SPIDERMAN may have met his most formidable foe yet — the Broadway slump. A musical based on the Marvel comic book hero, written by Bono and the Edge from U2, is to take up residency in the Hilton Theatre early next year as the chill wind of recession blows through the theatre district of New York.

Spiderman, reportedly the most expensive show of all time with a budget of €25m, is expected to move into the Hilton after the final curtain falls on the theatre’s current tenant, Young Frankenstein, on January 4. The musical, directed by Mel Brooks, is one of 15 shows closing in the next six weeks, together with Equus, starring Daniel Radcliffe, Grease, Hairspray and Monty Python’s Spamalot. Despite offering discounted tickets, most shows on Broadway have been playing to half-filled houses in recent weeks and only two low-key productions with limited runs — All my Sons, by Arthur Miller, and The Seagull, starring Kristin Scott Thomas — made money this season.

Micah Hollingsworth, general manager of the 1,500-seater Hilton, the theatre where Pirate Queen, produced by Moya Doherty and John McColgan, flopped, said Broadway was “hurting”. He said: “Every industry is suffering and we’re no exception. A lot of shows stay open for Thanksgiving and Christmas and then run out of steam. This year there are just more than normal closing down. Because of the economy, there’s more anxiety around.”

Hollingsworth said that by the time Spiderman opened, there should be a rebound. “From what I hear, it’s an ambitious show and won’t start for some time, so its timing may not be so bad after all,” he said.

Adrian Bryan-Brown, the show’s theatrical agent, said it could open as early as next spring or as late as autumn. “It’s a huge show with very specialised technical needs, so it may take some time to fit out a venue,” he said.

Bryan-Brown said he was “optimistic” that the production would buck the Broadway slump. “It’s not going to be like any other show,” he said. “January and February are always tough on Broadway. This year the seasonal downturn has just been exaggerated by the recession”.

Bono has promised that the show will be “something the likes of which no-one has seen or heard”. He said the music will be part punk rock and part opera. “It should be a hallucinogenic experience for theatregoers,” he said. “You have the visual energy brings. The myth of the arachnid and the elasticity of these characters — you can turn theatre upside down.”

Spiderman may need to demonstrate all his gravity-defying skill, however, to rise above the downturn. Among the big budget productions currently playing, only Billy Elliot is considered a success. A lavish €10m production of A Tale of Two Cities that opened in September was forced to close two months later. To stimulate demand, Disney shows, such as The Lion King and Mary Poppins, are offering a free children’s ticket with every full-price ticket, and other shows are offering discounts to people over 65.

When the $12m (€9m) Pirate Queen closed after three months, it was estimated to have lost $8m. The stakes for Spiderman, with twice the budget, are even greater.

Bryan-Brown says he remains confident. He predicts that Broadway ticket sales will pick up when tourists begin to return to New York next spring. “Broadway is the number one reason why tourists come to New York. Visitor numbers are down but all the expectations are that the industry will pick up. Talk of a Broadway crash is over the top — a lot of the shows that are closing are seasonal attractions and would have been expected to end anyway at this time of year.”

The agent said that details of the cast and production schedule would be released early in the new year. Evan Rachel Wood, a Hollywood actress, has been tipped for the role of Mary Jane Watson, Spiderman’s girlfriend. Bryan-Brown confirmed that she had attended workshops for the part.

Taymor previously directed Wood in Across the Universe, a musical movie inspired by the songs of the Beatles that featured a brief guest appearance from Bono.

She hopes to reunite the actress with her co-star from the film, Jim Sturgess, as Peter Parker and Spiderman.

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