Broadway Urinetown's ass is getting sued
Broadway Urinetown's ass is getting sued
jasobres
Broadway Legend Joined: 5/9/05
#1Broadway Urinetown's ass is getting sued
Posted: 12/11/06 at 4:14pmhttp://www.playbill.com/news/article/104140.html
"Ev'ry-buddy wants ta get into de act!"
- Jimmy Durante
"Breathe from your hoo-hoo."
-Kristin Chenoweth
#1re: Broadway Urinetown's ass is getting sued
Posted: 12/11/06 at 4:19pmWell, Pask and McDevitt are talented guys, but the rest of them really deserve this. They haven't done anything good SINCE Urinetown and probably never will again.
#2broadway urinetown's ass is getting sued
Posted: 12/11/06 at 4:46pminteresting. jen cody worked carousel. so the original production's getting sued by two regional productions. anybody have any historical knowledge of these kinds of cases? are there any precedents?
r.i.p. marco, my guardian angel.
...global warming can manifest itself as heat, cool, precipitation, storms, drought, wind, or any other phenomenon, much like a shapeshifter. -- jim geraghty
pray to st. jude
i'm a sonic reducer
he was the gimmicky sort
fenchurch=mejusthavingfun=magwildwood=mmousefan=bkcollector=bradmajors=somethingtotalkabout: the fenchurch mpd collective
...global warming can manifest itself as heat, cool, precipitation, storms, drought, wind, or any other phenomenon, much like a shapeshifter. -- jim geraghty
pray to st. jude
i'm a sonic reducer
he was the gimmicky sort
fenchurch=mejusthavingfun=magwildwood=mmousefan=bkcollector=bradmajors=somethingtotalkabout: the fenchurch mpd collective
teddyp2
Chorus Member Joined: 6/19/05
#3broadway urinetown's ass is getting sued
Posted: 12/11/06 at 5:02pm
ROCK ON CHICAGO!!
I just wish the Fringe Director would sue, that would be AMAZING!!
Fosse76
Broadway Legend Joined: 3/21/05
#4broadway urinetown's ass is getting sued
Posted: 12/11/06 at 5:13pm
"interesting. jen cody worked carousel. so the original production's getting sued by two regional productions. anybody have any historical knowledge of these kinds of cases? are there any precedents?"
They are suing for a declaratory judgment, which essentially means they are asking for a judge to declare that their productions have not broken any copyright laws. Companies do this all the time. By doing this, they can refute the claims that they "stole" from the original designs. Since direction and lighting design are not copyrightable (the script said "enter stage left"; our light was aqua-marine, not teal, etc.), the only questionable aspect is set and costumes (and choreography). Since those apsects of a show are generally owned by the original producer, it will be up to the judge to determine whether or not the claims made against the regional teams have merit. Also, it would pre-empt the original team should they decide to sue.
teddyp2
Chorus Member Joined: 6/19/05
#5broadway urinetown's ass is getting sued
Posted: 12/11/06 at 5:19pm
very interesting...i think it would be great if Little Sally had to take the stand in full costume and wig and Officer Lockstock would be there holding the swear in Bible!
#6broadway urinetown's ass is getting sued
Posted: 12/11/06 at 5:22pm
OooOoOoh, how the tables have turned.
I'm so tired of lawsuits.
#7broadway urinetown's ass is getting sued
Posted: 12/11/06 at 5:25pmare there any notable cases in the (wait for it) broadway world?
r.i.p. marco, my guardian angel.
...global warming can manifest itself as heat, cool, precipitation, storms, drought, wind, or any other phenomenon, much like a shapeshifter. -- jim geraghty
pray to st. jude
i'm a sonic reducer
he was the gimmicky sort
fenchurch=mejusthavingfun=magwildwood=mmousefan=bkcollector=bradmajors=somethingtotalkabout: the fenchurch mpd collective
...global warming can manifest itself as heat, cool, precipitation, storms, drought, wind, or any other phenomenon, much like a shapeshifter. -- jim geraghty
pray to st. jude
i'm a sonic reducer
he was the gimmicky sort
fenchurch=mejusthavingfun=magwildwood=mmousefan=bkcollector=bradmajors=somethingtotalkabout: the fenchurch mpd collective
#8broadway urinetown's ass is getting sued
Posted: 12/11/06 at 5:28pm
Do you think that this is going to cause a problem with local productions? I'm Supposed to be in one in April?
Updated On: 12/11/06 at 05:28 PM
teddyp2
Chorus Member Joined: 6/19/05
#9broadway urinetown's ass is getting sued
Posted: 12/11/06 at 5:31pmJust reset your entire production in town where there is too much water and you should be fine.
#10broadway urinetown's ass is getting sued
Posted: 12/11/06 at 5:45pm
Hey Fosse76
The Broadway team can still sue them right?
#11broadway urinetown's ass is getting sued
Posted: 12/11/06 at 5:56pmI'm interested in seeing pictures of the productions for comparison sake.
Don't you wanna be the life of the party?
TheatreDiva90016
Broadway Legend Joined: 4/10/04
#12broadway urinetown's ass is getting sued
Posted: 12/11/06 at 5:59pm
We've already been chatting at length about this...
https://forum.broadwayworld.com/readmessage.cfm?boardname=bway&thread=917234#2674294https://forum.broadwayworld.com/readmessage.cfm?boardname=bway&thread=917234#2674294
https://forum.broadwayworld.com/readmessage.cfm?boardname=bway&thread=919265#2674034
https://forum.broadwayworld.com/readmessage.cfm?boardname=bway&thread=917234#2674294https://forum.broadwayworld.com/readmessage.cfm?boardname=bway&thread=917234#2674294
"TheatreDiva90016 - another good reason to frequent these boards less."<<>>
“I hesitate to give this line of discussion the validation it so desperately craves by perpetuating it, but the light from logic is getting further and further away with your every successive post.” <<>>
-whatever2
#13broadway urinetown's ass is getting sued
Posted: 12/11/06 at 7:39pm
Variety reports even more:
Chicago team fights back
'Urinetown' creatives file lawsuit
By GORDON COX
The creative team of the recent Chicago production of "Urinetown" is firing back against its Gotham accusers, serving the Broadway creators of the show with a lawsuit seeking declaratory judgments and monetary damages.
The Chi creatives, along with the producers of an Akron, Ohio, production of "Urinetown," have been under fire since the Gotham team publicly accused both productions Nov. 13 of staging detailed copies of the Rialto production of the tuner.
Akron's Carousel Dinner Theater responded Nov. 22 with a lawsuit asking the court to decide who owns which creative elements involved in the productions.
The new lawsuit from the Chicago side goes one better: It seeks not only judgment on that issue but also monetary damages for defamatory statements.
"This has been incredibly damaging to my entire team and to myself," said Tom Mullen, director and producer of the Chicago production, which closed a brief, financially disappointing run earlier this year.
Named in the suit are Broadway director John Rando, choreographer John Carrafa, and set designer Scott Pask, among others.
"We haven't seen the papers yet, but we were trying to give them every opportunity to share information with us and show us we were wrong," said attorney Ronald H. Shechtman, who reps the Rialto team in the dispute, as well as the two unions that rep directors and designers.
"If this is how they want to react, then a court may be the best place to resolve this," he said.
While Mullen expressed anger that the Society of Stage Directors & Choreographers, of which he is a member, would press a legal action against two of its own members, he also said he supported the idea behind the action -- that is, the recognition of the contributions of directors and designers in licensing agreements.
"I'm in full support of the union on this case, but not through extortion after the fact," he said.
No timeline has yet been determined for either the Chicago or the Akron case.
#14broadway urinetown's ass is getting sued
Posted: 12/11/06 at 7:40pm
I really hate whoever stretched this thread.
FYI.
-Benjamin
--http://www.benjaminadgate.com/
--http://www.benjaminadgate.com/
Fosse76
Broadway Legend Joined: 3/21/05
#16broadway urinetown's ass is getting sued
Posted: 12/11/06 at 11:16pm
"The Broadway team can still sue them right? "
Yes, but if a judge rules in favor of the regional producers, then a lawsuit by the B'way team would more than likely be dismissed, since a court would have found no laws were broken. I don't know of any similar cases in the theatre industry, but as I said before, direction and lighting design aren't really copyrightable, and even if they were, they would be owned by the show's original producers, so the two Urinetown buffoons probably wouldn't be able to sue anyway.
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