Chris Peterson

OnStage Editor-in-Chief

Twitter: @onstageblog

One issue plaguing the reputation of community theatre groups all over this country, is when designs and concepts from Broadway productions are copied for local productions without permission from the original designers.

While direction can't be copyrighted, design can be. But beyond violating copyright, it's incredibly unethical for a local company to do this. Especially if these local theatres are making money off of these shows. Artistically, it shows a lack of creativity and an abundance of laziness on the part of the designer. director and leadership of the theatre.

Now to be clear, I'm not talking about iconic costumes or shows that call for specific set designs. I'm talking about local theatres copying Broadway or professional designs for their own productions.

Last February we saw that with a theatre in Connecticut. As the saga at Theatreworks New Milford played out, I promised you all that if I saw instances of theatres copying Broadway or other productions, I would consistently call them out for it too. Today, I keep that promise.

The town of Shreveport, Louisiana is home to Stage Center. A relatively young theatre group, Stage Center has been producing an impressive array of large scale shows since 2012. Part of their mission statement reads as follows:

"We aim to work on new material as well as retelling classic work to enrich the lives of Louisianians."

Pretty standard statement if you ask me. But what makes this statement so interesting is the "retelling classic work" section. Because that might mean one thing to you and I, but to the folks at Stage Center, it seems to mean copying Broadway and professional designs since their inception.

Let's start with their first production in 2012 of Sweeney Todd. Here are some pictures of their production.