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An Olympian breakdancer who went viral during the recent summer games in Paris has settled a legal action with the producers of a musical about her, triggering online criticism.
Rachael “Raygun” Gunn made headlines in August for her quirky breakdancing performance during the round robin competition at the sport’s first appearance at an Olympics.
Her moves, which included the “Kangaroo Dance,” in honor of the Australian native animals, failed to impress the judges failing to score a single point for her performance.
Despite that, she did become a viral sensation, even inspiring Halloween costumes this year.
B-Girl Raygun of Team Australia looks on before competing in the B-Girls Round Robin at the Olympic Games in Paris on August 9, 2024. She took legal action against a musical portraying her.
B-Girl Raygun of Team Australia looks on before competing in the B-Girls Round Robin at the Olympic Games in Paris on August 9, 2024. She took legal action against a musical portraying her.
Rene Nijhuis/BSR Agency/Getty Images
But when a theatrical director tried to make a musical about her, Raygun was not having any of it and reportedly wanted $10,000 to cover her legal fees after taking action against them.
Comedian Steph Broadbridge advertised her Raygun: The Musical for the first time on September 25 to be performed at the Kinselas bar in Sydney.
Described as a “parody exploration” of Raygun’s path to to the Olympics, Broadbridge vowed the show was meant to be a “pi**-take” that was “done with love,” in an interview with the Sydney Morning Herald.
It includes songs such as, “You May Be a B-girl But You’ll Always Be an A-girl to Me,” “I’m Breaking Down” and “I Would Have Won But I Pulled a Muscle.”
Newsweek contacted Raygun and Broadbridge by email for comment on Friday morning.
Raygun’s lawyers sent a letter to the venue and Broadbridge demanding the show remove her likeness from the posters and musical because “her name, trade marks, choreography and likeness is being used without her prior permission, license, authorisation or sponsorship and in a manner that infringes her intellectual property rights,” per The Guardian Australia.
“In our view, you are causing significant confusion … that our client has somehow endorsed your show, is affiliated with you directly, and have permission to tell our client’s story,” the letter added suggesting Broadbridge would be breaching copyright if she copied any of Raygun’s moves which had been the “culmination of over 10 years of training” and of which she was the “creator and author.”
Raygun said in an Instagram post on Thursday that “we have not sought any costs from all this,” and the sum of $10,000 for legal costs would have only been requested if the matter had gone to court.
Prior to that, the breakdancer said she only learned of the musical thanks to media reports, and Broadbridge confirmed she had not sought permission from Raygun to use her likeness.
“We were totally blindsided by this,” Raygun said on social media. “And, unfortunately, the blowback was quick. People assumed that we had developed it, that we had approved it, and it damaged many relationships, both personal and professional.”
As for Broadbridge, she said she was “deeply sorry” Raygun had been trolled over the situation.
“The last thing I wanted was for anyone to experience hate or distress from this situation,” she wrote on Instagram on Thursday.
The the show will continue as Breaking the Musical and Broadbridge released a new poster for it on Thursday.
“The show is a comedy show, it is based entirely on stuff I read on the internet,” she said in the post. “It is a fictional telling of a moment in Australian History.”
But Raygun still faced backlash on X, formerly Twitter.
“WTAF Raygun is demanding $10,000 from a small comedy club that wanted to stage a show called ‘Raygun the Musical’. All proceeds from the show were to go to a women’s shelter!” wrote @benpennings.
“Parody right? Raygun is an absolute disgrace. Her elitist greed stole an Olympic opportunity from some genuinely deserving young Aussie. She is completely without break dancing talent. She flopped around like a demented drugged up seal. Shame,” wrote @RichwoodsAus.
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