STAGE TUBE: Reeve Carney Talks SPIDER-MAN, Taymor

Reeve Carney acts as band frontman for 'Carney'. His extracurricular activities include playing the role of Peter Parker/Spiderman in the upcoming Julie Taymor-directed Broadway production of "Spiderman: Turn Off The Dark", featuring music written by Bono and The Edge. "An amazing voice and a truly charismatic presence", raves Bono of Reeve. Reeve Carney has also been cast in the film adaptation of William Shakespeare's The Tempest alongside Helen Mirren, Alan Cumming and Russell Brand.

L.A.-based rock band Carney set out on tour this summer in support of their eagerly awaited debut album Mr. Green Vol. 1 out May 11th on DAS Label/Interscope. Carney also headlined a special album release show on May 15th at LA's El Rey Theatre before embarking on a cross-country tour supporting UK songsmiths, Athlete, kicking off May 31st at Maxwell's in Hoboken, NJ.

Carney are known for their incendiary live show with regular sold out LA residencies at the El Rey Theatre and The Troubadour. Named one of the hottest bands at Lollapalooza by Spin, the band has also won over crowds at Bonnaroo, San Diego Street Scene and Outside Lands Festival, with Entertainment Weekly naming Reeve Carney (lead vocals/guitar) "one of the 10 Rising Stars to watch in 2010."

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.

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.