Sounds to me like the GREASE! thing was a fairly high-profile to-do if they were advertising around Philly with print ads and such. Philadelphia's a big market and, as DR Elmore pointed out, Sam French had the authors breathing down their neck about it. It's the licensing house's job to protect the intellectual property of an author, so if the author says "make them change it or shut it down," that's what we have to do as long as there's a legitimate reason for doing so.
The group in question didn't cast the show as an all-women's show because they couldn't find men who could play the roles - they were doing it to change it up...to set it up as an all-girl's school performing GREASE! In the world of intellectual property, they re-conceived the show. That was not the authors' original intent or vision, so the authors wanted it changed or closed down. Similarly, the Bernstein estate has been very specific about WEST SIDE STORY - it is not to be played in a modern day setting, nor is it to be presented in concert. We also have very specific guidelines concerning song order for that show - you cannot rearrange the stage production to reflect what is presented in the film.
One can say the lines and sing the songs word for word, but there is a big grey area called "intent," and ultimately the author - the creator of the material - should have final say in how it is presented.
As to refunds and such for productions that have been C&D'ed - I dunno how that works. I personally have never handled a cease and desist - our lawyer would handle all of that stuff.
And just to cover my butt (in case anyone from any of the licensing houses reads this), I am speaking solely on my own behalf. I do not claim to be an official rep for my company or any other and I acknowledge that my views on these matters comes from my point of view. I don't know everything about the business - certainly not the legal aspect of it - but I am marginally able to speak about these things in generic terms. Does that exonerate me?
