About This Site

Blackberry Productions Resource Desk is a small reference site for people producing theater at the community, school, and small-nonprofit scale in the United States. It exists because the practical side of putting on a play — performance rights, copyright registration, nonprofit status, grants, budgeting, and who does what backstage — is scattered across dozens of official sources, and most volunteer producers do not know where to start looking.

Each guide answers one concrete question and links to the primary sources: the U.S. Copyright Office for registration, the IRS for tax-exempt status, the National Endowment for the Arts and municipal agencies for grants, and field organizations like Theatre Communications Group, the Dramatists Guild, and the Educational Theatre Association for professional practice.

An honest note on what this site is: the pages here are reviewed reference material, written to explain how these processes work in general terms. They are not legal, tax, or professional advice. Licensing terms, tax rules, and grant requirements all turn on details specific to your situation, so before you sign a contract, file with the IRS, or commit a budget, confirm the specifics with the licensing house, agency, or professional involved. We try to make that next call easier, not to replace it.