The (Re)Making Project
Charles Mee is a one-of-a-kind playwright. Few other playwrights of our time write in the way he does. Mee has said, “There is no such thing as an original play” (C. Mee). Every story that exists has been told before and we will continue to retell these stories. Mee feels that oftentimes playwrights feel that they’ve created something new and unique, but truthfully they’ve taken the idea from somewhere else in their life. He further explains, “And sometimes some of us write about our own innermost lives, believing that, then, we have written something truly original and unique. But, of course, the culture writes us first, and then we write our stories.” His views have allowed him to create pieces that are entirely remade from other sources with his own creative adaptations.
Charles Mee takes inspiration from dozens of different sources: sometimes from a Greek play or sometimes from a past lover. These pieces allow him to create something of a collage. It’s a story that’s been told before, but he is telling it in his own way. Mee has chosen to make his plays free to allow others to take from his work as he has taken from others. He has essentially put his plays into the public domain, while he is still alive. Mee stated in an interview with his daughter Erin Mee, “So it’s an open system of participating in the culture that’s bigger than you are that you sort of give yourself to, and that you understand you don’t control” (E. Mee). He has given up control of his plays completely.
He offers his plays to not only be read but to be altered and changed by any artists who pleases. If a play resembles his quite closely he would appreciate credit, otherwise artists are free to do with his work what they desire. He instructs us to “pillage the plays as I have pillaged the structures and contents of the plays of Euripides and Brecht and stuff out of Soap Opera Digest and the evening news and the internet, and build your own, entirely new, piece—and then, please, put your own name to the work that results” (C. Mee). Some choose to create their own performances building off Mee’s; others simply accept the opportunity for free access to his plays.
Of course not everyone agrees with Mee’s views on copyright and artistic ownership. David Wohl, Dean of the College of arts and Humanities at West Virginia State University, shared his experience with a group of publishers in his article “The Curious Case of Charles Mee: ‘Feel Free to Take the Plays from this Website.’” During the Southeastern Theatre Conference (SETC) of 2009 an audience member brought up Charles Mee during a “Meet the Publishers” workshop:
There was a moment of silence as publishers looked at one another and collectively rolled their eyes. Finally, one of the publishers replied: “Well, he’s probably the only playwright in American that makes all of his plays available for free--and we really don’t have anything to do with him.” (Wohl)
Not everyone agrees with Mee’s choices but Mee continues to spread his plays through the world. His plays are downloaded a hundred times a day (E. Mee). Despite the varying opinions of his work, it is undoubtedly radical and changing theatre.
Bibliography
Mee, Charles. "About the Project." Charles Mee. Charles Mee, n.d.
Mee, Erin B. "Shattered and Fucked Up and Full Of Wreckage: The Words and Works of Charles L. Mee." TDR: The Drama Review 46.3 (2002): 83-104. International Bibliography of Theatre & Dance with Full Text. Web.
Wohl, David. "The Curious Case Of Charles Mee 'Feel Free To Take The Plays From This Website'." Southern Theatre 50.4 (2009): 14-15. International Bibliography of Theatre & Dance with Full Text. Web.
Charles Mee takes inspiration from dozens of different sources: sometimes from a Greek play or sometimes from a past lover. These pieces allow him to create something of a collage. It’s a story that’s been told before, but he is telling it in his own way. Mee has chosen to make his plays free to allow others to take from his work as he has taken from others. He has essentially put his plays into the public domain, while he is still alive. Mee stated in an interview with his daughter Erin Mee, “So it’s an open system of participating in the culture that’s bigger than you are that you sort of give yourself to, and that you understand you don’t control” (E. Mee). He has given up control of his plays completely.
He offers his plays to not only be read but to be altered and changed by any artists who pleases. If a play resembles his quite closely he would appreciate credit, otherwise artists are free to do with his work what they desire. He instructs us to “pillage the plays as I have pillaged the structures and contents of the plays of Euripides and Brecht and stuff out of Soap Opera Digest and the evening news and the internet, and build your own, entirely new, piece—and then, please, put your own name to the work that results” (C. Mee). Some choose to create their own performances building off Mee’s; others simply accept the opportunity for free access to his plays.
Of course not everyone agrees with Mee’s views on copyright and artistic ownership. David Wohl, Dean of the College of arts and Humanities at West Virginia State University, shared his experience with a group of publishers in his article “The Curious Case of Charles Mee: ‘Feel Free to Take the Plays from this Website.’” During the Southeastern Theatre Conference (SETC) of 2009 an audience member brought up Charles Mee during a “Meet the Publishers” workshop:
There was a moment of silence as publishers looked at one another and collectively rolled their eyes. Finally, one of the publishers replied: “Well, he’s probably the only playwright in American that makes all of his plays available for free--and we really don’t have anything to do with him.” (Wohl)
Not everyone agrees with Mee’s choices but Mee continues to spread his plays through the world. His plays are downloaded a hundred times a day (E. Mee). Despite the varying opinions of his work, it is undoubtedly radical and changing theatre.
Bibliography
Mee, Charles. "About the Project." Charles Mee. Charles Mee, n.d.
Mee, Erin B. "Shattered and Fucked Up and Full Of Wreckage: The Words and Works of Charles L. Mee." TDR: The Drama Review 46.3 (2002): 83-104. International Bibliography of Theatre & Dance with Full Text. Web.
Wohl, David. "The Curious Case Of Charles Mee 'Feel Free To Take The Plays From This Website'." Southern Theatre 50.4 (2009): 14-15. International Bibliography of Theatre & Dance with Full Text. Web.