More bad news for the troubled Broadway musical Spider-Man: Turn Off the Dark … according to a new report from the New York Times, the show is about to lose one of its lead actresses. Natalie Mendoza was injured during a performance of Turn Off the Dark a few weeks ago and suffered a concussion as a result. Apparently, the latest accident which involved Christopher Tierney was the final straw for the actress … she is now ready to cut her losses and get the HELL out while she still can.

One of the lead actresses in Broadway’s “Spider-Man: Turn Off the Dark,” Natalie Mendoza, who suffered a concussion during the musical’s first preview performance last month, is leaving the production, according to two people who work on the show and who spoke on condition of anonymity. Ms. Mendoza’s representatives and the producers of “Spider-Man” have been hammering out an exit agreement for days now, and an official statement is expected as early as Tuesday, the two people said. They spoke on condition of anonymity because the producers have forbidden public comments given that lawyers and others are still fine-tuning the language to explain Ms. Mendoza’s departure, an artistic loss and embarrassing blow to the production. Ms. Mendoza’s spokesman, Shea Martin, on Monday declined a request to interview the actress, and also declined to comment on her departure. Ms. Mendoza did not reply to messages sent to her on Monday morning. Her last performance was on Monday, Dec. 20; the production has said that she has been on vocal rest since then, under doctors’ orders. But she was also shaken by a bad accident that occurred mid-performance on Dec. 20 involving her castmate and friend, Christopher Tierney, according to a fellow actor in the musical.

Mendoza was cast as the original Spider-Man villain Arachne and is an integral character for Act II of the show. As I understand it, director Julie Taymor worked closely with Mendoza to bring this character to life. Turn Off the Dark was Mendoza‘s Broadway debut … but many of y’all may recognize her from the amazing horror film The Descent. Altho there has been no official confirmation of Mendoza‘s leaving the show, I suspect we’ll be hearing something official very soon.

Alas … another set-back for the flailing $65 million dollar behemoth of a show. While most certainly a replacement will be found and put into place for Mendoza‘s character, this is NOT good news for the show. It’s not yet clear if Mendoza‘s exit will inspire other players in the show to quit but … well … I wouldn’t at all be surprised if players started pulling out of the show in the very near future. Ugh. How much more bad stuff can happen before this show is forced to close for good?

[Source, thanks Meghan]