Dr Luke McDonagh's new book Performing Copyright: Law, Theatre and Authorship (Hart, 2021) is now published. Based on empirical research, this innovative book explores issues of performativity and authorship in the theatre world under copyright law and addresses several inter-connected questions: who is the author and first owner of a dramatic work? Who gets the credit and the licensing rights? What rights do the performers of the work have? Given the nature of theatre as a medium reliant on the re-use of prior existing works, tropes, themes and plots, what happens if an allegation of copyright infringement is made against a playwright? Furthermore, who possesses moral rights over the work?
Dr McDonagh will also discuss the book's themes and key case studies in a series of blogposts, available here.