Stephanie Broadbridge, the comedian behind the controversial Raygun The Musical, has seemingly found a legal loophole for her project based on Olympic breakdancing.
As they say in showbiz: the show must go on!
In the last month, Broadbridge and her comedy musical, previously titled Raygun The Musical, has been in the headlines after *the* Rachael ‘Raygun’ Gunn‘s legal team shut down the show’s debut.
But just like a phoenix, it appears the comedian’s highly-anticipated project has risen from the legal ashes with a new name and look.
In a cheeky Instagram Post on Thursday, December 19 — weeks after Raygun The Musical was supposed to make its debut — Broadbridge shared a promo for another musical titled Breaking The Musical: A Completely Legal Parody Musical.
Draped in gold and emerald green, a silhouette of a kangaroo leaning backwards is pictured alongside dates for Adelaide, Melbourne and Sydney.
While the post itself didn’t have a caption, folks have flocked to the comment section with their support for the comedian and her totally legal musical.
“Would pay $10,000 just to see this,” one punter wrote.
“Bring it to Summer Bay, darl x,” a Home and Away meme page commented.
“Barbara Streisand fully supports this show,” wrote a third.
Following what seems to be a project renaissance for Broadbridge, the comedian shared a text statement, emphasising that Raygun has no attachment to her project.
“I acknowledge again, that I did not contact Raygun before I created the title and poster, which used the word Raygun and her silhouette,” the comedian began.
“It was never my intention to mislead people into thinking that she was involved in the production. She is not and continues to not be attached to this project in any way. I have changed the name of the show and the silhouette and will not use her name or the silhouette ever again.”
Broadbridge concluded her statement by apologising to the Olympian for the backlash she had received in the midst of the controversy.
“I am deeply sorry to learn that Raygun has faced negative backlash as a result of the media attention around the cancellation of the preview for the musical. The last thing I wanted was for anyone to experience hate or distress from this situation.”
Similarly to the musical’s revamped poster and name, Broadbridge received a plethora of praise under her statement, with many expressing their excitement for the show.
Why was Raygun The Musical cancelled?
The musical was meant to open on December 7, but legal threats from Raygun meant Broadbridge was forced to cancel that same day.
According to the comedian, Raygun’s lawyers trademarked the musical’s poster and that she was banned from replicating the B-Girl’s kangaroo hop.
“My trial show for Raygun: The Musical has been cancelled. Raygun’s lawyers got in touch with the venue and threatened legal action so we will be refunding everyone their $10 or comp ticket back for that,” Broadbridge said.
At the time, Raygun’s manager Stephanie Sicchitano and the B-Girl’s legal team told PEDESTRIAN.TV in a statement that they have “immense respect” for Broadbridge’s work. However, they said they needed to “take necessary steps to safeguard Rachael’s creative rights and the integrity of her work”.
“This action is not intended to diminish the contributions of others, but rather to ensure her brand is properly represented and protected in all future endeavours. Thank you for your understanding and continued support,” they said.
Following that, Australia’s entertainment scene has been embroiled in anger and disappointment towards the B-Girl, with some folks accusing Gunn of appropriating Aboriginal Australian culture for trademarking the kangaroo pose, which she has since denied and apologised for in a video on Instagram.
Since then, it’s been alleged by iD Comedian Club owner Anthony Skinner the B-Girl’s team has demanded $10,000 from him in legal fees.
In a statement to PEDESTRIAN.TV, Skinner said, in his opinion, Raygun and her legal team are
“stifling creativity and bullying creatives within the legal system”.
“They’re trying to (in my opinion) swindle $10,000 from me in ‘legal fees’ for sending this PDF,” he said.
“I’ve dedicated my life to supporting artists and their careers, I’ll publicly fight for them all day, every day.”
Raygun nor her legal team have responded publicly to Skinner’s claim.
PEDESTRIAN.TV has reached out to Raygun’s team for comment.
The post Sydney Comedian Forced To Cancel Raygun Musical Over Legal Threats Found The Ultimate Loophole appeared first on PEDESTRIAN.TV .
