Australia's Rachael Gunn, known as B-Girl Raygun at the 2024 Summer Olympics, on Aug 9, 2024, in Paris, France. Photo: AP
Australian Olympic breakdancer Rachael “Raygun” Gunn says her legal dispute with the maker of a parody musical about her has been resolved, with a new version planned.
The 37-year-old hit out at online reaction to the Raygun: The Musical affair as “so negative and awful, just awful”.
Gunn’s performances at the Paris Olympics in August – which included kangaroo hops and a move imitating a sprinkler – failed to impress the judges and were lampooned around the world.
The comedienne behind the musical, fellow Australian Stephanie Broadbridge, cancelled the original show before it opened in December, saying Gunn’s lawyers had threatened action to protect her reputation and dance moves.
“I’m really pleased to say we have resolved everything,” Gunn said in a video posted to her Instagram account on Dec 19.
“We’ve managed to come to an agreement. As you know, she gets to go ahead with the musical – she’s got a new name, new poster, and she still gets to take that show on the road.”
Gunn said she was “sorry for any hurt” caused in the dispute, stressing that was never her intention.
“This has been a stressful time for me and it’s been tough,” she said, adding that she was keen to “put the whole thing to bed”.
Broadbridge posted a message on Instagram as well, saying she was “deeply sorry” for the backlash against the breakdancer.
The comedienne unveiled a poster for the new show, Breaking The Musical, which was subtitled “A completely legal parody musical”.
The poster describes the show as being ranked No.1 “by the world musical sports federation” and also features a silhouette of a kangaroo doing a dance step similar to Gunn’s signature move.
The musical is scheduled to tour Adelaide, Melbourne and Sydney.
“The show is a comedy show, it is based entirely on stuff I read on the Internet. It is a fictional telling of a moment in Australian history,” Broadbridge said. – AFP
The new promotional image of the parody musical does not feature Raygun's name, but has the silhouette of a kangaroo doing a dance step similar to her routine. Photos: Stephanie Broadbridge/Instagram
