New SPIDEY Details from 'Spider Man' Reeve Carney!

In an interview with Examiner out yesterday, Reeve Carney reveals that SPIDER-MAN is indeed gearing up for rehearsals at last, beginning on August 10, 2010. Currently on tour with the UK band, Athlete, Carney's band, Carney, will play a final show in Chicago for 'Taste of Chicago' on July 4th and together head to New York to begin rehearsals for the show.  The three additional members of the Carney band will play in SPIDER-MAN's orchestra pit.

The interview reveals that the show will play 8 performances a week, 6 nights a week, and that the band will continue to play concerts on both the east and west coasts throughout the run. Says Carney: "We are probably going to be playing a weekly residency in New York City so people that come to see the musical can see what we do as a band. We are hard workers and we love to play music, it is what we do. We cannot just quit because we have extra work on our plate, so we are going to keep playing regularly."

SPIDER-MAN director, Julie Taymor, was so impressed with Carney's sound that she intends to incorporate some of their flair into the musical.  Says Reeve's brother Zane, and Carney's guitarist who will be playing in the SPIDER-MAN pit: "Julie Taymor actually came to one of our gigs in New York recently and came up after, and was talking to me saying, 'What were you guys doing with those songs? You wrote songs on stage improvising, we have to work that into the show,' so they are really bringing the Carney flavor into the Spider-Man musical."

Reeve recognizes the unique opportunity for his band being involved in the musical, stating: "There is so much great music in the world that never gets heard because people don't generally get opportunities like this. The great thing for a band like us is we didn't compromise the integrity of our music to get mass exposure. We've gotten this vehicle that automatically gives you mass exposure with Marvel, Spider-Man, Disney, Julie Taymor, Bono and The Edge, which is crazy."

To read Carney's full interview in The Examiner, click here.

As BroadwayWorld reported yesterday, Marvel Comics has granted the production a 5th (and an alleged final) extension on the rights, in anticipation of a November or December opening.  Previews would begin in October.

A group sales presentation is reportedly also in the works.

The upcoming SPIDER-MAN: Turn Off the Dark musical was scheduled to begin previews on February 25, 2010. Financial troubles and a makeover of the producing team has delayed the opening to an undetermined date next season. Auditions for the role of Mary Jane Watson (formerly held by Evan Rachel Wood) and for the ensemble were held in April. The production's home will remain at the Hilton Theatre.

Michael Cohl is joined by Jeremiah J. Harris HELLO Entertainment/David Garfinkle, Marvel Entertainment/David Maisel, and Sony Pictures Entertainment on the producing team.
After an exhaustive search that included a casting call tour spanning six cities and thousands of candidates, the producers and creative team selected Reeve Carney to play the role of Peter Parker, The Amazing Spider-Man. It is rumored that NEXT TO NORMAL's Jennifer Damiano may assume the role of Mary Jane Watson, following Evan Rachel Wood's recent departure from the show.

Bono and The Edge, who have written the music and lyrics for the production said, "Our ambition was to find a Peter Parker who could really act and sing, but who still brings a kind of performance that could be new to Broadway audiences. We wanted something a little more authentically rock and roll. Reeve is everything we could have hoped for: an amazing voice and a truly charismatic presence."

Drawing from over 40 years of Marvel comic books for inspiration, SPIDER-MAN spins a new take on the mythic tale of a young man propelled from a modest rowhouse in Queens to the sky-scraping spire of the Chrysler Building, the bustling offices of the Daily Bugle, through the dizzying canyons of Manhattan, to new vistas never before seen. The musical follows the story of teenager Peter Parker, whose unremarkable life is turned upside-down literally when he's bitten by a genetically altered spider and wakes up the next morning clinging to his bedroom ceiling. This bullied science-geek suddenly endowed with astonishing powers soon learns, however, that with great power comes great responsibility as villains test not only his physical strength but also his strength of character. Spider-Man's battles will hurtle the audience through an origin story both recognizable and unexpected yielding new characters as well as familiar faces until a final surprising confrontation casts a startling new light on this hero's journey.

SPIDER-MAN features music and lyrics by 22-time Grammy® Award-winners Bono and The Edge of U2 with direction by Tony® Award-winner Julie Taymor (The Tempest, Across The Universe, The Lion King). SPIDER-MAN is written by Julie Taymor and GLen berger (Underneath The Lintel). The principal creative and design team for SPIDER-MAN includes Daniel Ezralow, Choreographer (Across the Universe, The Green Bird); George Tsypin, Sets (The Magic Flute, The Little Mermaid); Eiko Ishioka, Costumes (Academy Award® for Bram Stoker's Dracula, Tony Award® nomination for M. Butterfly, the opening ceremonies for the Beijing Olympics); Donald Holder, Lighting (Tony® Awards for The Lion King, South Pacific); Jonathan Deans, Sound (Fosse, The Beatles LOVE by Cirque du Soleil, Young Frankenstein); and Teese Gohl, Musical Supervisor (Across the Universe, Frida). Additional members of the SPIDER-MAN creative team will be announced at a later date.

Photo Credit: Walter McBride/Retna Ltd.