In the latest salvo in the battle over the extent of copyright protection, five members of the creative team behind the 2002 Broadway hit ''Urinetown: the Musical'' are charging that productions of the show in Chicago and Akron, Ohio, have copied their work without permission.
The letters, drafted by a lawyer, Ronald H. Shechtman, on behalf of the director John Rando, the choreographer John Carrafa, and the set, lighting and costume designers of the Broadway production, were sent on Monday night to the team behind an award-winning production at the Mercury Theater in Chicago and to the team behind the Carousel Dinner Theater production of the show in Akron.
The letters charge that in design and directorial aspects, the shows were replications of the Broadway production. The shows -- which have both closed -- had a license to use the script and music from ''Urinetown,'' but, the letters assert, such permission did not extend to reproducing creative decisions made by the Broadway production's director, choreographer and designers.
Mr. Shechtman's arguments concern a controversial area of intellectual property: creative input into a production beyond the script and music. While choreography is specifically protected by law, the situation for stage direction is not as clear.
Details here from the New York Times via LexisONE.com.