Rachel ‘Raygun’ Gunn has broken her silence amid a storm over a musical that would depict her journey through the Paris Olympics.
Raygun: The Musical was written by comedian Stephanie Broadbride, but was initially halted by the Olympic break dancer’s lawyers due to an intellectual property dispute.
The decision had caused a storm of criticism online The Sydney Morning Herald On Wednesday, he revealed that Raygun’s legal counsel had sent a letter to a comedy club where the performance was to take place, asking it to cover the $10,000 legal fees incurred by Raygun.
The breakdancer had received a lot of criticism online in the wake of the claims, but a new twist in the saga has taken place, with Raygun taking to Instagram to clarify the situation before stating that both parties involved in the dispute had reached a solution.
‘It’s been a big few weeks. Yeah, it’s been a wild ride,” Raygun said in a video on the social media platform. ‘But I am very happy to say that we have resolved everything. My team worked with Steph’s team and we came to an agreement and she can still go ahead with the musical. She has a new name. New poster. And she still gets to take that show on the road.
“I’m very happy for her and wish her all the best with the show and the tour.”
Rachel ‘Raygun’ Gunn issued a statement on Instagram confirming that the legal dispute between her and a comedian over a musical about her Olympics has been resolved
By Wednesday, reports had emerged claiming that Raygun’s lawyers had asked a comedy club to reimburse them for $10,000. Gunn has since spoken to clarify the situation
The Olympian then clarified the situation regarding claims surrounding her legal costs, stressing: ‘We have not claimed any costs for any of this.
“So there’s a lot of talk about this $10,000, that was very early on, the first day, that my lawyers acted on my behalf. They had sent letters and you know a response was requested by a certain time.
‘They didn’t hear an answer and we were afraid we would have to go to court.
“That $10,000 would just be my potential legal costs if we had to go to court. But luckily we didn’t do that and that was all addressed with Steph’s statement. She apologized today and addressed some of the misinformation and hurtful comments that have been circulating.
‘But we don’t charge any fees. I said before: it’s not about the money, it’s still not about the money. Not from Steph, not from the comedy club. In our opinion, everything has been resolved and there will be no further legal proceedings. It was an intellectual property issue and we have now put that aside.”
The musical would depict the breakdancer’s Olympic journey over a 90-minute show and featured original songs including ‘You May Be A B-Girl But You’ll Always Be An A Girl To Me’ and ‘I Would Have Won But I Pulled’. A muscle’.
Broadbridge also took to Instagram to issue a statement following the news.
She apologized to the Olympian for any “negative comments” she received online before stating that she had changed the name of the show to Breaking: The Musical. The poster for the show has also been updated to include a silhouette of a kangaroo instead of a silhouette of a person which appeared to simulate Raygun’s Olympic breaking moves.
The letter, which was revealed by The Sydney Morning Herald, was sent early in the dispute resolution process. Raygun said the $10,000 fee only applies if both parties go to court
The performance, titled Raygun the Musical, was written by comedian Stephanie Broadbridge (pictured) and was due to take place at Kinselas in Darlinghurst on December 7.
The comedian behind the Raygun musical is launching a new breakdance-inspired show
Broadbridge told her 12,000 Instagram followers: ‘I acknowledge once again that I did not contact Raygun before creating the title and poster, which used the word Raygun and her silhouette.
‘It was never my intention to make people think she was involved in the production. She is and will remain in no way affiliated with this project.
“I have changed the name of the show and the silhouette and will never use her name or the silhouette again.”
Her new show will tour Adelaide between February and March, Melbourne in April and Sydney in May.
Broadbridge added: “I am very sorry to hear that Raygun has faced negative reactions as a result of the media attention surrounding the cancellation of the preview for the musical.
‘The last thing I wanted was for anyone to experience hatred or fear because of the situation. ‘
The show’s poster claims it is “a completely legal parody musical.”
The Sydney Morning Herald released a report on Wednesday claiming to reveal the contents of a letter sent to Anthony Skinner, owner of Darlinghurst’s iD Comedy Club, which Raygun said was sent early in the process.
The Olympian had previously explained the decision to halt the musical
Skinner had spoken 6PR Radio Perth Live host Oliver Peterson admitted Thursday that he was relieved that the legal issue had been dropped.
“It’s a great day for comedy,” he said.
He added, “Honestly, I can’t elaborate too much on it because everything is pretty well developed.”
Raygun shot to fame earlier this year after her performances at the Paris Olympics.
She received zero points for her three appearances at the Games but has become a cult hero around the world, with many people recently dressing up as the Olympic star for Halloween.
In recent months, the 36-year-old has also been spotted dining out with celebrities including Boy George and Richard Branson, while being greeted by Adele in the middle of one of the musician’s concerts.
Raygun also thanked Broadbridge for making her statement, while adding that she wanted to put the saga to bed for good, before apologizing to her social media followers.
“This has been a stressful time for me and it has been tough for me. I know I’m not the only one. I know this has been difficult for Steph and everyone on her show and for many other people, and it was never my intention to cause pain or distress.
‘This is a completely new environment for me and I just want to say sorry for the pain I have caused.
‘Because I certainly don’t do that on purpose. I would like to thank the people who have supported me throughout this wild ride.
Raygun added that she was keen to “put the saga to bed” before thanking her supporters for helping to spread positivity and kindness.
“2024 has been a bit of a rough year for me, but I’m looking forward to 2025,” she added. “I’m going to spread some positivity.”