The Stage

New lead producer Cohl lined up for Broadway’s Spider-Man

Published Monday 9 November 2009 at 15:28 by Judd Hollander

The producers of the upcoming musical Spider-Man Turn Off The Dark have announced that the show, which was put on hold last August due to reported money and creative problems, is now back on track.

However, while announcing the show has brought in former Live Nation chairman Michael Cohl as its new lead producer, producers have also revealed that complete financing is still not in place, although they expect to have full finance shortly and once they do the show will “resume full production.”

The production was put on hold last August when the needed financing failed to come together. The exact cost of the show has not been revealed, but it has been estimated to be as high as $40 million.

“Having started early on with Spider-Man and now taking on the lead producing role is extremely exciting and a welcome challenge,” Cohl said. “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!”

Director Julie Taymor echoed Cohl’s upbeat opinion by noting “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.”

Producers have also not confirmed a specific opening date for the show. Previously, they had remained committed to beginning previews at the end of February 2010 with an opening in March - a timetable now all-but-impossible to meet. While the creative team is determined to open the show in 2010, exactly when is unclear.

It has also been announced that actor Reeve Carney will be playing the role of Peter Parker (Spider-Man’s alter-ego) in the musical. Carney, who has his own rock band, previously worked with Taymor in a filmed adaptation of The Tempest, and also starred in the filmed version of the novel Snow Falling On Cedars. Carney will join already announced cast members Evan Rachel Wood as Mary Jane Watson and Alan Cumming as Norman Osborn/The Green Goblin).

Founder of S2BN Entertainment, and a native of Toronto, new lead producer Cohl began his career more than 40 years ago with Concert Productions International. He has specialised in producing music concerts, but has also been involved with several theatrical events including the Toronto productions of The Lion King, Hairspray and The Producers. On Broadway he has been co-producer on Bombay Dreams. In the West End, Cohl was involved in the Woman in White and Spamalot, as well as The Lord of the Rings. He was also previously the chairman of Live Nation.