Lucas Jackson/Reuters Banners advertising the Broadway musical “Spider-Man: Turn Off The Dark” in front of Foxwoods Theater in late December.The producers of Broadway’s “Spider-Man: Turn Off the Dark” are considering delaying the musical’s opening night for a sixth time, people familiar with the deliberations say, to make more changes to the show in hopes of improving its worldwide commercial prospects after theater critics savaged it this month.
Among the ideas under consideration are again postponing the opening, which is scheduled for March 15, until as late as June, and turning the performance on the 15th into a celebration of sorts for the work done so far.
The management team of “Spider-Man” has already made plans for the show on March 15 to be an invitation-only performance at 4:30 p.m., followed by an A-list gala at the Grand Hyatt New York, said three people with knowledge of the deliberations who spoke anonymously because the producers did not want information disclosed until a final decision was made.
On Saturday, a spokesman for the production, Rick Miramontez, said only, “Opening night remains scheduled for March 15.”
By far the most expensive musical in Broadway history, created for $65 million and costing $1 million a week to run, “Spider-Man” has also become one of the most problem-ridden. Four performers have been injured (one of whom quit), and a mix of early financial troubles and, now, artistic ones have led to delays of the opening night since last year.
Sunday’s matinee will be the 90th preview performance — most new musicals hold about 30 previews before opening — and “Spider-Man” is on track to set a record next Sunday for the most ever.
The three people who discussed the deliberations said they expected a decision regarding opening night to be made as early as this weekend; if it is postponed, an announcement will be made this week. The three emphasized that the opening March 15 could still take place, with the Hyatt event serving as its after-party. These people said some executives in the “Spider-Man” camp were concerned that an invitation-only performance and a gala on the 15th could appear confusing and presumptuous if the opening were to be postponed.
Opening nights are important psychically, as well as practically, in the life of a show, given that most productions are “frozen” by that point — meaning that few, if any, artistic changes are inserted — and reviews from influential critics usually run soon afterward. Most of the country’s major theater critics reviewed “Spider-Man” this month after its opening was delayed a fifth time, and many of them plan to return to review the musical once again after it officially opens.
The sources said “Spider-Man” producers, led by Michael Cohl and Jeremiah J. Harris, were inclined to delay because they saw no point in opening on March 15 if the critics were going to return and issue another round of negative reviews. That would assume the “Spider-Man” creative team had not had enough time to demonstrably change the show since critics saw it the first week in February. Ben Brantley, the chief theater critic of The New York Times, wrote in his review that “Spider-Man” may “rank among the worst” musicals in Broadway history.
The producers view “Spider-Man” as a commercial property with huge reach and with the potential to run for years in cities around the world, given the global popularity of the Spider-Man brand and the involvement of famous artists like the show’s composers, Bono and the Edge of U2, and its director, Julie Taymor, a Tony Award winner for the musical “The Lion King.”
A significant delay could keep “Spider-Man” from competing in this year’s Tony Awards; shows must open by April 28 to be eligible for nominations. It was not clear how significant further changes to the musical might be. Bono and the Edge have been writing new music, and Ms. Taymor has been making alterations to the show virtually every week since previews began on Nov. 28.
This month, the producers hired Paul Bogaev, a veteran Broadway music supervisor and conductor, as a consultant, and they have also been talking to the playwright Roberto Aguirre-Sacasa and the theater director Philip William McKinley (“The Boy From Oz”) about working with Ms. Taymor and her team. Mr. Miramontez said on Saturday that no one other than Mr. Bogaev had been hired.