Writer’s Block opened on March 14, 2008 at the Studio Theatre at Vertigo Theatres in Calgary, produced by Ground Zero Theatre and Hit & Myth Productions. It was the first test-case publication for B House Publications, a small press I started with my friend Michael J Finner.
It’s a dramatization of a real life situation. While I was Playwright in Residence at Alberta Theatre Projects, the Epcor Centre (where ATP is a resident company) arranged for group benefits for all the employees. After some discussion, I was allowed to join under the job description of playwright. This was significant because we did have the option to apply for long-term disability payments if we could no longer perform our job. I figured all I had to do was fake having writer’s block and I could be supported for life.
This play is a dramatization of that “what-if” situation. With a further what-if: what if, after being approved for benefits, I had written a play.
The play is very autobiographical. Some people liked that, some people didn’t. I think it’s very funny. It has subsequently been produced one other time by a company in the city of Yorkton, Saskatchewan.
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