The Artful Jurist

I grant you that "The Rocky Horror Show" isn't for everyone.  In other words, "My Fair Lady" it ain't.  But is this decades-old stage musical still pushing the bounds for theater audiences?

Apparently, the mayor of the town of Carrollton, Georgia, seems to think so.  According to reports, Mayor Wayne Garner pulled the plug on a scheduled production at the city-owned Cultural Arts Center because, after seeing a video of a rehearsal, he thought the production "too risqué" for the townsfolk.  Mr. Garner is quoted as saying, "If that play was allowed to proceed...we'd be run out of town."

(The Dramatists Guild's president, Stephen Schwartz, has an open letter of opposition to Mr. Garner's action available for reading on the Guild's website.)

Well, now, let's look at what we've got here.  We've got a city official putting the kibosh on a theatrical production based on its content.  Sure sounds like it could be a First Amendment issue, doesn't it?  And, as I understand First Amendment interpretations regarding free speech, when the government stops speech based on its content, the government has to provide a compelling reason.

So you be the judge?...  Is the mayor being "run out of town" a compelling rationale?

In all fairness, the mayor hasn't said the show can't be performed in Carrollton.  He's just not allowing it to be performed in the city-owned facility.  That echoes like a "time, place, and manner" issue for free speech.  But, even there, it still seems you'd have to show some logical reason why it's okay for the show to be performed in one theater venue but not in another.