Why can't my school perform Wicked?

[Juliet2795]

In my school, we have an 8th grade and everyone wants to do wicked, but our director says that we can't. Is it because or royalties? Copyright?

[8thvision6594]

they probably dont want to spend the money, like my school

[Kevin6923]

There could be many reasons for this: A near by school may have just done it in the past few years.The costumes may cost too much.There may be inappropriate content in the storyline.

[kevinK]

its all copyright i did it in a play a few years back and our deans got sewed

[HelenScott]

Royalties are probably the number one reason. Schools don't have a lot of money...and something like Wicked would cost a pretty penny to perform. Other than that...it's a HUGE musical, that requires a HUGE stage and a lot of effects....which I'm sure your school's stage can't handle....and even if the stage were big enough and well equipped, it'd cost thousands of dollars to get the effects needed. Finally, even if your school could afford the royalties for some reason....most of the time when a large and popular show like that is being performed somewhere, the company holding the copyright won't allow any one else to do it until the first run is completed.

[PippinT]

probably beacuse your director is a meany

[actingismylife]

There is no way you could get the rights to the show!!!! At the rate Wicked's going, be ready to wait 10-15 more years to be able to do that anywhere! Sorry! Break A Leg! The Stage Queen

[OneWickedGirlFabalaElphieFae]

Wicked is protected by copyright. From musicalschwartz.com:WICKED LICENSING/COPYRIGHT"We are in the process of negotiating the deal for stock-and-amateur licensing rights to WICKED. Needless to say, I don't expect them to become available for some time, since they are generally not made available until after the Broadway production has closed. If all continues to go well with the Broadway production, that is probably several years away. Sincerely, Stephen Schwartz"And again from the FAQ:CONCERT OF WICKEDThe producers of the show have asked Stephen Schwartz to permit no more than THREE (3) songs from WICKED to be performed in any single event, therefore, a concert version of all the music from WICKED cannot be allowed at this time.In order to obtain the rights for to perform a musical you have to contact the company that holds them (whether it's DramaSource, Music Theatre Internation, Theatrical Rights Worldwide or whatever) and pay a royalty fee.----------------------There are currently 7 productions worldwide of WickedUSA:~Broadway(New York)~Chicago(Illinois)~Los Angeles(California)~Second Broadway TourLondon, EnglandTokyo, JapanStuttgart, GermanyThe Melbourne, Australia production opens this fall.In 2009, the Los Angeles sit down production will move up to San Francisco, California. The Mexico production also opens in 2009. The Netherlands production will open in 2010/11.-------------------------There are currently plans for a movie based on the musical to open/start filming in 2014. From interviews with Gregory Maguire, the author of Wicked: The Life and Times of the Wicked Witch of the West, the basis for the hit Broadway musical Wicked.Interview#1March 9, 2008)According to Maguire, there are plans to bring out a film version of “Wicked” in the year 2014. “That’s the 10-year anniversary of its Broadway debut,” he said, “which is exactly what happened when the play ‘Chicago’ came out as a film a few years ago. Since ‘Wicked’ is breaking attendance records all over the world, there’s no need to rush a film out now.”Interview#2:Q: What was your reaction when they first talked to you about your novel Wicked being made into a musical? Has anyone ever asked you about it being made into a film?Gregory Maguire: Within 10 days of the book's publication in the US, I started to get film offers. I had three and a half years' worth of film scripts, each one of which was worse than the one before!When that interest began to erode (Harry Potter and Lord of the Rings hadn't come out yet) and the notion of a Broadway play came up instead, really in my heart of hearts I just thought [*singing and leaping from his chair*] 'Broadway!'. What was not to love about it?There will eventually be a film of Wicked the musical but probably not for four or five years.--------------So it will be a very long time before Wicked can pe performed by schools.

[Molly0837]

Wicked probably has pretty hefty royalties that go along with it. It is a very sucessful Broadway production. Your school would have to pay a lot of money in order to get the rights for the show. No doubt it would also be a lot of hard work. One of the reasons that wicked is a great musical are things like costuming, set design, makeup, props, and things like that. Your school probably simply doesn't have enough money to purchase amazing costumes that suit each character, paint sets that look identical to the land of oz, buy enough green makeup to keep Elphaba greenified for the entire time that your show is running, and to have props that make the story more believable.