VAPE: The Musical (A Parody of Grease)

The funniest parody musical around, Sketchworks Comedy’s “Vape the Musical” brings a fresh comedic take to the classic musical “Grease” by looking at it through a 21st Century lens. Lampooning and poking fun at the abrupt plot points, outdated ideas, and overt misogyny of the beloved original! After a successful Atlanta run in 2018 and 2019 – where the show was nominated for 10 Broadway World Atlanta Awards and won “Best New Work (non-professional).” – “Vape” was scheduled to premiere in New York City in August 2019 at Improv Asylum. Ten days before the first performance, the rightsholders of “Grease” served Sketchworks Comedy a cease and desist letter. The “Grease” team claimed Sketchworks Comedy had no right to perform “Vape the Musical” because it violated their copyright. However, copyright law in the United States must be balanced by the First Amendment right to free speech. As a result, Sketchworks Comedy made the decision to file a lawsuit against the “Grease” rightsholders. After a two-and-a-half year legal battle, Chief Judge Laura Taylor Swain of the Manhattan federal court ruled that “Vape the Musical” is, indeed, a parody. Swain said that by keeping the “Grease” characters and plot arc while changing the script and lyrics, “Vape” “comments on how misogynistic tendencies have both evolved since ‘Grease’ was developed and remain the same.”   Sketchworks Comedy is free to bring “Vape the Musical” back to the stage!