So I was heading into school today, and I see that "Bend and Snap"'and "Gay or European" have both been cut from my Legally Blonde at my school! Well there goes two major plot points in the musical! I don't know why the drama director would cut them, but she did. Now I go to a Catholic high school but I see both these songs fairly appropriate for our generation. "Bend and Snap" tells how Paulette hooks up with Kyle and "Gay or European" gets a major problem in the court case settled: is Nikos gay or European. And I thought the MTI Performance License said you couldn't cut any existing material from the play, especially music.
I'm going to say that this is the new thing I've learned today. I had never heard of a license that said that you couldn't cut material from a play. I think that every play I've seen has had at least something cut or modified in some way. I've also been in a bunch of productions where we've made either huge changes or cobbled together something from several different sources. Mind you, I've only administrated copyright through CCLI.You go to a Catholic school...why are you surprised?
MTI probably only acts upon complaints. Are you ready to open that can of worms? I know I would...no, wait. I'd change to a public school.
What difference would it make if you cut or changed something? If you've bought the music and/or you have purchased the right to put on a particular show, everyone's properly paid. I supposed you could argue that you're corrupting the author's work, but I've seen performances that would have corrupted it even if the song was performed in full.