Its been riddled with technical snafus and safety issues for months. Its lead actress quit. And its been delayed an unprecedented 6 times with a record number of preview performances.
“Spider-Man: Turn Off The Dark” is the 3rd highest grossing musical on Broadway. But its myriad of problems combined with awful reviews for the show written and directed by Julie Taymor has been a virtual nightmare. Now, big changes are in store for the most expensive musical in Broadway history.
Last week, producers announced that Taymor has been relieved of her duties as director of the musical. The show will take the next few months to introduce a new script and direction, which will now open sometime during the summer — at least 6 months past its original opening date. Philip William McKinley will take over as director, while Roberto Aguirre-Sacasa will help fix the storyline. Musical consultant Paul Bogaev and sound designer Peter Hylenski are also being added to assist creatively.
“Spider-Man…” will continue performances during the overhaul of the show, while Taymor is being asked to remain a member of the creative team, in an unknown capacity. In a recent statement and attempt to smooth things over, producers said:
“Julie Taymor is not leaving the creative team. Her vision has been at the heart of this production since its inception and will continue to be so. Julie’s previous commitments mean that past March 15th, she cannot work the 24/7 necessary to make the changes in the production in order to be ready for our opening. We cannot exaggerate how technically difficult it is to make such changes to a show of this complexity, so it’s with great pride that we announce that Phil McKinley is joining the creative team. Phil is hugely experienced with productions of this scale and is exactly what SPIDER-MAN Turn off the Dark needs right now.”
Well at least they made a whole lot of money tricking people into seeing a unfinished product at full price.