Auditions for RENT

[Vincent Brewster]

Brewster Entertainment is now casting for the Second Life production of the hit broadway musical RENT.

We are currently seeking five men and three women to fill the main roles in this production as well as five to seven ensemble members.

Please be prepared to sing two songs, one from broadway and a current top 40 hit.

We are also seeking costume designers and set designers.

Auditions will be held May 21st - 24th and again on
May 28th - May 31st.

Please drop Vincent Brewster a note card named RENT with all of your information to set up an appointment to audition.

RENT is the Pulitzer prize winning rock opera based on Puccini's La Boheme set in 1980's Lower East Side.
RENT ran on broadway for eleven years and in 2005 Chris Columbus directed the film version.
Shortly after RENT closed on broadway a filmed version, RENT: Filmed Live on broadway was released.
In 2011 RENT was reincarnated off-Broadway at The New World Stages Theater in New York City.

[PeterCanessa Oh]

How do you go about getting a licence for a public internet performance of such shows?  I'm interested because I assume with the film rights having been sold there's all sorts of expensive Hollywood lawyers making it difficult just so they can charge a fee.

(Apart from that, give me a nudge if you need any (LSL) scripting advice).

[Jonathon Nightingale]

Technically a show like Rent lives in a gray area. It's technically open to amateur performances:

http://www.musicals101.com/alphinde.htm

However, that's in the US only. I'm not sure if they are covered as far as SL goes (it would technically count as international Distro), but then again given the large amount of re-distributed content flying around SL, I don't think an original production of the play will even raise an eyebrow from any rights agency. Besides, unless people are tipping/paying in excess of 5-7kL per person for these performances, no rights agency will give a flying you-know-what.

[PeterCanessa Oh]

Great reply, thank you.  Yes, I was assuming (but didn't know) what amateur-dramatics societies and similar groups do and how that compares to SL.  As you say this would technically be international plus, if it's machinima'd and put on youtube or somewhere it'd be another film version (?).

Who knows.  As you say it's very unlikely anyone will care and the whole thing could be completely legal.  I am certainly more informed than I was.  Thanks again.

[Jonathon Nightingale]

Well, as to YouTube, the only true worry of that is if you have a Monetize-enabled/Partnered channel. Because it would be a recording of a performance, it would not be a "movie" per se, plus it would not be distributed via the standard channels, or have the standard fees involved. Now if they were to make a movie version and try to distribute and sell it, or post it to a monetized/partner channel and make money frm it, you best believe that would be crushed.

[PeterCanessa Oh]

Well yes, a 'proper' movie obviously, but I'd still think a machinima recoding would count as 'a movie' even if, as you say, no one is likely to care very much as it isn't in the same league.  Fascinating (and complicated) stuff.

[Jonathon Nightingale]

Actually, no. They'd be safe having a video, multipart or single, recording their play in SL so long as it was on a standard channel or if the monetized/partner channel turned off revenue on the video. It's not really any difference than doing an open air performance of Rent. Anyone can see how you perform it, but you don't directly make money, and therefore do not profit from the intellectual properties of Rent's composer, writer or lyricist. However, if you were to package and sell videos of Rent, or even put it on YouTube with revenue streams on, and not have direct, written permission to do so, you would be in violation of ToS, receive a strike and be liable for damages/penalties from the company holding the rights.

And as for why I trivialized the SL performance from a revenue standpoint is that, unless they are pulling down large amounts of money, the legal fees alone would not make it worthwhile to persue. Besides, the reason most plays go to public licence has to do with the fact that the original creators have made all the money they intended to with the intellectual property. Now, any peformance simply acts as a promotional tool for their work, and they really don't care if someone makes some pocket change when they've already lined their pockets with considerably more licencing the play to countless productions.

The tribute shows on SL are more at risk than this show. Rebroadcast is a big no-no without permission. If they are paying a rights agency to compensate the artists and recording companies, they could get away with performing shows in-world. However, YouTubing THAT is no gray area. You'd get, at the very least, a link off to purchase the first identified song of the performance. You would not be able to monetize or place that on a partner channel at all, unless you fancy losing it.

[Adrialynn]

Hello.

 

I was wondering if you are still holding auditions for mimi.

 

I have experince in this feild and would love to be in this productuion since i starred in it once before for my dramatic arts course (also played mimi) in college.