Hamilton does not grant amateur or professional licenses for any stage productions and did not grant one to The Door Church, the spokesperson said, adding a cease and desist letter was sent to the church on Saturday after the Friday performance. The show incorporates several biblical messages and references not included in Mirandas original musical. 2023 Variety Media, LLC. By Nicole Acevedo. Now lawyers do their work, Miranda wrote Wednesday on Twitter. Variety is a part of Penske Media Corporation. Her work previously appeared in the Fort Worth Star-Telegram, The Dallas Morning News, Eater and other publications. The theater team behind Hamilton quickly criticized the unauthorized performance. 3 min read The theater team behind the renowned "Hamilton" production denounced "unauthorized changes" made by a South Texas Church that reenacted. Reps for "Hamilton" are considering their options against a church in Texas that staged an unauthorized production of the Tony-winning musical on Aug. 5, which fans report contained the addition . New comments cannot be posted and votes cannot be cast. Brown in a statement to USA TODAY on Wednesday said Hamilton is planning to donate the damages to the South Texas Equality Project, a coalition of groups supporting LGBTQ people in the Rio Grande Valley. A message posted Tuesday to the churchs Instagram page apologized and acknowledged that the performances had not been licensed, as the churchs pastor had claimed. For more information, please see our This site is protected by reCAPTCHA Enterprise and the Google, Visit Billboard Pro for music business news, Summerfest Sues MLB Team Over Rival Summer Fest Concert Series, Jimmie Allen Countersues Two Women Who Accused Him of Sexual Assault: Exclusive, Judge Says Lady Gaga Doesnt Owe $500K No QuestionsReward To Woman Charged In Dog Theft. While there are no signs identifying the church yet, word spread quickly that the building belongs to Stedfast Baptist Church. Hamilton Monica Simoes. We would like to thank our devoted fans for bringing this to our attention.". By Toms Mier. "On behalf of The Door Christian Fellowship McAllen Church, I would like to personally apologize to the creator of Hamilton, Lin-Manuel Miranda, the producers of Hamilton, and the numerous others who contributed their intellectual property to Hamilton, for staging an unauthorized production of Hamilton that infringed on the rights and copyrights of many," read a statement from the church's pastor, Roman Gutierrez, posted on Instagram and on the church's website. The church reportedly did not charge admission, but willful violation of copyright law still carries as much as a $150,000 penalty regardless of the revenue it generated. 1/2 https://t.co/yMtM3z9crI, Lin-Manuel Miranda (@Lin_Manuel) August 10, 2022, With the tweet, Miranda shared a statement from the Dramatists Guild, released late Tuesday, that condemns Door McAllens brazen infringement of the massively popular musical, as well as its rewriting the text without authorial consent.. In addition to performing the show without a license, the Door McAllen Church changed lyrics and added text without permission., The statement continues, We hold up the Door McAllen Churchs brazen infringement to shine a light on the problematic pattern of some theatrical organizations performing authors work without a license and rewriting the text without authorial consent. More about Marc Tracy, Texas Church That Had Added Christian Themes to Hamilton Apologizes, https://www.nytimes.com/2022/08/23/theater/hamilton-christian-production-apologizes.html. USA TODAY. The church also said it willpay damages for our actions, but did not immediately provide additional information on legal proceedings. The Door Christian Fellowship McAllen Church did not ask for, or receive, a license from the producers or creators of Hamilton to produce, stage, replicate or alter any part of Hamilton;nor did we seek prior permission to alter Lin-Manuel Mirandas work by changing the music, the lyrics, deleting songs, and adding dialogue, the statement said. No writers work, whether they are a student who has just written their first play, or Lin-Manuel Miranda, can be performed without their permission. An unauthorized musical production inspired by the hit Netflix TV show "Bridgerton" and a Texas church's rendition of award-winning Broadway show "Hamilton" are pushing the boundaries of performance rights and the "fair use" copyright defense. In a statement to The News, pastor Roman Gutierrez said the church is not anti-LGBT and everyone is always welcome, adding he acquired legal permission from the team behind "Hamilton" to produce the churchs show. They've been in the headlines in the past for their . A Texas church performed "Hamilton" this weekend, but the team behind the Tony-award winning production says it shouldn't have happened. A Texas church is making amends after its controversial staging of Hamilton resulted in backlash from the team behind the hit musical. While churches may perform copyrighted music during religious services under U.S. copyright law, that exemption does not apply to other public performances. A McAllen church is facing controversy for its rendition of Lin-Manuel Miranda's popular musical Hamilton that had several scenes edited to incorporate biblical themes and which was followed by a sermon that compared being gay with having an addiction. Alexander Hamilton, right, gives his life to Jesus in The Door Church's unauthorized production of the musical "Hamilton," in McAllen, Texas. She said they need to protest and stop newcomers from entering Stedfast. ", On its Facebook page, The Door describes itself as a "Bible-based, Spirit-filled, nondenominational family of believers.". By accepting all cookies, you agree to our use of cookies to deliver and maintain our services and site, improve the quality of Reddit, personalize Reddit content and advertising, and measure the effectiveness of advertising. Get the latest breaking news from North Texas and beyond. Stedfast Baptist Church has moved to Cedar Hill, Texas. Much of the criticism about the show, which is produced by RGV Productions and The Door McAllen church, centers on the idea that the edited performance and sermon are the antithesis of what Hamilton and Miranda, who is known for his support of LGBT causes, represent. A spokesperson for The Door did not immediately respond to PEOPLE's request for comment. Pastor Victor Lopez then followed up one of the performances with a sermon in which he compared being gay to alcohol and drug addiction. Ugh! It's quiet uptown after a Texas church went viral on TikTok for its unlicensed, altered performance of Lin-Manuel Miranda 's Hamilton. A Texas church is making amends after its controversial staging of Hamilton resulted in backlash from the team behind the hit musical. Interest-Based Advertising | Do not sell or share my personal information. A McAllen, Texas, church is facing controversy for its rendition of Lin-Manuel Miranda's popular musical "Hamilton" that had several scenes edited to incorporate biblical themes. Dallas ISD should let neighbors use school running tracks. The Hamilton team told The Door they could "proceed" with the already-scheduled second show "on the conditions that it was not live-streamed or recorded; no photos or videos of the performance be posted; they not mount any further productions; this limited permission was without prejudice, and we reserved all rights and remedies; and we would be discussing this matter with the parties behind this unauthorized production within the coming days once all facts are properly vetted. Archived post. The Door said it will pay for damages and "will never stage the performance again and will destroy any and all video or sound recordings and images of the unauthorized performances or rehearsals". Fact-check: Angelica Schuyler Church had several brothers, a fact that Miranda has since said he "forgot" while writing the musical. In a statement to the Dallas Morning News, pastor Roman Gutierrez said the church is not anti-LGBT and everyone is always welcome. The pastor also told the newspaper that he had secured legal permission to produce the show a claim directly refuted by Hamiltons producers and Miranda. While there are no signs identifying the church yet, word spread quickly that the building belongs to Stedfast Baptist Church. According to clips shared online, the church, located in south Texas, edited language and added religious lines and a concluding sermon to the production. All Rights Reserved. We acknowledge there are lawful avenues to obtain a license to stage properties which we did not pursue. A church in Texas that earlier this month staged unauthorized productions of the musical hit Hamilton, changing some lyrics to reflect Christian themes, apologized and agreed to pay damages on Tuesday after lawyers for Hamilton had demanded that they stop performances. (1/4) pic.twitter.com/MZne75G8ys. Much of the criticism about the show, produced by RGV Productions and The Door McAllen church, centers on the idea that the edited performance and sermon are the antithesis of what Hamilton and Miranda, known for his support of LGBT causes, represent. 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In June 2022, Stedfast Baptist Church faced more protests after a pastor openly encouraged violence against the LGBTQ+ community. By signing up you agree to ourTerms of ServiceandPrivacy Policy. Aug. 24, 2022, 11:40 AM PDT. Much of the criticism about the show, which is produced by RGV Productions and The Door McAllen church, centers on the idea that the edited performance and sermon are the antithesis of what "Hamilton" and Miranda, who is known for his support of LGBT causes, represent. Michael Williams, Breaking News reporter. The performance was promoted and livestreamed on YouTube on August 5th, 2022, and struck down due to DMCA copyright violations soon after. The post was unsigned but was written in the first-person as the pastor, who is Roman Gutierrez. The Tony-winning Broadway show created by Miranda has an official touring company that travels North America but does not grant amateur or professional licenses and did not grant one to The Door Church, Brown previously told PEOPLE. Now lawyers do their work.And always grateful to the @dramatistsguild, who have the backs of writers everywhere, be it your first play or your fiftieth. A native of Florida, he grew up in Pensacola and graduated from the University of Central Florida in 2018. The message added that the church would pay damages. 'Illegal, unauthorized:'Lin-Manuel Miranda calls out Texas church's 'Hamilton' performance, Education: Texas requires schools to display 'In God We Trust' signs after passing controversial law. It staged two shows earlier this month before Hamilton reps issued a cease-and-desist letter for the unauthorized use of its intellectual property. A conservative church is not where you might expect to see a showing of "Hamilton," the award-winning Lin-Manuel Miranda musical that tells the life story of Founding Father Alexander Hamilton . Questions were also raised about whether the church had legal permission to adapt the play. DALLAS A McAllen, Texas, church is facing controversy for its rendition of Lin-Manuel Miranda's popular musical "Hamilton" that had several scenes edited to incorporate biblical themes . The Dallas Morning Newsobtained video of the performance, which ran for about two hours, and a brief sermon that followed. Dallas pastor Freddy Haynes says he ready to get to work as new leader of civil rights organization Rainbow PUSH, 'The best chief I've ever seen': Former Dallas Police Chief David Kunkle dies at 72, DFW Weather: Break from the heat Sunday, Heat Advisory returns Monday, California's Death Valley sizzles as brutal heat wave continues, More than 6,000 congregations have received approval to leave the United Methodist Church, Openly gay North Texas pastor reflects on path to the pulpit, celebrates inclusion. During the 15-minute sermon, one of the churchs pastors talked about redemption: Maybe you struggle with alcohol, with drugs with homosexuality maybe you struggle with other things in life, your finances, whatever, God can help you tonight. DALLAS A McAllen, Texas, church is facing controversy for its rendition of Lin-Manuel Mirandas popular musical Hamilton that had several scenes edited to incorporate biblical themes and which was followed by a sermon that compared being gay with having an addiction. Marc Tracy is a reporter on the Culture desk. Theater-centric OnStage Blogfirst reported on the controversy. It's an organization strongly against the LGBTQ+ community. Billboard is a part of Penske Media Corporation. According to Brown, "The Hamilton family stands for tolerance, compassion, inclusivity and certainly LGBTQ+ rights. And it is never permissible to alter an artistic work such as Hamilton without legal permission.. Hamilton creator Lin-Manuel Miranda is speaking out about an unauthorized performance of his Tony-winning musical at a Texas church that was allegedly altered to include Biblical references and ended with a sermon that made anti-LGBTQ+ statements. RGV Productions, which operates with The Door Christian Fellowship Ministries of McAllen, performed and live streamed their unauthorized production of . Want to know what everyone in the music business is talking about. The Dallas Morning News obtained video of the performance, which ran for about two hours, and a brief sermon that followed. The church complied and producers allowed the churchs performance on Saturday to move forward if no recording or photos of the performance weretaken. It also agreed to never stage the performance again and will destroy any and all video or sound recordings and images." 2:22 PM on Aug 12, 2022 CDT Lin-Manuel Miranda acknowledged he's seen the news of the McAllen church's controversial, unauthorized rendition of his popular musical Hamilton, but said it's not. August 23, 2022. In a statement to the Dallas Morning News, Pastor Roman Gutierrez said he had received permission to produce the church's show from the team behind "Hamilton" claims that were refuted by a spokesperson for the official production who said the show was unauthorized and performed illegally. American. A McAllen church is facing controversy for its rendition of Lin-Manuel Miranda's popular musical Hamilton that had several scenes edited to incorporate biblical themes and which was. NBC 5 News File Photo A McAllen church is facing controversy for its rendition of Lin-Manuel Miranda's popular musical "Hamilton," which had several scenes edited to incorporate biblical. Did anybody see this? Shane Marshall Brown, a spokesperson for "Hamilton," told USA TODAY earlier this month that "'Hamilton' does not grant amateur or professional licenses for any stage productions and did not grant one to The Door Church.". Notifications can be turned off anytime in the browser settings. Dialogue appeared to be added to insert religious threads in the story, and a sermon at the end told the audience that "God can help you" through "broken marriages" or those who "struggle with alcohol, with drugs, homosexuality. 00:03 02:11. Liquid Church has helped Bhame, 28, and others like her find meaning even as many in her generation have turned away from organized religion. Michael D. Williams is a reporter covering breaking news for The Dallas Morning News. 2023 Billboard Media, LLC. By rejecting non-essential cookies, Reddit may still use certain cookies to ensure the proper functionality of our platform. ", Clips from the church's Hamilton interpretation then went viral on social media, shared by writers like Hemant Mehta. After hearing back from The Door, "Hamilton" told the church it could continue with Saturdays show as long as no pictures or videos were taken, the performance wasnt posted online and the church stopped hosting productions of the show. While copyright law generally allows artists to put their own spins on pieces of pop . After hearing back from The Door, Hamilton said it told the church it could continue with Saturdays show as long as no pictures or videos were taken, the performance wasnt posted online and the church stopped hosting productions of the show. On Monday, as reported by multiple media outlets, the producers of Hamilton confirmed that Door McAllens production had not been licensed, and that a cease-and-desist had been sent to the church, demanding that it stage no future performances. The version put on this month by The Door McAllen, a nondenominational church in the border town of McAllen, Texas, altered certain words and inserted invocations of Jesus Christ, according to clips posted on Twitter. We respect the copyrights of Hamiltons author and contributors, the message said. A Texas church that reenacted an unauthorized production of the musical "Hamilton," which included additional references to Christianity in addition to some homophobic . A cease-and-desist letter from the production's attorneys was sent to the church Saturday demanding "the immediate removal" of all photos and videos of the show from the internet, according to Forbes. A Texas church has come under fire for a Christian-themed and allegedly unauthorized rendition of the acclaimed Broadway musical "Hamilton" that appeared to conclude with a sermon by a. They should be convicted in a lawful trial. Maybe you struggle with alcohol, with drugs with homosexuality maybe you struggle with other things in life, your finances, whatever, God can help you tonight. Aug. 23, 2022. 0:00. Maggie previously worked at the Chicago Tribune and The Columbus Dispatch. ", Shane Marshall Brown, a spokesperson for Hamilton, tells PEOPLE that the production will donate "all damages paid by The Door Christian Fellowship McAllen Church to the South Texas Equality Project (STEP). They've been in the headlines in the past for their violent rhetoric against the LGBTQ+ community. These copyrights are protected by federal law. A man who answered the phone at The Door McAllen on Tuesday afternoon, who declined to be identified, confirmed that the message was posted by the church. Now lawyers do their work.And always grateful to the @dramatistsguild, who have the backs of writers everywhere, be it your first play or your fiftieth. A McAllen church is facing controversy for its rendition of Lin-Manuel Mirandas popular musical Hamilton that had several scenes edited to incorporate biblical themes and which was followed by a sermon that compared being gay with having an addiction. community. Privacy Policy. Photo: Smith Collection/Gado/Getty. Users quickly criticized the the shows altered text, which included lines such as My hope is in Jesus/ If you could just give him a chance today/ That would be enough. One person also noted that the Churchs performance ended with references to people struggling with homosexuality. Show up and let anyone going into that building unaware, be aware that they are entering not a church, but a cult, a hate group.. Lin-Manuel Miranda is praising lawyers who get the job done after a Texas church staged an . Texas Church Illegal Hamilton Production refers to an illegal production of the Broadway musical Hamilton that was produced and performed by a church in McAllen, Texas. 34 comments Actor, composer, rapper, writer and creator of Hamilton Lin-Manuel Miranda speaks onstage. Its a really dangerous cult, and I feel really bad for Cedar Hill.. It is never permissible to alter an artistic work such as Hamilton without legal permission, said a message on Instagram, which added that the church would pay damages. A church in Texas is apologizing "for staging an unauthorized production of Hamilton" and has agreed to "pay damages for our actions." The apology . Theater-centric OnStage Blog first reported on the controversy. Hamilton does not grant amateur or professional licenses for any stage productions and did not grant one to The Door Church, the spokesperson said, adding a cease and desist letter was sent to the church on Saturday after the Friday performance. A Texas church that reenactedan unauthorized production of the musical Hamilton, which includedadditional references to Christianity in addition to some homophobic lines, has apologized and said it will pay damages. The Hamilton controversy started over the weekend, when clips from the Doors Friday production went viral on social media. By Marc Tracy. Hamilton stolen by Texas church! A sermon was also added to the musical in which a speaker likened homosexuality to alcoholism, drug addiction and financial problems. We are in the process of reviewing the unauthorized changes made to the script to determine further action. WFAA reached out to Stedfast Baptist Church, and did not hear back at the time of this publication. Lin-Manuel Miranda Calls Out 'Illegal, Unauthorized' Production of 'Hamilton' by Texas Church. 0:00 / 1:44 A Texas church stirred controversy after illegally performing a version of "Hamilton" that featured unapproved messaging, according to multiple reports. A Texas church stirred controversy after illegally performing a version of "Hamilton" that featured unapproved messaging, according to multiple reports. The Hamilton spokesperson added they would be discussing this matter with the parties behind this unauthorized production within the coming days once all facts are properly vetted.. Never miss a story sign up for PEOPLE's free daily newsletter to stay up-to-date on the best of what PEOPLE has to offer, from juicy celebrity news to compelling human-interest stories. The churchs senior pastor is Roman Gutierrez. The South Texas Equality Project is a coalition of organizations that work to advocate for, celebrate, uplift, educate, and provide support to the LGBTQIA+ community of the Rio Grande Valley.". We are in the process of reviewing the unauthorized changes made to the script to determine further action. Maggie writes about public safety in the D-FW suburbs. Lin-Manuel Miranda is praising lawyers who get the job done after a Texas church staged an illegal, unauthorized production of Hamilton.. Protestors are frustrated that Stedfast has found a new place to preach. California residents do not sell my data request. A spokesman for Hamilton, Shane Marshall Brown, said Tuesday that Hamilton would donate all damages to the South Texas Equality Project, a coalition that supports the local L.G.B.T.Q. 1:34. DALLAS On Texas Street in Cedar Hill, a new church has moved in. He wants to forgive you for your sins.". 365 "He knows exactly what you've gone through," Lopez said, referring to God, according to San Antonio Express-News. Aug. 9, 2022. Can Rangers Bruce Bochy get Will Smith, Aroldis Chapman to thrive as co-closers? Stedfast Baptist Church has moved to Cedar Hill, Texas. In a statement earlier this month, Brown had said, The Hamilton family stands for tolerance, compassion, inclusivity and certainly L.G.B.T.Q.+ rights. Gutierrez, the pastor, said in a statement to The Dallas Morning News that everyone is welcome at The Door McAllen. Sharp said that kind of language is dangerous. The church also incorporated a sermon that compared being gay with having an addiction. Gutierrez concluded his online apology by saying that the church will pay for damages and "will never stage the performance again and will destroy any and all video or sound recordings and images of the unauthorized performances or rehearsals, and request that all our members do the same. 08/10/2022. This is how The Door McAllen church concluded its illegal production of Hamilton: with a sermon demonizing homosexuality. During Sunday mornings service, the pastor of The Door McAllen says the Hamilton team gave them license do their production.This is interesting for two reasons. "On behalf of The Door . A church in Texas is coming under fire today performing 'Hamilton' without obtaining rights to the show as well as changing the text and adding an anti-LGBTQ sermon at the end of the show. Nicknamed "Scamilton . On Monday, a spokesperson for Mirandas Hamilton denied that.