BAKERSFIELD, Calif. (KERO) — Stars Playhouse is facing allegations of copyright violations over several of its performances. Volunteers also share their thoughts about The Playhouse not filing their non-profit status since 2021.
- From the organization that brought you Hairspray and Legally Blonde, the Stars Theatre Playhouse will be closing their curtains.
- An email chain reveals that there may be more going on behind the scenes.
- Lorelli says Stars owns two locations– the dinner theatre downtown and The Playhouse off of Rosedale. She says it’s just The Playhouse that plans to shut.
BROADCAST TRANSCRIPT:
On April 2, 2025, The Playhouse Artistic Committee released a statement on their Facebook stating,
“To our patrons and friends,
First and Foremost, we thank you for your support and passion over the years. Without your love and patronage The Playhouse could never have become the home that it has been for so many of us.
Alice By Heart will be the last show at The Playhouse.
Connections and creative teams were formed at The Playhouse that will not fizzle away, and the sense of purpose found in offering a space for the beginning and avant-garde creators in our local community is still present in each of our Committee members.
After final curtain, we will say goodbye. Those of us in the Artistic Committee will officially be stepping away from our roles.
We love this community, and we can't thank you enough for all you've done to help us grow.”
However, there seems to be more going on behind-the-scenes.
“It feels like someone who’s been like a pillar of the theater community for so long hasn’t been supporting their actors like they should have been,” said Desiree Lorelli, who has volunteered for The Playhouse.
According to the IRS, Stars Theatre– formerly known as the Bakersfield Civic Light Opera Association– last filed their non-profit status in 2021.
Lorelli says many volunteers felt misled.
“We love volunteering our time to the community. That’s why we love doing this. That’s why we love doing theater,” said Lorelli. “But hearing that they weren’t filing as a non-profit, that kind of felt like a slap in the face to the theater community cause I felt like we were being lied to in a way.”
Additionally, an email chain was leaked between Stars Playhouse and Music Theatre International (MTI), who licenses various shows.
*The email chain was sent to us by an anonymous source. Parts have been redacted to protect privacy and provide clarity.
According to the emails, MTI sent a payment demand and cease-and-desist letter in late March, claiming there were copyright violations with four of the shows performed at Stars– Once on this Island, Matilda, Hairspray, and Legally Blonde.
Stars Theatre responded, in part, that there were “no additional unauthorized performances” for Once on this Island.
As for Hairspray, Stars claimed that all rights were appropriately secured.
For Legally Blonde, Stars acknowledged that, “... due to high demand… a tenth show was added… We acknowledge that this additional performance may have required further licensing, and we are willing to resolve any outstanding licensing fees related to this matter…”
As for Matilda the Musical, Stars said in part, “... upon realizing that we had not yet secured the rights due to financial constraints, we have immediately removed all references to the production across all platforms…”
23ABC Neighborhood Reporter Avery Elowitt reached out to the Stars Theatre for a statement. Here is their response:
“We are aware of recent conversations and speculation on social media regarding Stars Theatre’s business relationship with Music Theatre International (MTI).
While we do not publicly discuss the details of business contracts, we can confirm that we are currently engaged in standard communications with MTI, as is customary in the licensing process for theatrical productions.
We appreciate the community’s continued support and interest in our work. Our focus remains on producing high-quality performances and serving our audiences.
Any official updates will be shared through our verified channels.”
23ABC also called Music Theatre International to see if the statement has since been cleared. They said they could not comment.
“If they told us they needed help, we would have provided that as much as we could have. But it was the fact that they kept that from us and decided to go behind not our backs, but also professional companies backs. And that gives us a bad look, too,” said Lorelli. “That gives Bakersfield a bad look because that doesn’t wanna make MTI or Concord or Broadway licensable want to work with potentially other theaters in Bakersfield as well.”
Lorelli says that Stars Playhouse has been a backbone of experimental theater and black box theater for younger directors that are just starting out.
“We’re bringing this to light because we wanna see change. We do wanna see them make a positive impact,” said Lorelli. “We don’t wanna see them lose sales, but we just wanna see and have them acknowledge that they are gonna make a change and actually own up to their mistakes that they have.”
Lorelli says Stars owns two locations– the Stars Theatre Restaurant downtown and The Playhouse off of Rosedale. She says it’s just The Playhouse that plans to shut.
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