Dogs got to bark, a mule’s got to bray.
Soldiers must fight and preachers must pray.
And children, I guess, must get their own way
The minute that you say no.
Why did the kids pour jam on the cat?
Raspberry jam all over the cat?
Why should the kids do something like that,
When all that we said was no?
Today, the licensing group for the upcoming production of Harold Pinter’s “The Room” made an interesting request demand of The Wooster Group, who is presenting the show at REDCAT in downtown L.A. from Feb. 4 to 14. Their request, as the Wooster Group relayed to critics in an email (and which Bitter Lemons reported):
On January 11, 2016, Samuel French instructed the Group that all promotion and reviews of the production would be forbidden. The Group appealed this decision, and Samuel French subsequently lifted the restriction on promoting the production, but informed the Group that the restriction on reviews will remain in place. Samuel French’s licensing agreement states that “There may be absolutely No reviews of this production; e.g. newspaper, website posts etc.” The Group was also informed that they could not currently receive permission for future performances of the production being planned in New York City and Paris.
Guess what, Samuel French. I’m not a critic. I’m a blogger. Further, I’m the one that dictates the content on my website — no one else. I’m not writing the post on Facebook or another site with a Terms of Service. I run my own WordPress installation.
However, I’m not posting a review of the show, only because my weekends are already filled during its run. So I’m doing the next best thing. Go here. Buy tickets. Then take Colin up on his offer and send him your review to post. The ability of an audience member to share their opinion of a show should never be stifled. [However, it might be qualified — so if you do see a preview or a work-in-progress — please qualify your opinion.]
Sure as the June comes right after May!
Sure as the night comes right after day!
You can be sure the devil’s to pay
The minute that you say no.
Make sure you never say…
No!
[Lyrics: “Never Say No”, The Fantastiks]
I wonder if any judge would uphold Samuel French’s apparent legal theory that a “gag order” they included in the license to the Wooster Group is somehow binding on everyone who sees the show. Did French order the Wooster Group to make every audience member sign a nondisclosure agreement not to review or even discuss the show with anyone as a condition of admission? Either way, the gag order seems impractical and unenforceable, not to mention unconscionable. I hope lots of people do take the producer up on his offer. I don’t believe either Samuel French or the Pinter Estate have any legal basis to enforce a gag order against audience members.