David Byrne-Fatboy Slim Broadway Musical Reaches Union Agreement Over Pre-Recorded Track Flap

deadline.com:

Twelve musicians will be included in the upcoming Broadway production of the David Byrne-Fatboy Slim musical Here Lies Love, an agreement reached today in a labor dispute over the use of pre-recorded music tracks. “After negotiation, we have reached an agreement that will bring live music to Here Lies Love with the inclusion of 12 musicians to the show,” said Tino Gagliardi, president and executive director of Local 802 NYC Musicians Union. “Broadway is a very special place with the best musicians and performances in the world, and we are glad this agreement honors that tradition.” The musical’s producers said in their own statement, “On behalf of our entire cast, company and creative team, we have reached an agreement with Musicians Union Local 802, per the collective bargaining agreement.

We look forward to welcoming audiences to experience the revolutionary musical experience that is Here Lies Love at the Broadway Theatre beginning on Saturday, June 17.” No further details of the agreement were disclosed, but the union had previously noted that the required minimum number of musicians at the Broadway Theatre is 19.

The use of pre-recorded tracks in the musical – a practice producers of Here Lies Love had defended as being integral to the artistic vision of the show, which places the story of former Filipina First Lady Imelda Marcos within a disco dance club context.

While producers had insisted that the pre-recorded dance tracks, which had previously been used in Off Broadway and London stagings of the show, were “part of the karaoke genre inherent to the musical,” the union called the concept an “existential threat to Broadway.” The immersive production will place a segment of the audience seated in a reconstructed