It's official: "Spider-Man: Turn Off The Dark" and director Julie Taymor have parted ways.
The move was announced via a statement from the show's producers yesterday, along with the expected delay for the show's opening. Instead of opening next week on March 15, the team is now targeting an "early summer" premiere, with preview performances put on hold until the script is reworked.
The statement from "Turn Off The Dark" producers also indicated that Taymor will be replaced by veteran Broadway director Philip William McKinley and the previously rumored addition Roberto Aguirre-Sacasa, a playwright and "Spider-Man" comic-book writer.
"The additional time commitment required by this new plan will make it impossible for director and co-book writer Julie Taymor to continue on in her day-to-day duties with the production," the producers explained in the statement.
In addition to McKinley and Aguirre-Sacasa, the creative team has also sought help with the music and sound quality of the show, though producers insisted that Taymor will will still be involved in the $65 million project.
"Her vision has been at the heart of this production since its inception and will continue to be so," they wrote in the statement. "Julie's previous commitments mean that past March 15th, she cannot work the 24/7 necessary to make the changes in the production in order to be ready for our opening. We cannot exaggerate how technically difficult it is to make such changes to a show of this complexity."
U2 bandmates Bono and The Edge, who composed the show's score, also chimed in with their support for the director.
"Julie is a truly gifted and imaginative director. This is an epic ride, and the standing ovations we have seen from the preview audiences have confirmed our absolute faith in the project," they wrote. "We are listening and learning and, as a result, we have a couple of new songs we are very very excited about putting into the mix. All of us on the creative team are committed to taking 'Spider-Man' to the next level. We are confident it will reach its full potential and when it does, it will open."
At press time, Taymor did not make a public statement about the news.
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