Spider-Man musical already a big hit...with orthopedic surgeons

When we first caught wind of the soon to be premiered pop-culture monstrosity that is Spider-Man: Turn Off the Dark (a.k.a. Wherein U2 Scores an Undeservedly Epic Musical Theater Adaptation of A Comic Book Franchise That America Might Not Be Tired of Just Yet), we were, well, intrigued. But now, we're just downright worried.

Last week, the New York Post reported that Kevin Aubin, one of the show's many dancers and Spider-Man stand-ins, broke both his wrists while performing one of the shows supposedly unprecedented flying stunts for a small audience of ticket brokers and sales agents. According to reports, Aubin sustained the injury in question when he was catapulted from the rear of the stage, landing hard at the stage's lip.

And really, when you're sling-shotting people back and forth through a theater, there's bound to be an accident. But immediately following the wrist-snapping incident (which would have totally hindered the real Spidey's ability to sling those webs of his), another actor came forward, and anonymously told The New York Times that he/she too was injured performing the same maneuver as Aubin. This performer/unwitting-crash-test-dummy told that the Times' Arts Beat blog: "I had broken my feet on the same move a month earlier."

The mysterious informant then said: ""I can't believe this is such big news lol."

A spokesperson for the musical responded to these claims, saying that the actor who spoke with the Times had merely broken a toe during the stunt, adding a winky emoticon and the hashtag "#SillyThespians" before going off record. (Entirely kidding about that last part. But really, who says "lol" to a reporter from the Times?)

So basically it seems like this musical is shaping up to be pretty darn hazardous. The added element of danger only ups the crazy-bar already set by the Bono-ness of the score and Julie Taymor-instigated scale of production. If this keeps up, going to see Spider-Man: Turn Off the Dark might become the musical theater equivalent of going to a NASCAR race to see a car wreck. The show is scheduled to open at the Foxwoods theater on November 14.