The Dramatists Guild Inclusion Rider, the first of its kind, is a tool for DG members who choose to use it to advocate for full inclusion in the hiring of personnel in productions of their plays and musicals at theatres of any size, in any location. We’re also rolling out a series of webinars to show you what we mean, and to help you understand how you might choose to implement this living document into your negotiations with producers.
The Dramatists Guild Inclusion Rider - Free Download
As part of its commitment to fostering a diverse, equitable, inclusive, accessible, and anti-racist industry, the Guild has crafted a new and groundbreaking Inclusion Rider as a resource to support all dramatists and producers who have a desire to exercise these principles in the hiring of personnel involved in their productions.
The Inclusion Rider is intended to facilitate a conversation between playwright, composer, lyricist, or librettist and the producer about equitable hiring practices. For those dramatists who choose to use the rider, we strongly recommend you broach the subject of diverse, equitable and inclusive hiring with producers before sending them any contract language, in order to explore the possibilities of collaborating with them to address these concerns. This discussion can be awkward and uncomfortable, but if you approach producers in an open and collegial manner, it could prove to work to your mutual benefit.
The Dramatists Guild aims to impact the field, which is why we've made our new Inclusion Rider free for everyone to download and available to all.
Questions? Feel free to contact our Business Affairs Department via the Help Desk.
DG Guide for Dramatists: The Art of Negotiating Theatre Contracts
We know it can feel daunting to negotiate with a producer, theatre, or school that wants to produce your play or musical. But it is important to advocate for yourself, to ensure that you receive the treatment that all playwrights, composers, lyricists, and librettists deserve. If you go into your negotiation with a clear, well-researched understanding of your rights and a fully developed sense of your expectations and wants, you’ll be able to approach the process as a collaborative conversation, rather than an intimidating ordeal.
Our new guide on The Art of Negotiating Theatre Contracts will ensure that you know your rights as a dramatist, that you understand the current market (including how new media has impacted the industry), and that you recognize what employees get vs. what you get in a negotiation.
In addition, to address your diversity, equity, and inclusion needs, we recommend beginning the negotiation process with a pre-contract conversation that focuses on the sharing and aligning of values between the dramatist and the theatre. If inclusion is a priority for you, know that you have the right to assert your own vision when it comes to choosing the cast and creative team. Finally, we also offer up ten helpful questions to ask yourself at the start of a negotiation and we explain the power of "No."
Webinar - Reaching Agreement: How to Present and Defend the Inclusion Rider
We're excited to present a series of Inclusion webinars in tandem with the release of our new Inclusion Rider. Last month, Chisa Hutchinson and Christine Toy Johnson led a discussion on How to Tell If a Theatre Company Is Inclusive Enough for You. Recently, Todd London and Emily Mann spoke about How to Advocate for Inclusion in Person. Next up, Ralph Sevush and Amy von Macek will show you how to present and defend the Guild's new inclusion rider!
November 9, 2021
Co-Facilitators: Ralph Sevush, Amy Von Macek
Panelists: Rhiana Yazzie, Di Glazer (ICM), Sade Lythcott (Nation Black Theatre), Amrita Ramanan (The Playwrights' Center)
Eastern Time: 6pm - 7:30pm
Central Time: 5pm - 6:30pm
Mountain Time: 4pm - 5:30pm
Pacific Time: 3pm - 4:30pm
At this webinar, facilitators will walk participants through the Inclusion Rider, and panelists will share personal anecdotes that illustrate potential obstacles to inclusive hiring, along with suggestions for ways of working through these challenges. The discussion will be followed by interactive role-play to give participants the practice they need to swim upstream of exclusionary convention. A Q&A will also take place.
