"Adventures of a Comic Book Artist" - Theater Report

The Planet X Comics table

The Comic Store West table

I attended the play Adventures of a Comic Book Artist yesterday at the York Little Theater. It is a kid friendly show so I decided to take my five year old son (he's the one dressed up as Spidey, of course!) It was my first time at the theater so I didn't know what you expect. I was quite impressed with the carnival-like atmosphere they created!

Inter-Company crossover

Spidey teaches Batman
how to webswing.

First, when you walked in the door you were greeted in a mini "comic book convention." Two local comic book shops had tables set up in the lobby. Both stores were giving away Free Comic Book Day comics and had a modest amount of merchandise to sell. Both stores had wisely selected only kid-friendly comics for display since the crowd was going to be full of kids. Both stores also had people dressed up in character for the kids. Comic Store West had the version of Batman from the Dark Knight movies and a great homemade Thor costume. Planet X had classic Batman, Green Arrow, and Indiana Jones, each with a publicity stills that they were signing. Also in the lobby they were serving refreshments and, of course, selling tickets.

Thor takes a fighting pose

York Little Theater is also celebrating its 80th anniversary and hosting a number of special events. They were featuring a decade at a time and were showcasing the 80's with a featured display.

Green Arrow had the best costume

During intermission there was a costume contest. My son dressed up as Spider-Man. There was also a Peter Parker, Supergirl, Captain America, Mr. Noface, and a weird skeletal alien thing. The contest was decided by the cheers from the crow with Mr. Noface and Captain America taking the prizes.

After the show we got to take a tour of all the backstage areas including rigging, rear projection, prop creation, the soundroom, and the lighting areas. Very nice!

The play itself was very cute. You could tell that it was written by a lifelong comic book fan because of the witty banter in it. Characters throughout the play make scores of references to both popular and obscure comic book characters and even slip into "geek-speak" to discuss these characters. For example, one character mentions Venom's weakness to fire and sonics while another analyzes Mr. Fantastic's motivation of guilty feelings at having mutated his friends.

Indy helps Green Arrow
make an adjustment

The costume contest at intermission

The main character is Stanley (This alone tells me the writer is a superfan... get it - Stan-Lee!), an aspiring comic book artist. He accidentally gets a hold of a magical pen that makes anything drawn with it come to life. Meanwhile, the staff of the comic book company uses the pens to create a supervillain that can freeze time... Dr. Shock Clock! To respond, Stanley creates the Fabulous Four - Starguy (with his Charisma Ray), Triple Time (superfast), Blossom (magical flowers for various effects) and Wombat Woman (burrow through anything!). This band of misfits fights Dr. Shock Clock unsuccessfully and Stanley himself has to become Eraser Man to fight Dr. Shock Clock!

The play and the atmosphere were highly enjoyable. If you're in the York, PA area I would suggest checking it out. I think it is only running for another week so get your tickets fast!

Spider-Man: Turn Off the Dark - Review Summary

1LR has dissected the Broadway musical Spider-Man: Turn Off the Dark by examining several significant components of the show. Let's review -

Music got a 17 out of 20 - a Solid Hit!

Story got a 15 out of 20 - a Hit!

Costumes got a 14 out of 20 - a Hit!

Sets got a 18 out of 20 - A Solid Hit!

Action got a 20 out of 20 - A Critical Hit!

And, although it wasn't rated, the entire experience of attending a Broadway musical at the Foxwood Theatre was delightful, from the magnificent architecture to the friendliness and helpfulness of the staff.

But how did these disparate pieces fit together? Well, as you might imagine, with every component of the show being rated positively, the overall experience of the show was very enjoyable. 

One thing that I didn't mention previously was how funny the show is. Although the general tone of the show is pretty heavy and somber there are a few very funny moments to break the tension. The Green Goblin seems to deliver most of these moments. At one point, he is trying to call in a threat to the Daily Bugle only to be thwarted by an automated receptionist. In another funny scene, he sings the song "I'll Take Manhattan," to  illustrate his intent to literally take it over. 

J. Jonah Jameson is also used for some comedic relief. His character is largely inspired by J.K. Simmons's performance in the Spider-Man movies and he constantly terrorizes his employees with his over the top antics.

Sure, Spider-Man: Turn Off the Dark isn't without its flaws. At times the story meanders a little, the Sinister Six are underutilized, the script is a little too much like the movies, and some slight tweaks to the origin story make it less emotionally significant.

But don't buy the hype that this show is a joke. It may have had its share of struggles getting off the ground but the final product is a serious and truly unique interpretation of a character that's been reinvented a hundred times before. 

The cast and characters of Spider-Man: Turn Off the Dark.

Bottom line: Spider-Man: Turn Off the Dark is a must-see for any Spidey fan. Casual fans, fans of theater, and children are also all likely to enjoy this awe-inspiring show.

1LR REVIEW - 18 out of 20! It's a Solid Hit!

Spider-Man: Turn Off the Dark - Action Review

Sure, the story, music, sets and costumes were all great in Spider-Man: Turn Off the Dark but isn't it really all about the action? That's what people are really plopping down their hard earned greenbacks for.

Spidey action!

Well, Spider-Man: Turn Off the Dark delivers in spades! And it doesn't wait for Spidey to show up to deliver it!

Two early songs, "Bullying by Numbers," and, "Bouncing Off the Walls," feature some early action. Of course, "Bullying by Numbers," features Peter Parker being tormented by Flash and his bully squad. But Peter soon gains his spider powers and "Bouncing Off the Walls" has Peter literally jumping around the walls and ceiling of his room, exploring his new might. He then runs into Flash again, but this time it's a really cool live-action slow motion sequence that is meant to demonstrate Peter's increased reflexes and Spider-Sense power.

It's soon thereafter that Spider-Man swings onto the scene! That first moment when Spidey swings off the stage and over the crowd is a truly magical one. In what amounts to a montage, we see Spidey stopping petty crooks and criminals. Doubles are used to create the illusion that Spidey has super speed - one minute he's swinging across the theater, the next he's standing in the crowd, firing webs over their heads.

In the second act, Spidey uses the Sinister Six like appetizers before the entree. In a quick succession of scenes Spidey defeats one after another, leaving only the Green Goblin as the sole threat remaining.

Spidey and the Green Goblin tangle in mid-air.

The final fight sequence with the Green Goblin is shocking in its complexity. Spider-Man and the Green Goblin zoom around the theater in a complicated series of exchanges. I was awed by the mere fact that they could somehow achieve this feat without crossing and tangling their wires. At one point, Spidey actually lands on top of the Green Goblin. Of course, Spidey is victorious but the real winners are the audience that get to delight in this stunning action sequence.

The success or failure of this show depended solely on the strength of the action and at every turn it delivered.

1LR REVIEW - 20 out of 20! It's a Critical Hit!

Spider-Man: Turn Off the Dark - Sets Review

It's strange to say this, but the sets for Spider-Man: Turn Off the Dark were one of the best things about the entire production.

Aerial fabric acrobats from Spider-Man: Turn Off the Dark

The stage itself is incredibly complex. It is outfitted with conveyor belts and sections that raise and lower, going below the stage. Ramps can be raised and lowered. There are dozens of large set pieces that move and shift throughout the show.

But, of course, the action isn't all on the stage. Really, the action takes place around the entire theater. There are various access doors, landing platforms, and the wires (for webswinging stunts) throughout the entire theater. This makes watching the production an immersive experience. Your attention is constantly being drawn away from the stage and to various locations throughout the theater. The crowd gets showered with webbing. Spider-Man runs through the aisles, pausing to give a few fist bumps to some eager young fans. 

Norman's lab (concept art)

The first sequence with Arachne features some aerial fabric acrobats actually weaving a massive tapestry as horizontal cloth shoots between the carefully timed acrobats. The result is a stunning visual that really sets the tone for the show - this is going to be a no-holds barred experience.

In a "normal scene" such as Peter's classroom or inside Peter's house the walls and set pieces all are done in a hand-drawn, abstract comic book style full of distorted proportions and impossible angles. At first they appear to be two dimensional. That is, until characters actually interact with them, like sitting down on a couch that you could swear was just a flat wooden stand up. Paying homage to the medium of the source material only earns brownie points with me. But more than that, the sets just seem to work. They set the audience's expectations for the show - a sheer fantasy thrill ride. The sets say, "In this world, the fantastic is possible." 

Empire State Building
from Spider-Man: Turn Off the Dark

The set that is perhaps the most stunning is the Chrysler Building set. This perspective-twisting set features an absolutely massive Chrysler Building. But it's not standing upright - instead, it's raised at an angle. The wall behind it becomes the street below, complete with moving cars. This puts the audience at the perspective of being above New York in the air looking down upon the city. The Spider-Man action that ensues then showcases him wallcrawling on the Chrysler Building and webswinging around.

The Spider-Man dance sequence

Another brilliant set is featured during the song, "Anywhere but here." Peter and Mary Jane walk home from school together and as they go, this incredibly complex series of two dimensional houses are quickly and smartly folded, unfolded, and refolded. At one point, the houses are arranged as to give the perspective of looking down a long street (biggest houses closer). At another point, the houses are refolded to make it appear that MJ and Peter are standing very close to a row of houses. After the houses had been refolded about 20 times, I was stunned when they opened the doors on two of the houses and stepped into the unfolding interiors of their houses, complete with actors playing Uncle Ben, Aunt May, and Mary Jane's father in additional to various set pieces! I know I can't describe it with enough to detail to convey how complicated this set piece. The final revelation of the house interiors is something akin to a magic trick. You just scratch your head and say, "How did they do that?" 

Projected image on multiple moving screens

The show uses a series of projectors to enhances the sets as well. When this is combined with moving set pieces this sometimes makes it difficult to tell what is real and what is projected. The perfect example of this is the Spider-Men dance number. The scene starts out with one Spider-Man on stage, going through a dance routine. Behind him, multiple long vertical screens are being projected on as they move and slide around the stage. Then, from behind one is revealed a Spider-Man. At first I thought it was merely being projected until he steps forward and starts dancing as well. This is repeated until the stage is filled with Spider-Men. It's a mesmerizing scene and it uses the projector technology almost as a slight-of-hand trick on the audience. 

Just the sheer diversity and scope of the different sets is impressive. The show's designers didn't go for the quick, simple or easy in most cases. They pushed the envelope at every turn and the result is a visual candy store. 

1LR REVIEW - 18 out of 20! It's a Solid Hit!

Spider-Man: Turn Off the Dark - Costumes Review

Costumes for Spider-Man: Turn Off the Dark

Costumes in Spider-Man really ran the gamut from ordinary to truly unique, faithful to the comics to original, serious to laughable.

Notice the air-brush effects
on Spidey

Hammerhead

The costumes for the "ordinary" characters (Mary Jane, Aunt May, Uncle Ben, Peter, Flash, etc.) were... ordinary. They spoke to the characters (Peter dressed pretty nerdy, scientist Norman Osborne wears a white lab coat, while Flash and his goons' dress was jock-y and trendy)  but weren't outstanding in any way... which is good, I guess, that they weren't "noticeable" since if the audience noticed them it would most likely be for the wrong reasons.
Now, for the superhuman characters the costumes were anything but ordinary.

First, let's look at Spider-Man. How do you do something original with a costume that has been reimagined at least a hundred times? Well, the production crew managed to keep the most essential elements while making their own marks at the same time. They kept the classic coloring scheme of red and blue (even giving each color a specific meaning as Arachne inspires Peter to choose those colors). The basic outline of the costume is very similar - webs over red boots, red chest and hands, red mask with everything else blue. The colors are a little less bright than in Sam Raimi's Spider-Man movies. The webs are white instead of black. Spidey's mask is largely unchanged, perhaps closest to Todd McFarlane's wide-eyed Spider-Man. The chest emblem is large and has a red spot on the abdomen of the Spider. But probably the most unique element they added was the air-brushed effects. Notice how there is not a distinct line between the red and blue. Instead, one bleeds into the other gradually. There are even red streaks going down Spider-Man's legs.

Kraven

Carnage

While Spider-Man's costume was merely tweaked, the Green Goblin's costume is a radical departure from any version seen before. This Green Goblin mutates his own DNA so this isn't a costume he can take off and put back on - it's a whole new body for him. A variety of bright greens and some yellowish colors cover every inch of the costume from head to toe. It has the feeling of plated armor with many layers overlapping and jutting out. Spikes stick up from his shoulders and forearms. But the face is the best part of the costume - features like the chin, nose, cheeks and forehead are exaggerated, allowing the actor to show emotion even though his entire face is covered. The final result is a creepy looking insect creature that is one part menace and one part clown (he has a number of very funny moments in the show).

As for Hammerhead and the Sinister Six, the results are mixed at best. Hammerhead and his goons are the villains that Spider-Man fights in his public debut so they are shown to be completely black-and-white to highlight the bright focus of Spider-Man streaking across the sky. The depiction is extremely faithful to the comics. Like a lot of the villains, the actor wears a huge, stylized exaggerated head to make them look more like comic book characters.

The Sinister' Six + Green Goblin
(From left to right - Electro, Carnage, Green Goblin, Miss Swiss, Swarm, Kraven, Lizard)

Kraven the Hunter is done in the same manner (oversized head and exaggerated comic book features). His costume is a very faithful translation from the comics and instantly tells you everything you need to know about the character.

Lizard

Carnage may have had the coolest costume in the show. It's a shame he had such a minor role in the play! His symbiote was expressed visually with red swirls all over his costume and red, curling tendrils coming off his body that swayed when he moved. Creepy eyes and a mouth nearly jumped out of this red outfit.

Electro's costume wasn't much different than his traditional yellow-and-green duds. He sparkled a bit. In his hands he had some spark projectors of some type but the effect is just too pathetically tiny to convey any real threat for Spidey.

Miss Swiss

The Lizard was perhaps the worst costume in the show. It was laughable, really. Essentially, there's a giant blow-up alligator coming out of the midsection of a man standing up. The lizard's lab coat is thrown over the man's head. The end result is this awkward half-man, half-balloon thing that seemed to have two heads.

Swarm (design illustration)

Swarm was, likewise, an awful character design. The entire suit was head-to-toe yellow and black stripes. Randomly, sticks stuck out at all angles with a little bee on the end of it. When Swarm moved, the bees bounced around. But the costume just didn't convey that Swarm is MADE of bees. Perhaps if bees had been all over the costume this would have gotten across. The end result just looked silly. There weren't enough bees to make Swarm look threatening.

Miss Swiss is the only original character for the show. Her design was over the top with lots of spinning and swirling blades. The effect was visually interesting on the stage but you wondered how this person went to the bathroom or blew their nose. The blade and spike on one kneecap shows just how over the top they went with this costume.

Arachne

Perhaps the best costume of the entire show, however, is Arachne. Arachne undergoes an evolution throughout the show, starting out as a normal human and being transformed into a full fledged spider before our eyes. The mechanical spider arms extend out from behind her and truly move like spider legs. I know I keep raving about Arachne but every aspect of this character was the best Spider-Man: Turn Off the Dark had to offer.

But the worst costume of the show wasn't even a costume. It was Bonesaw, as played by an inflatable wrestler controlled by a stage hand dressed in black! That's right - the wrestler that Spider-Man fights isn't a human wearing a costume at all but rather a gigantic blow-up doll! The moment is truly awful, the low point of the show.

So, as you can see, the costumes range for simply ludicrous to ludicrously amazing. But the main characters (Spider-Man, Green Goblin, Arachne) are all done extremely well.

1LR REVIEW - 14 out of 20! It's a Hit!

Spider-Man: Turn Off the Dark - Story Review

How can a comic book hero with a fifty year comic book history have his story adapted for the stage?

Some of the best parts of Spider-Man: Turn Off the Dark were inspired not from comic books but from classic theater. In classic Greek theater, the Greek Chorus narrated the story, carried the themes forward, and gave the audience background information to move the story forward. Shakespeare used the Three Witches (or Weird Sisters or Sister Fates) in his play Macbeth for much the same function. In Spider-Man: Turn Off the Dark Arachne serves in this role.

Spider-Man: Turn Off the Dark pits Spidey against the Green Goblin

The play opens with Peter Parker giving a report on the myth of Arachne. Arachne challenges the goddess Athena to a weaving contest and wins, only to be turned into the first spider because she blasphemed the gods. Thematically, the idea of a human being transformed into an animal is mirrored by Norman Osborne's experiments in human-animal DNA hybrids.

Arachne then revisits Peter throughout the play, guiding him toward the heroic path, telling him to "rise above" his own concerns and doubts and to do the right thing.

Some of the plot was obviously directly inspired by the first two Spider-Man films. First, the characters are almost identical: Peter, Mary Jane, Flash Thompson Norman Osborne, Aunt May, Uncle Ben, Robbie Robertson and J. Jonah Jameson. Notably absent was Harry Osborne. It would have been nice to use other characters such as Felicia Hardy, Liz Allen, Ned Leeds, Jean DeWolff, Glory Grant, or Gwen Stacy.

The storyline closely mirrors the first two movies, sometimes almost scene by scene. Peter gets bit, comes home sick, and wakes up with amazing powers, just like the first movies. He wrestles with Bonesaw (not Crusher Hogan like the comics), just like the movie. He fights the Green Goblin (who invites Spider-Man to join him), just like the first movie. He quits being Spider-Man at one point and his costume ends up on J. Jonah Jameson's wall, just like in the second movie. Peter and Mary Jane romance one another, but Peter is always absent and misses the opening of her play, just like the movies. I could go on and on!

Spider-Man: Turn Off the Dark's
Miss Swiss

Now I don't want to make it sound like the ENTIRE play is exactly like the movie. There are certainly a fair number of original elements as well. Spider-Man:Turn Off the Dark features not one villain but EIGHT (and the villainous group, Viper)! When Spider-Man is first testing out his powers he stops bank robbers lead by the villain Hammerhead. Then, of course, Norman Osborne becomes the Green Goblin. Osborne then turns all of his lab assistants into superhumans as well, making the Sinister Six! The Sinister Six is comprised of Carnage, the Lizard, Kraven the Hunter, Electro, Swarm, and the all-new character,  Miss Swiss! Miss Swiss is a walking Swiss Army Knife with spinning blades all over. All of the Sinister Six is very underdeveloped and are dispatched in several quick scenes, however. Strangely Spider-Man never learns about Viper, the group responsible for pushing Osborne into making his DNA hybrid creations. This leaves the major bad guy organization behind the whole thing off scott free - an odd loose end in the story.

While the plot is extremely full with many different elements, it (for the most part) seems to smoothly weave them together and flow from one to the next. There are times that seem to be fast-forwarded over that I wish had been given more attention, such as Uncle Ben's death and funeral (in the play, the origin is changed slightly and Spidey never has a chance to stop the thief, lessening the impact of the scene. Also, Spidey never tracks down his uncle's killer!). The theme of rising above adversity and your own limitations is seen brightly throughout the play, which helps tie the entire show together.

The finished product was much stronger than reports of the initial story before extensive revisions. While not perfect, the plot balances character, story, and action very nicely.

1LR REVIEW - 15 out of 20! It's a Hit!

Spider-Man: Turn Off the Dark - Music Review

Bono is the creative force behind Spider-Man's music

The music to Spider-Man: Turn Off the Dark was, of course, famously composed by Bono and The Edge, and U2 also gets credit for some of the songs. This is one of the things that first attracted a lot of attention to this production.

So when the curtains rose, I was keenly anticipating the music. Whatever you do, don't expect to go to this show to hear music done in the style of U2. Not to say the music is bad, but Bono gave the tunes their own style for this musical.

The songs carry a lot of emotional weight. Sometimes, such as in the first "Rise Above" and "No More," we feel how alone and trapped Mary Jane and Peter feel. The lyrics not only paint a picture of the daily lives of the main characters but also give you great insight into their thinking such as when, in "No More," Mary Jane sings, "Dad'll yell, tune him out, he's drunk by now, he has to shout... Let me disappear, or just be anywhere but here." "If the World Should End" shows us that this is no casual teenage romance - Peter and Mary Jane are rescuing each other. When Peter sings, "Everyday I feel the walls are closing in..." in "No More" it shows the brilliance of the lyrical arrangement because this not only reveals his mental state but also strikes a literal contrast to the later song, "Bouncing Off the Walls," when the walls to Peter's room literally move apart as he explores his new-found powers and leaps from wall to wall.

Arachne in full costume

At other times, the music soars high and is filled with frantic energy such as "Bouncing Off the Walls," and the soaring orchestra number that is played when Peter suits up and exuberantly swings around the theater for the first time, "NY Debut." Even

"DIY World," is inspirational with its grand vision of a future uptopia fueled by genetic modification.

Songs that highlight the villains have their own tone to them as well. "Sinistereo," slinks and slithers its way through enchanting, droning lyrics that seem more intent on using the sound of a syllable than the actual words the syllables make... until you listen carefully to the lyrics. "Pull the Trigger," has a aggressive military tone as goons cajole Norman Osborne into cooperation.

But without a shadow of a doubt, the best songs in the show belong to the Arachne character, played by Katrina Lenk. Ms. Lenk's voice is one of the most beautiful I have ever heard in my entire life. To add to that, she sings while suspended from wires dressed in a full body spider costume with moving mechanical legs. To add to the difficulty, she doesn't just hang their passively but rather does flips and twists at the same time she's belting out high notes. She sings the song that gives the show it's name, "Turn Off the Dark," and my skin broke out in goosebumps. The accompanying music isn't sonorous or grandiose but, instead, simply and understated - at times, just a rhythmic tapping on a xylophone. She also sings "Behond and Wonder" and "Rise Above." I'm not a judge on American Idol or anything so forgive my poor description. She is above to "warble" and stretch her voice, carrying a single word or syllable like a thread across a long range of notes. Since she appears only in Peter's mind and dreams, the effect is perfect - nearly hypnotic, yet strangely stirring.

The music is used for much more than just convey emotion, give background, and give us insights into the thoughts of the characters. It is also used to advance the plot in significant ways. "Picture This" leads to Osborne deciding to experiment on himself and "Venom" is sung as Peter receives the fateful bite from that special spider.

But that's not all - the theme of the show - rising above adversity - is carried almost entirely in the music. Two different versions of "Rise Above" are sung during the musical and the single most memorable lyric of the show is when Matthew James Thomas sang, in a soaring voice, "And you said, 'Rise above... yourself.'"

There are times, however, when the music feels uneven. There will be a moment where a lyric will deliver a profound, almost philosophical thought such as Mary Jane singing, "There's no time for sorrow, when there's no such thing as time," in the number "If the World Should End." " But at other times, the lyrics come off as being uninspired, such as, in the song "No More," when Peter sings, "And why do I need these stupid glasses?" The line leaves you wondering why Peter is whining about his glasses when Mary Jane is afraid for her life from her alcoholic abusive father.

Overall, the voices of the main cast were good but, with the exception of Ms. Lenk, not fantastic. The music doesn't disappoint and is has great depth. At times I would say some of the songs could have been a bit shorter but each song is unique and does a great job of setting and carrying the mood and tone of each scene.

1LR REVIEW - 17 out of 20! It's a Solid Hit!

Spider-Man: Turn Off the Dark - Broadway Experience

My wife, standing on raised stairs
outside the Foxwood Theatre.

The Foxwood Theatre on the 43rd street side

I recently told a friend that I had attended the Broadway play, Spider-Man: Turn Off the Dark. He chuckled and then said, "Why?", as if to insinuate that the play was a horrible joke.

Sure, the Spider-Man show had some trouble getting off the ground with injuries and production delays. But let me assure you - the show is no joke.

The musical is playing at the Foxwood Theatre in New York City. The Foxwood Theatre is between 42nd and 43rd streets on Broadway, right near Times Square. That alone tells you that this show is no joke. It's been playing to sold out crowds for over a year now. Sure, it took $75 million to get this show off the ground (compared to the normal $10 million or so for a Broadway show) but that's because the show's creators were doing things that nobody else had done before. Whatever you say about Spider-Man,  you can't say it isn't ambitious! Besides, the show is taking in healthy box office totals (In its best week it took in nearly $3 million!).

I was so thrilled I tried to webswing (Webs away!).

We were going to the early show on a Saturday so we arrived early to pick up our tickets at Will Call. No problems at all there. We were in-and-out in no time at all.

During our wait until the show started, we toured around Times Square and even encountered Spider-Man himself at the three-story Toys R' Us! You could get your picture taken with Spider-Man for a "small" fee but we declined.

Upon returning to the theater we were shocked to find a long line winding down the street. It was completely blocking the fronts of multiple stores on that same side of the street. Apparently, we weren't the only ones anxious for the show either! You can actually enter the theater from either side - 42nd or 43rd streets.

My wife and I dressed up for the show as we normally would for the theater but the vast majority of the crowd was dressed casually. I noticed a lot of Spider-Man tee-shirts, of course.

My wife also tried to webswing... kinda

The crowd had a good deal of families in it. There were a lot of young kids in attendance. I found this hard to believe, especially since the cheapest seats in the house would cost you around $100 with the most expensive seats going for about $300! So a family of four could easily drop $600 on tickets alone!

We finally were let into the theater. The first thing you walk past after the box office windows is a little station selling Spider-Man: Turn Off the Dark merchandise. Of course the prices were a bit jacked up but I couldn't resist buying the CD for the show. There are a good half dozen or so little merchandise kiosks throughout the theater, all offering the same basic merchandise. I would have loved to buy a T-shirt but they were just too much. They even have a full bar available!

Inside the Foxwood Theatre

After the merchandise desk we were greeted by Spider-Man himself! If you're willing, they take your picture with Spider-Man and they give you a card so you can check it out (and potentially purchase it) after the show. I've got to say, when it comes to things like this, I'm a kid again. It was so cool to get my picture taken with Spider-Man!

Finally, we made our way inside the actual auditorium of the theater. It's an impressive theater. The theater itself is awe-inspiring, both inside the auditorium and out. Don't think of your typical movie theater which has a flat floor. This theater is tiered into several layers and has balcony seating on the sides.

My wife and I sat in the upper balcony and we weren't disappointed. They say there isn't a bad seat in the house and I think that's mostly true, especially for this production when the action not only happens on the stage but also all around the whole theater. I'm sure shorter children might have difficulty seeing from some seats, the design of the theater is such that you can see the stage from any vantage point. It was only when the actors were at the extreme front edge of the stage that my wife and I had any impaired vision at all and even then we could still see the actors from the waist up.

The beautiful lobby to the Foxwood Theatre

I won't tell you about the show itself. I'll save that for my multi-part review coming in the next few days. I'll be reviewing and dissecting every aspect of the show - music, acting, costumes, action, etc.

Spider-Man: Turn Off the Dark's Playbill

 But let's just say that fans, both young and old, were delighted by the show. I, of course, will never forget going. And I don't think I'm the only one. I remember, on our way out, seeing one young fan clutching something in his closed fist. His mother asked him, "What do you have there?" He cautiously opened his hand to reveal a tangled bunch of white string confetti. "Spider-Man's webbing," he said with awe. I am quite positive that the young in attendance will surely become lifelong Spider-Man fans.

More to come from One Lost Road's continued report from Spider-Man: Turn Off the Dark tomorrow!

Spider-Man: Turn Off the Dark NYC Trip!

I'm REALLY excited because I have tickets to Spider-Man: Turn Off the Dark! I've been dying to see this Broadway play since I first heard about it! Then, of course, there were the endless delays in producing the play... but the time has finally come! In a short while, I'll be sitting and watching Spider-Man LIVE!

Although I like to travel I can't say that I have much opportunity to do so. I've only been to NYC once before to see a Yankees game. I'm thrilled to be going back! It's a shame I missed "Spider-Man week" right before the Amazing Spider-Man film release. 

Of course, I'll give a full report and review after the play!

Webs away!

Spider-Man (FINALLY) Opens On Broadway!

Odd tagline... wonder what that's all about.

I am PUMPED! Spider-Man: Turn Out the Dark FINALLY opened on Broadway recently! YES!

As you can tell, I've waiting for this event for some time. I will DEFINITELY be attending to see this thing in the near future. Count on it! I was beginning to think that this production would never get off the ground, but there it is - flying high! AND to good reviews! Despite a rocky start, this show is worth admission according to a large majority of critics!


Bus trip to NYC anyone?