Performing Rights Terms and Conditions
By licensing and performing a Nick Hern Books play you accept and agree to be bound by the terms and provisions of this agreement.
The terms laid out in Sections 1-9 of this agreement apply to all performances. The terms laid out in Section 10 of this agreement apply to online performances only.
If you have any questions about anything included in our Terms and Conditions, please email the Performing Rights Department at rights@nickhernbooks.co.uk.
- Privacy and personal information
- Payment
- Your licence
- Changes to your licence
- The text
- Scripts
- Marketing and advertising
- Recording and filming
- Music and lyrics
- Online performances
1. Privacy and personal information
The personal information we require from you, as well as details of the company performing this play, is used to process your application or to make enquiries on your behalf. We retain this information in order to contact you regarding your enquiry or licence, to supply you with any licence we may subsequently issue, and as a record of your application. We will not pass on this information to any third party, other than as required for the purposes of issuing a licence.
You can check what details we hold for you by contacting the Performing Rights Department, and can ask for those details to be amended or, after the period covered by the licence, removed from our system.
2. Payment
Once we have confirmed the play's availability for performance, we will email you to ask for confirmation of your production details and invite you to request an invoice for your licence fee. Once requested, your invoice must be paid within thirty days from the date on which it is issued. Your production is only considered 'licensed’ once this payment has been made. Please do not announce, advertise, cast or rehearse your production until you have paid your invoice.
Payment must be made in pounds sterling. Payment can be made by card (online or over the phone), bank transfer, PayPal invoice, or cheque. You must quote your invoice number when making payment. Please do not make payment before receiving an invoice as you must quote your invoice number as your payment reference.
Once we have received your payment, you will be sent the licence for your production by email. If you have made payment but not received the receipt ahead of your first performance or broadcast date, please contact the Performing Rights Department.
3. Your licence
Amateur performing rights are non-exclusive.
The availability of performing rights for this play are guaranteed to you only once you have paid your invoice for the licence fee. Any restrictions that are later placed on the availability of the performing rights for this play will not affect your licensed production if payment has already been made. Please note this guarantee of availability will no longer apply if you subsequently request changes to the licence (see Section 4 of this agreement for further information).
For the avoidance of doubt, any performing rights granted are personal to you, the Licensee, who shall not be entitled to authorise third-party performance, broadcast, streaming or hosting of the production. All rights not specifically referred to herein are reserved to Nick Hern Books on behalf of the author.
4. Changes to your licence
You must immediately inform the Performing Rights Department of any changes to your licence, including a change in venue, dates, or number of performances or broadcast days. Please note that this may affect the availability of performing rights for this play. We cannot guarantee that your revised proposed production will be approved, even if payment for the licence fee has already been made.
If you need to cancel your production and terminate your licence, you can do so at any time prior to the date of your first performance or broadcast date and receive a refund in one of the following ways:
- a credit note for the full value of your licence, which can be redeemed against a future production
- a refund via bank transfer, for the value of your licence minus a £30 administration fee
If your production has already started and you need to cancel one or more performances, you can do so and receive the equivalent refund via the methods listed above.
If you also need to return a cast set of scripts purchased directly from Nick Hern Books, please arrange this by emailing info@nickhernbooks.co.uk. Please note that ebooks and PDF scripts and scores are non-refundable.
5. The text
The text of the play may not be altered in any way. The play should be performed as written in the published playtext. If you wish to make any cuts or changes to the script, please contact the Performing Rights Department as soon as possible, as changes may need to be referred to the author or the author’s agent for approval in advance of the first performance or broadcast date. We cannot guarantee that requested cuts or changes will be approved.
6. Scripts
Copies of the script must be purchased for each member of the cast, crew and creative team involved in the production. Reproducing scripts by any means, including photocopying, is illegal. Please note that a subscription to an online library such as Drama Online does not exempt you from the requirement to purchase a copy of the script for each person involved in the production.
Please contact the Performing Rights Department if you require more information.
7. Marketing and advertising
The term ‘marketing material’ here refers to print or digital posters and flyers, video or audio trailers and previews, website listings, and theatre or festival programmes.
Any and all marketing material for your performance must include the following:
- The title of the play
- The words ‘by arrangement with Nick Hern Books’
- The amateur status of the production
Any and all marketing material for your performance must also include the following, in lettering no smaller than and in type no less bold than the name(s) of any other person or company:
- The author(s) of the play
- The translator(s) of the play, where appropriate
- The composer(s) of the music for the play, where appropriate
If a listing for your production is subject to a character limit, as in the Edinburgh Festival Fringe Programme for example, please contact the Performing Rights Department for advice on meeting these requirements.
8. Recording and filming
You are permitted to make an audio or video recording of your rehearsals or performance, however, sharing of this material is restricted as per the following terms.
No more than a total of three minutes of audio or video recording of your rehearsals or performance may be shared publicly for marketing purposes. This material must adhere to the terms laid out in Section 7 of this agreement.
Any audio or video recording of your rehearsals or performance exceeding three minutes must be for private archive purposes only, unless you have acquired the online performing rights. This material must not be made publicly available and it must not be sold or passed on to a third party.
If you wish to share any audio or video recording of your rehearsals or performance exceeding three minutes, you must acquire the online performing rights for this play. Please consult our Online Performances page for further information.
9. Music and lyrics
Music and lyrics printed in the playtext
The rights to perform music or lyrics printed in full in the published playtext are not necessarily included in your licence. Please contact the Performing Rights Department to enquire about these rights.
Music and lyrics to accompany the playtext
In your confirmation email you will be informed if there is optional original music and lyrics to accompany the play. The rights to perform any such music and lyrics are not included in your licence to perform the script only. Please contact the Performing Rights Department to enquire about these rights.
Music or lyrics suggested in the playtext
The rights to perform music or lyrics suggested in the published playtext – for example, when a song title is written in the stage directions, but the lyrics are not printed in the script – are not included in your licence and are not held by Nick Hern Books. You will be responsible for clearance of copyright and payment of fees required for the use of any such music and lyrics in connection with your production. Please enquire with your performance venue or contact PRS For Music.
All other music or lyrics
You will be responsible for clearance of copyright and payment of fees required for the use of any other music and lyrics in connection with your production. Please enquire with your performance venue or contact PRS For Music.
10. Online performances
Please note that the terms below apply to online performances only.
The play can be performed or made available for viewing via an online platform (e.g. Zoom, YouTube, Vimeo, etc.). It must be password-protected or accessible only via a private link. It is up to you whether to charge for viewing or not, however, it cannot be freely available for anyone to view without some sorts of limits/protections in place.
The production may be livestreamed for an agreed number of performances, or recorded and made available to view for a limited number of days on an online platform.
Any recording of the production cannot be distributed or broadcast again at a later date, or on dates other than those for which have been licensed. For each day the recording remains online outside of the licensed dates, an additional licence fee will be charged. The recording must not be sold, shared or passed to a third party. The ability for your audience to download or record performances must be disabled.
The link to view the production must be shared privately with the Nick Hern Books Performing Rights Department ahead of the first performance or broadcast date.
While you are permitted to advertise your online production, you must not publicly share the link to view the production. The link to view the production must only be provided privately to attendees (e.g. via email, private message, private Facebook group, private Facebook event, etc.).
It is your responsibility to ensure that anyone with whom you privately invite to view the online performance does not share the link or password to view the performance publicly, or embed the video elsewhere, and to make them aware of these restrictions.