You’re not gonna believe this, or mebbe you will, but producers for the embattled Broadway musical Spider-Man: Turn Off the Dark have announced that the show’s official opening night has been pushed back AGAIN another month! In mid-December we learned that the show’s delayed January opening (pushed back from December) would be pushed back to February … today, we learn that the opening has been pushed back again to March (apparently because the show needs to be tweaked and a new ending has to be tested). The New York Daily News published a spirited article about this latest delay and it is DEFFO worth reading.

For weeks it has come up on an almost daily basis, a question asked by friends, co-workers and former colleagues: Have you seen “Spider-Man” yet?

Nope.

And if it were up to the producers of this overexposed and overindulged musical, I never would.

On Thursday, producers announced that the show’s official opening has been postponed from Feb. 7 to March 15.

Surprising? A shocker? Um, no.

It’s the fourth time the premiere of this $65 million injury- and problem-prone show has been stalled.

But come on, already.

The company line is that the five-week delay is about making fixes and honing. (The show will shutter Jan. 18 and Jan. 25 to that end.) Director Julie Taymor, famous for “The Lion King,” her co-writer Glen Berger, and U2 rockers Bono and The Edge need time “to fine-tune aspects of the show, including the new ending.” Yeah, the ending. As if it should come as a bolt from the blue that a show needs an ending. Then again, Taymor excels at beginnings. The first 20 minutes of “Lion King” are its most majestic. After that? Well. ” ‘Spider-Man: Turn Off the Dark” is 10 times more complicated to tech than anything else; the preview schedule allows only very limited rehearsal time [12 hours a week],” said producer Michael Cohl. “I picked a date in March that allows me to ensure that this will be the final postponement.” Blah, blah, blah. It’s not about complexity. It’s about manipulation. Every passing day, the brains behind this production seem to be making a desperate attempt to keep the wolves at bay and the press and the public in the dark about the show for as long as possible — while selling out a Broadway theater at full price with an audience drawn, perhaps, by the possibility that an actor will fall from the rafters … In recent weeks, several critics have broken ranks and reviewed the show. Their comments ran from lukewarm to scathing. And clearly the producers have no confidence in the material. But we shouldn’t be surprised by the delays and damage-control spin. We see spin in every level of our lives, from used-car salesmen (“Just ignore those mushy brakes”) to politicians (“We’ll lower taxes next year”) trying to hold down the negative and keep you guessing while you’re laying out your hard-earned bucks. Spidey’s game can only go on so long.

LOL. This is beyond ridiculous. I mean … I can’t even deal. That being said, David and I will be in NYC at the end of February and we have our tickets for the show. When we bought them, we thought the show would be open … but now we learn we’ll be seeing a show that is still in previews. The show is entrenching itself as a joke … and nothing will be able to undo the damage. Yes, people are flocking to the show … but everyone loves a spectacle. When the dust settles I fear that all will be left is a $65 million dollar behemoth of a flop with an embarrassing reputation. But, again, I know that I have wanted to see the show all along … but now I can’t tell if I’m just a fool or merely hungry for the spectacle.

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