Rialto Chatter: SPIDER-MAN Update - Seasoned Producers McCollum & Seller Approached

While there has been no official news on the SPIDER-MAN front since an announcement on November 6 that Michael Cohl had joined the show as lead producer, and that it would indeed "open in 2010" things have been rolling along behind the scenes trying to put everything into place. 

The New York Times Arts Beat column is reporting today that Cohl has reached out to seasoned producers Kevin McCollum and Jeffrey Seller (WEST SIDE STORY, IN THE HEIGHTS, AVENUE Q, LA BOHEME, RAGTIME and more) about investing in the show. No one will comment on the record, and the producing pair is already known to have a full slate of other potential shows lined up, including CARRIE, which had a pair of readings on Friday. Cohl is said to have approached other seasoned producers as well for both expertise and for investments. 

The last SPIDER-MAN news hit the wires back on November 6, when the new producing team of the Broadway-bound show met with the show's key creatives today and confirmed a slew of news, including that Michael Cohl had joined the production as lead producer on the show. Jeremiah J. Harris is now second producer on the show. The full producing team for SPIDER-MAN Turn Off The Dark is Michael Cohl, Jeremiah J. Harris, HELLO Entertainment/David Garfinkle, Marvel Entertainment/David Maisel, and Sony Pictures Entertainment.

On November 6, the producers said that full financing for SPIDER-MAN is expected to be in place shortly. Once this happens the show will resume full production. The show will open in 2010 at the Hilton Theatre in New York.

Michael Cohl said, "Having started early on with SPIDER-MAN and now taking on the lead producing role is extremely exciting and a welcome challenge. Knowing the details and intricacies of this wildly ambitious project, I want to 'turn off the dark' on all the wild speculation about the show -- it's moving forward!"

SPIDER-MAN director Julie Taymor said, "With a team that includes Bono, Edge and Glen Berger, there was never a question in my mind that SPIDER-MAN would happen - it was just a matter of when. I am delighted that Michael Cohl is making this a reality."

After an exhaustive search that included a casting call tour spanning six cities and thousands of candidates, the producers and creative team have selected Reeve Carney to play the role of Peter Parker, The Amazing Spider-Man. Carney joins previously announced cast members Evan Rachel Wood as Mary Jane Watson, Peter Parker's girlfriend and Alan Cumming as Norman Osborn (aka Green Goblin).

Reeve is the lead singer of CARNEY, the hot up and coming rock band whose newest single "Love Me Chase Me" was just released. The band's first full length album, entitled Mr. Green, will be released in early 2010 on Interscope Records. Reeve's acting credits include Julie Taymor's upcoming film version of The Tempest and the film version of the acclaimed novel Snow Falling on Cedars.

Julie Taymor continued, "Having recently finished shooting The Tempest with Reeve as the young prince, I am thrilled to cast him in an entirely different role as Peter Parker in SPIDER-MAN. When I first saw Reeve, he was performing with his terrific band Carney. The music of Bono and Edge requires an extraordinary talent- not only is Reeve a great rock and roll singer but his acting is equally fresh and authentic."

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.

TICKET INFORMATION:
Tickets for SPIDER-MAN Turn Off The Dark are now on sale exclusively for American Express® Cardmembers at Ticketmaster.com, by calling 1-800-745-3000, or at all Ticketmaster outlets.

Reeve Carney (Peter Parker) looks the part of the hero in a Tim Burton fairy-tale. That's fine with the young musician/singer/actor, as he counts Burton as one of his many inspirations, along with Screamin' Jay Hawkins, Walt Disney, The Beatles, Texas swing music, and, as he hesitantly admits, "a lot of obscure artists I wouldn't expect people to know."

At the age of 8, he recorded an album with Peter, Paul and Mary and a few years later he was contacted by Michael Jackson to sing on one of the tracks of HIStory. In 1997, when his mother could no longer afford guitar lessons, she brought him to an old Los Angeles blues club where he started to play weekly with artists more than twice his age. Now with over a decade of live shows behind him, the experience is evident in his incredible stage presence and skillful handling of the guitar and piano.

Reeve is the lead singer and lead guitarist of CARNEY, the up and coming rock band currently touring North America. In CARNEY, Reeve is accompanied by his brother Zane who shares lead guitar in the band, Aiden Moore on bass, and Jon Epcar on the drums. CARNEY'S newest single "Love Me Chase Me" was released this summer and the band's first full length album, entitled Mr. Green, is scheduled for an early 2010 release on Interscope Records. For more information on CARNEY, please visit www.CarneyTheBand.com.

As an actor, Reeve's credits include the young prince Ferdinand in Julie Taymor's upcoming film adaptation of The Tempest and the film version of the acclaimed novel Snow Falling on Cedars.