Reports: 'Stomp' will be leaving the East Village

[Photo by Derek Berg]

Following up on the reports from yesterday in which the owners of the Orpheum Theater were suing the producers of "Stomp" to prevent the 21-year-old show from leaving the neighborhood.

However, a Manhattan judge ruled yesterday that the production is allowed to discontinue its contract and move on to a new theater in Midtown.

Why the seemingly sudden departure? Per the Daily News:

Glenn Spiegel, a lawyer for 'Stomp''s producers, said the show has been a 'cash cow' milked for years by Orpheum’s owners who have refused to maintain the historic theater for years.

"'Stomp' did not want to move,” but 'it smells like sewage' in the lobby, the carpets are in a state of disrepair and there are signs in the rest rooms asking people to dispose of soiled toilet paper in the waste basket, not the toilets, Spiegel said.

The lawyer also said patrons have complained about rats, which have been seen in larger numbers in the neighborhood since a gas explosion two doors down on Second Ave. leveled three buildings and killed two people on March 26.

"The show decided we can’t function like this any more," he said.

However, Manhattan Supreme Court Justice Jeffrey Oing told "Stomp"'s lawyers "that he will hold the production liable for damages — and will undo its contract with the new theater — if an arbitrator rules that 'Stomp' had no right to move.

As for the Orpheum, reps argued that they had been in the process of making the repairs and that the "Stomp" producers should allow the theater some more time before their departure. Their primary concern is that the venue will suffer financially without the show, according to an article in Playbill.

As for when "Stomp" might leave for New World Stages, a multi-theater complex on West 50th Street, the News mentioned it would happen as of June 15.

We just checked the "Stomp" website and found tickets available at the Orpheum through Jan. 3, 2016.