We were doing Shakespeare in the Park one year - many years ago - and the commission always chooses TWO Shakespeare plays and one classic theater play or musical.  THEY CHOSE PIPPIN.  Well we were in rehearsal for nearly two months. NOW we didn't get kicked out of the rehearsal space, BUT they wanted the whole thing "toned down" or we weren't going to be able to do the show in the park.  Granted, it's a PUBLIC PARK and there it's open to anyone who "passes by".  But the director had told them of his intentions long before they cast the show and even long before rehearsals started.  And they didn't blink an eye - come on it's a classic musical.  However, it's not for the faint-hearted nor is it necessarily for children by it's very nature.  SO we were told that we HAD to tone it down or they weren't going to do the show.  SO the actors ALL - EVERY ONE, including all the tech people, the director, the musicians, ALL got up in arms and told them that if they didn't allow the show that we'd rehearsed now for two months, to go on as is, then we would ALL walk and they would NOT have a show - much less roughly 40 - 50 lawsuits for breach of contract (yes we all had contracts).  Granted it IS as I said, an adult type show and the choreographer was as TRUE to the concept as everyone involved was and loyal to the nature of the show, the director, producer and choreographers GREAT choreography.  NEEDLESS to say, they buckled because it had generated such HUGE publicity that LOTS of people who were in FAVOR of us doing that show, threatened to boycott the entire Shakespeare season in the Summer park series...that they had to comply.

Result - the SHOW WAS A SMASHING SUCCESS.  The park was FULL TO OVERFLOWING at EVERY performance, such that people simply couldn't get close enough always to see it.  It overshadowed the Shakespeare productions that year - which were also excellent - but people WANTED what they wanted.  And the factions that thought it too adult for SITP, were silenced.  It's kind of sad that they even made an issue of it.  NOT that I am against good taste, but they KNEW what they were getting at the outset - no bones about it.  And they tried to pull the plug. I have to say, that after the fact, they were MORE than glad they didn't because they made GREAT money that year, we were well paid and it was worth every second of angst over doing it or not that it took to get it done.  And in the end, it was probably one of the best shows in the more than 20 years or so they did SITP.  So regrets after the fact were few.  Naturally, they have been more careful to choose more of the mainstream stuff that wouldn't have raised such controversy as this one did.  But they didn't even think to look at some of the Shakespeare plays they were doing and allowing to be done and viewed by the general public that are of equally baudy and adult nature as you can possibly get.  Maybe they thought nobody would understand the language. 

Tony

I have been wondering this same question as I have decided to give "Forum" a try this year for our high school musical.  (I am the director.)  I have been hearing about possible problems with school board approval, so we will find out for sure on Nov. 16 if we are "allowed" to perform this show....of course, it's not like 100s of other high schools have never done this show before!  But, what does a school board member know about a musical?  I will let you know!

One of the main reasons that we ( meaning my son, friend and me) stopped working with our official community theater is because it is a converted church and the board of directors are fussy and strait laced and censor everything.  We set up our own company, and rent our own theater just to escape their censorship. 

I think that this has always been a problem in the theater and I assume that it always will.  It is human nature to want to impose your opinions on the community just as it is human nature to band together with people who are like-minded.