And more: “Spider Man,” which I’ve defended right along on Broadway, is having bigger problems than ever. Creator Julie Taymor still has no deal to leave the show, even though she’s not working on it right now. No one knows why the producers don’t have a deal, since they wanted to get her out so fast. What else: they seem to have fired Taymor’s choreographer, Daniel Ezralow, whose work everyone liked. The word is he’ll be replaced by a young guy with no Broadway credits. Meanwhile. TV Carpio, who’s been playing Arachne, is out for two weeks. I’ve been told she actually hurt herself at the March 16th matinee, getting “bumped” backstage during the matinee by Spider Man. Her publicist Adam Kersh tells me she’s ok, doesn’t need a neck brace, but is taking precautions.
That’s not what happened to her predecessor, Natalie Mendoza, at the very first performance last November. Mendoza actually got a concussion. Now America Olivo, who succeeded Mendoza, will fill in for Carpio. Yes, today is March 22, 2011 and this show first started performances on November 28, 2010. Since that time, the mid east has broken out into civil wars, Japan has had earthquakes and tsunamis, and Justin Bieber has had a hair cut.
A little more: I was told last week that the major script revisions are following pretty much what I’ve suggested all along: stop the first act at the point of a cliffhanger, pick up after intermission with more of the first act, combine in elements of the second act. Also, reduce Arachne’s time and move her into the second act. We’ll see what happens.
