audience where the performance is ephemeral (ie not recorded) and in which each member of the video conference audience has a strong connection to the performers; generally, this is through membership of the same producing organisation as the performers, and generally again, no fee or priced ticket will be charged or sold. An example of this would be a performance using Zoom.
• a ‘closed user group’ audience where the performance is recorded and uploaded to a website or social media site where the access is limited to those persons with a strong connection to the performers; generally, this is through membership of the same producing organisation as the performers, and generally again, no fee or priced ticket will be charged or sold. An example of this would be a recording uploaded to YouTube with its ‘Visibility’ set to ‘Private’.
• a ‘live stream’ audience where the performance is ephemeral and is, within the constraints of the digital delivery mechanism, seen by the audience at exactly the same time as the actors deliver their lines. Members of this audience may or may not be members of the general public and the producing organisation may or may not charge this audience a fee to watch the performance.
• an ‘uploaded video’ audience where each member of the audience can choose when to watch the video during the period that it is available to them on the internet file sharing platform. Members of this audience may or may not be members of the general public and the producing organisation may or may not charge this audience a fee to watch the performance.

There are four, to match the audience types above, as follows…

• a Zoom-type ‘closed user group’ licence: this will be for a single Virtual Performance only, with the caveat that no recording is made of the performance whatsoever. If the closed user group consists solely of...
• actors playing the parts in a play or panto together with the director (ie a virtual rehearsal), OR
• a play reading committee

... then no royalties will be charged, and a licence is not required. However, if any other persons with strong connections to the performers (ie any members not directly involved in the Virtual Performance) are included in the video conference audience then royalties will be charged, and a licence is required as this is the virtual equivalent of an attended rehearsal. The royalties charged will be approximately 10% of the standard licence fee.

• a YouTube-type ‘closed user group’ licence: this will be for a single Virtual Performance only, with the caveat that visibility of the recording is not allowed to any person not being a member of the producing organisation. Under this arrangement no royalties will be charged, and a licence is not required.
• a ‘live stream’ licence: this may be for multiple Virtual Performances (either to match the quantity of on-stage performances given or a subset of those, or entirely stand-alone with no on-stage performances) and will be subject to a per performance licence fee of between 33.3% and 50% of the standard licence to perform fee. Again with the caveat that no recording is made of the performance whatsoever.
• an ‘uploaded video’ licence: this will be subject to a licence fee of approximately 50% of the standard licence to perform fee if the audience pays to watch, or approximately 25% if there is no charge to watch. Additionally, producing organisations may request a period during which the Virtual Performance may remain available to the audience to watch. The above royalty rate will apply to each performance day within the requested period, which may not exceed 7 (seven) days.

If you have a free Preview Script then this may be printed and copied, or the pdf file distributed, for use by any of the active participants in the Virtual Performance.

If you have a free Perusal Script, then given that it says, 'not for rehearsal use', it may not be used in the Virtual Performance. Please contact us for further details.

Our full e-scripts (and our traditional printed scripts) are licensed for use solely by the person who buys them, so if you want to use an e-script (or a traditional printed script) for a 'live stream' or an 'uploaded' Virtual Performance, then a Script Copying Licence is required. Licensed copies made of the e-script or e-script pdf file or printed script may only be provided to the active participants in the Virtual Performance. 

Where a 'Closed User Group' performance that is not an 'attended rehearsal' takes place, we will, until further notice, waive the need to obtain a script copying licence.

Not a problem. Using exits and entrances, together with stage directions and props, sets and scenery may all need some modification to suit the constraints of a Virtual Performance. All of the three licences above will include a clause that allows the Director to amend the script as he/she thinks fit in order to suit the particular needs of their Virtual Performance(s). We would expect these amendments to involve as few changes to the dialogue as possible and to be undertaken in a sensitive manner.

Yes! If a producing organisation obtains a ‘live stream’ or an ‘uploaded video’ licence during the COVID lockdown, AND they request a royalties quotation that results in a Licence To Perform for a live stage production in a conventional theatre space being issued for at least two performances once the rules governing such spaces due to the COVID pandemic are lifted, then the Virtual Performance fees will be refunded as a ‘thank you’ from us and from the play or panto’s writer.