On April 17 audiences had the final chance to see original director/co-bookwriter/co-creator Julie Taymor's vision for the musical, which at that time had yet to officially open, although numerous critics filed mostly negative reviews in February.
The musical went on hiatus following that performance and a preview period that had included several cast injuries and numerous delays for the opening night. When performances resumed May 12, the production featured major changes to the book and new songs by Bono and The Edge as well as the return of injured actor Christopher Tierney.
Expected to attend the opening night are President Bill Clinton, Leonardo DiCaprio, Liam Neeson, Vanessa Redgrave, Spike Lee, Christy Turlington and Ed Burns, Diane Von Furstenberg and Barry Diller, Lou Reed and Laurie Anderson, Deborah Cox, Cindy Crawford and Rande Gerber, Countess de Lesseps, Lord Andrew Lloyd Webber, Helena Christensen, The Strokes, Joanne Woodward, Glen Hansard, John McEnroe, Jann Wenner, Lesley Stahl, Nur Kahn, Amy Irving, Marco Antonio Solis and Harry Belafonte.
Newcomers were also recently added to the creative team, including playwright Roberto Aguirre-Sacasa (a Marvel comics writer and an acclaimed dramatist), director Philip Wm. McKinley (The Boy From Oz) and choreographer Chase Brock, who provided musical staging for the City Center Encores! production of Lost in the Stars and also worked on the Wii video game "Dance on Broadway."
It was previously announced that "due to the new schedule, director and co-book writer Julie Taymor will no longer continue in her day-to-day duties with the production." According to the current Playbill for the musical, music and lyrics are by Bono and The Edge; with a book by Julie Taymor, Glenn Berger and Roberto Aguirre-Sacasa; choreography and aerial choreography by Daniel Ezralow; additional choreography by Chase Brock; and original direction by Julie Taymor. Philip Wm. McKinley is billed as the creative consultant.
photo by Jacob Cohl |
The cast features Reeve Carney as Peter Parker/Spider-Man, Next to Normal Tony nominee Jennifer Damiano as Mary Jane Watson, T.V. Carpio as Arachne, Broadway veteran Patrick Page as Norman Osborn/The Green Goblin, Michael Mulheren, Ken Marks, Isabel Keating, Jeb Brown, Matthew James Thomas, Laura Beth Wells, Matt Caplan, Dwayne Clark, Luther Creek, Kevin Aubin, Gerald Avery, Collin Baja, Marcus Bellamy, Emmanuel Brown, Jessica Leigh Brown, Daniel Curry, Erin Elliott, Craig Henningsen, Dana Marie Ingraham, Ayo Jackson, Joshua Kobak, Megan Lewis, Ari Loeb, Natalie Lomonte, Kevin Loomis, Kristin Martin, Jodi McFadden, Bethany Moore, Kristen Faith Oei, Jennifer Christine Perry, Kyle Post, Brandon Rubendall, Sean Samuels, Dollar Tan, Joey Taranto and Christopher W. Tierney. To view credits for all cast members, click here.
Spider-Man, according to press notes, "follows the story of teenager Peter Parker, whose unremarkable life is turned upside-down when he's bitten by a genetically altered spider and wakes up the next morning clinging to his bedroom ceiling. This bullied science-geek suddenly endowed with incredible powers soon learns, however, that with great power comes great responsibility as villains put both his physical strength and strength of character to the test."
The new performance schedule follows: Tuesday-Thursday at 7:30 PM, Wednesday at 1:30 PM, Friday and Saturday at 8 PM, Saturday at 2 PM and Sunday at 3 PM.
"Music from Spider-Man Turn Off the Dark" also arrives on Interscope Records June 14. Featuring 14 new tracks, the recording was produced by frequent U2 collaborator Steve Lillywhite. Songs are performed by the musical's cast with contributions from Bono and The Edge and music performed by the production's 20-member strong orchestra.
The track listing follows:
NY Debut (Instrumental)
Boy Falls from the Sky
Rise Above 1
Picture This
I Just Can't Walk Away (Say It Now)
Bouncing off the Walls
Pull the Trigger
No More
DIY World
If the World Should End
Sinistereo (features The Edge)
A Freak Like Me
Rise Above 2
Turn Off the Dark
Lead producers of the musical are Michael Cohl and Jeremiah J. Harris. Also producing are Land Line Productions, Hello Entertainment/David Garfinkle/Tony Adams, Sony Pictures Entertainment, Norton Herrick and Herrick Entertainment, Billy Rovzar & Fernando Rovzar, Stephen Bronfman, Jeffrey B. Hecktman, Omneity Entertainment/Richard G. Weinberg, James L. Nederlander, Terry Allen Kramer, S2BN Entertainment, Jam Theatricals, The Mayerson/Gould/Hauser/Tysoe Group, Patricia Lambrecht, and Paul McGuinness, by arrangement with Marvel Entertainment.
Tickets are currently on sale through Oct. 2. Visit SpiderManOnBroadway.com.
View highlights from the show: