'Idol' Contestant Upsets Families Over Refunds for Failed Musical

According to the Huffington Post, American Idol Semi-Finalist Todrick Hall has caused some controversy regarding performance refunds for a show Hall wrote and directed.

The Huffington Post reports that Hall, who made it to the top 24 last week on American Idol, "wrote 'Oz, The Musical,' which he billed on its Facebook page as 'a contemporary twist on the classic story, with all new music.'"

Hall staged small-scale productions of the musical throughout 2008 until a third party agreed to fund a professional production of the show according to the Huffington Post. A national tour was planned for the show until money problems halted all plans for the production. Parents of children who auditioned for the failed national tour are now upset that their $50 performance fee has not been refunded as of yet according to the Huffington Post.

The Huffington Post states that Hall could not participate in an interview due to Idol's media restrictions placed on contestants, but he did "generally confirm" that reports surrounding this story were true.

American Idol is a reality competition to find new solo musical talent, created by Simon Fuller. It debuted June 11, 2002 on the Fox network and has since become one of the most popular shows on American television. It is currently the #1 TV show in the Nielsen Ratings and is one of only three that have been #1 for five consecutive seasons. The cast of "Idol" includes judges Simon Cowell, Randy Jackson, Kara DioGuardi, and Ellen Degeneres, and host Ryan Seacrest.

The program aims to discover the best singer in the country through a series of nation-wide auditions, and subsequent viewer voting. Through telephone voting, America has chosen past winners Kelly Clarkson, Ruben Studdard, Fantasia Barrino, Carrie Underwood, Taylor Hicks, Jordin Sparks, David Cook, and Kris Allen.

Several "Idol" contestants have been seen on the Broadway stage, including Barrino (The Color Purple), Hicks (Grease), Clay Aiken (Spamalot), Diana DeGarmo(Hairspray), Josh Strickland (Tarzan), Tamyra Gray (Rent, Bombay Dreams), and Constantine Maroulis (The Wedding Singer, Rock of Ages).

American Idol airs on Tuesday and Wednesday nights on Fox at 8PM EST.

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