http://matthewfreeman.blogspot.com/
"We have no paucity of good young playwrights, and
good older playwrights; we don't have the happiest
environment for them to work in. Like in the art world
and in literature, the theater's just as trendy, as
dangerous and corrupt. The big problem is the
assumption that writing a play is a collaborative act.
It isn't. It's a creative act, and then other people
come in. The interpretation should be for the accuracy
of what the playwright wrote. Playwrights are expected
to have their text changed by actors they never
wanted. Directors seem to feel they are as creative as
the playwright. Most of these changes are for
commercial reasons. I know a lot about it because I'm
on the council of the Dramatists Guild, but of course
the pressures are on all of us. I'm in the lucky
position where I just say, 'Go fuck yourself; if you
don't want to do the play I wrote, do another play.'
The forces of darkness would back down if everybody
said that."
