Hartford Stage Sues Production Company For Failing to Refund $145,000 Following Cancelled Production of THE KING'S SPEECH

Hartford Stage has sued a production company for failing to refund $145,000 in deposits following the cancellation its run of The King's Speech, The Hartford Courant reports.

King's Speech on Stage LLC, is being sued by the Hartford Stage, which agreed to pay $350,000 to present 30 performances of the play. The stage company paid King's Speech on Stage $225,000 by February 15 before the show was cancelled on March 12.

King's Speech on Stage LLC has only returned $80,000, according to the suit. On June 16, Hartford Stage received a $70,000 payment from King's Speech on Stage, and another $10,000 on June 29.

The lawsuit was filed on August 4, and states that King's Speech on Stage LLC sent a letter on April 7 that the company "is not currently in a financial position to pay the requested $225,000."

"Defendant's failure to refund the $145,000, at time when Hartford Stage has had to cease performances during the pandemic, has forced Hartford Stage to reduce their staff by 75 percent and has jeopardized the viability of Hartford Stage's future operations," the suit states.

The show was canceled under the force majeure clause of the Nov. 6, 2019 contract, which was signed by Executive Director Cynthia Rider and General Manager Nathan Gehan. The clause allows cancellation "by reason of an event out of the control of either party, such as fire, flood, war, terrorist act, public disaster, strikes or labor difficulties, governmental enactment, regulation or order."

Read the original story on The Hartford Courant.