In mid April, the Julie Taymor version of the Broadway musical disaster Spider-Man: Turn Off the Dark unofficially closed so that the show could be retooled with a new story in the hopes of saving the show from total failure. After all of the injuries and technical glitches that plagued the show from the start last November, the hope is that a new version of the show might keep players from getting injured AND entertain audiences. Last night, the new version of Turn Off the Dark opened to previews … and altho there still were some technical problems, the show managed NOT to injure anyone so … it sounds like it’s off to a positive start.
With a streamlined plot pitting young love against duty, and a conflicted superhero against a droll supervillain, the musical “Spider-Man: Turn Off the Dark” resumed performances on Broadway on Thursday after an unusual, three-and-a-half-week hiatus and creative overhaul that the producers hope will give the $70 million show a stronger shot at financial and critical success. Aside from a couple of technical glitches and one late entrance, the show unfolded fairly smoothly, without any of the obvious accidents, injuries or mechanical malfunctions that turned “Spider-Man” into an unusually vivid news story (for Broadway) and frequent punch line for late-night comics throughout the winter.
While the two lead producers of “Spider-Man” appeared on stage before the curtain rose and declared that the show was virtually brand new, Thursday’s “Spider-Man” had many of the same design, flying and story elements conceived by the musical’s original director, Julie Taymor, who was ousted in March.
The revamped show featured one entirely new song, “A Freak Like Me” at the top of Act II, written by U2’s Bono and the Edge, the show’s composers. Three other, newly titled musical numbers incorporated elements of songs that existed in Ms. Taymor’s version of the show, and parts of those songs had fresh lyrics. Three songs from the Taymor production were cut, most belonging to one of her original characters, the spider-villainess Arachne.
The biggest changes, however, came in the plot and in the structure of the show. Extensive dialogue has been added, at least for now, that illuminates the anxieties and dreams of the main character, Peter Parker (Reeve Carney), who becomes Spider-Man late in Act I. The creative team that replaced Ms. Taymor also expanded the romantic subplot between Peter and his childhood best friend, Mary Jane Watson (Jennifer Damiano, who, the producers announced to audience cheers, turned 20 on Thursday). At the same time, they significantly changed the character of Arachne. In Ms. Taymor’s production, Arachne evolved into the show’s primary villain and came to dominate Act II, performing or sharing four of its nine songs. In the new show, Arachne appears only a few times, as a sort of guardian angel for Peter, and on Thursday night had only one of the nine songs in Act II. In her place, the new team has expanded the character of Norman Osborn, who becomes the joke-spewing Green Goblin, originally a primary player in Act I. In addition, the technically ambitious flying sequence — an aerial battle between Spider-Man and the Green Goblin — has been moved from the end of Act 1 to the Act II finale; that scene has replaced a showdown between Spider-Man and Arachne that took place on a massive net that proved difficult to deploy at many performances. As a result of the restructuring, relatively little flying — one of the show’s chief selling points for theatergoing families — occurs in Act I.
I can’t tell if the changes are enough to make the show better but I’d put good money on chances that this version of Spider-Man, which focuses more on the character myth we already know and love and NOT on Taymour‘s ill-conceived dramatics, will do much better with critics and fans. Truth be told, I’d be willing to see this new version of Turn Off the Dark again. While the show that I saw was pretty terrible, I’d be willing to take a chance and see the show again in the hopes that producers finally got the story right. If any of y’all get to see this new version of Turn Off the Dark, you gotta let me know what you think. Hopefully, all we’ll hear about from here on out are happy audience members rather than dangerous injuries and fan complaints.
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I saw the show last night with a friend who had seen the Taymour version previously twice. She identified a few changes to Act 1 and noted that Act 2 had been completely rewritten for the better.
In my opinion, it is still a screwed up mess. If this is a fixed show, I would hate to see what it was like before. Yes, the stunts were cool. Yes, the costumes were amazing. Yes, the sets were interesting. Still, I couldn’t care less for any of the characters nor the story. U2, while an iconic rock band, should not write music for the stage — just like Elton John should not write for the stage. I was bored and could not wait to get out of the theatre.
I see A LOT of theater. This show panders to the audience and does not belong on Broadway. It is a shame that shows like this sell tickets while shows that have a message to convey while they entertain (Scottsboro Boy’s) close early. People should be directed to other shows — even Off-Broadway (School for Lies) — that are more worth while and MUCH more creative. I feel like this will be my “Carrie.” And if you don’t get that reference, why are you even reading about “Spider-man Turn Off the Dark.”