Image Credit: Jacob Cohl from PopWatch.EW.com
Spiderman Turn Off the Dark has been on my list of plays to take my son to for some time. Neither of us are particularly Spiderman fans, but when it comes to NYC theater, whenever there’s a show with kids appeal, I’m there with one or both of my children.
In addition, who couldn’t resist the temptation to see a show that took nine years to make and has cost about $100 million to produce? And who couldn’t resist the allure of Julie Taymor and U2? Sadly, Taymor was let go from the production early this year, but I have read that her marks were left on the production and as a long time fan, I was curious to see what they were.
And of course, who couldn’t resist the urge to see what all the hoopla has been about? The accidents, the rewrites, the staff changes, the cast departures, curiosity about the flying around the theater and that special section right below much it? Yes, that would be me.
I must preface this review by saying that I didn’t see the original version, so I sadly have nothing to compare this show to. I’ve seen all the Spiderman films and am a big fan of them. I am not sure what my hopes were for this show, but I don’t think that I expected to love it.
I have good news and I have bad news. Which do you want first?
Let’s start with the bad news. It’s my understanding that Taymor was replaced with a former circus director, Philip McKinley. As soon as we walked into the theater, there’s a massive gift shop with Spiderman merchandise, and the theater itself felt like a circus. The staging. The opening set. The show starts out as loud, big, over the top. The set is right out of a cartoon. While the main performers are outstanding from the get go, Reeve Carney in particular, the supporting cast seems like a bunch of amateurs and it lessens the quality of the first act. T.V. Carpio, as Arachne, also has a fine voice, and I enjoyed the first few numbers between Peter and Arachne but after their initial numbers, things went from bad to worse for me. During intermission, I asked my smiling seat mate her thoughts about the show, and she couldn’t answer me. Turns out she spoke no English and it was no wonder she was having such a good time. I overheard one man say to his company that the best part of the show so far was the intermission.
But in all fairness, what was I expecting? This was Spiderman, not a serious play. One of the character sums up the plays’s fear of reviews splendidly in one line when the editor of The Bugle, the paper that Peter Parker works for, murmers, “We’re fighting bloggers.” But they are’t completely fighting me. I did see some positive elements in this show.
So, now the good news. There were plenty of kids in the audience, including my own, who enjoyed the show. Near the end of the first act, when we first had a glimpse of the flying
hero, it all got more interesting. It’s a lot of fun for a child to watch an actual flying superhero and his enemy in the air for two hours, and there is a lot of flying and special effects. My 6 year old was engaged, he seems to understand the plot, which wasn’t very difficult to follow and he clapped after every song. For a mom who loves musical theater, this made me smile.
On the way into the show, we forgot to pick up a booster seat, so my son had to sit on my lap during the first act. My son is not typically affectionate with me, so I loved the fact that he willingly sat on my lap and we shared the experience together, but do plan to pick up a car seat on your way in. The ushers will not bring you one (yes, I did ask but the curtain was about to rise. Yes, I have to count bonding with my son as a result of the show and that’s a positive note.
More good points – I’m a big fan of U2, and while some of the music in the show doesn’t work, there is a familiar U2 chord that runs throughout the show and there are a few songs that have stayed in my mind since I left the show a few hours ago, always a good sign. ”Rise Above” and “If the World Should End”, in particular. We also hear actual U2 songs throughout the show – well, at least twice. One time while a character is on hold, it’s the holding music, and another time the show’s characters dance to a U2 song in a disco. I have to admit that I do feel like Bono and the Edge’s vision for this show must have started out very differently than the result they ended up with. As a Taymor fan, I did think that the pieces that I enjoyed the most – the duets between Peter Parker and Mary Jane (played by Jennifer Daminao, who has a beautiful voice but seemed a bit old for the role) and between Peter and Arachne must have been the mark that she left behind.
My son really enjoyed Spiderman Turn Off the Dark, so I will have to say that this show is more for kids than for adults. If you are looking for a Broadway experience for your child, or you’re a Spiderman fanatic, this might be the show for you.
Disclosure: I was provided two complimentary tickets to facilitate this review, but all opinions expressed are my own
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