Golden Heart Awards Gala, Great Hall, Cunard Building, 25 Broadway, 7pm, tickets and information can be found at glwd.org; Pratt Golden Gala, Waldorf Astoria, 301 Park Avenue, 6pm, tickets and information can be found at pratt.edu/support_pratt; La Maison Cointreau opening, 632 Hudson Street, private event.

Julie Taymor and Bono (Getty Images)

Recently, the public got its hands on the 35-page complaint that Julie Taymor and her company LOH Inc. filed in response to the countersuit launched by the producers of Spider-Man: Turn Off the Dark.

To catch up: Ms. Taymor sued the producers of the show for using her material after firing her, won a ton of money, but is still suing them for more money. The defendants in the case -- 8 Legged Productions, LLC, Hello Entertainment LLC, Goodbye Entertainment LLC, Michael Cohl, Glen Berger, Jeremiah Harris, and Savior Productions LLC -- include the producers who recently launched the countersuit, claiming that Ms. Taymor's detrimental influence on the production hurt the show and cost them money. Also, her co-author for the book, Glen Berger. Back and forth, forever and ever.

While we're waiting for this mess to get untangled (spider web pun!) in court, Ms. Taymor's complaint contains enough juicy dirt on show creator Bono and his cohorts to keep us entertained for the rest of the week. Here are the 10 most soap opera moments from the document, so you don't have to slog through the paperwork yourself.

1. Julie Taymor is a genius, says co-author.
In a private e-mail correspondence, the book's co-author Glen Berger effusively gushed to Ms. Taymor about what an honor it was to work with such a brilliant auteur.

i’ve been meaning to point this out for a while, but today, as people could sense something alchemical was going on in how the story was working—it’s—your directing and designing on this thing aside—your understanding of theatre has enabled you to
create a profoundly effective story. yeah, I wrote more of the words in the script, but the beat-to-beat narrative—that was totally your vision (I was your boy wonder) – and by figuring how to send the audience high, then plunging them low immediately after, then sending them high again, and on and on—well,anyway, just a few hundred hurdles to go, so I won't get into it...it seems to work on the audience on a physiological level—putting them in a state where they're wholly open—prepared to engage in the story on a deep deep emotional level...(Emphasis added) but just wanted to say what a gift, what a mind-cracking, heart-swelling gift it’s been having these front-row tickets to you....

2. Mr. Berger later changed his mind and went behind her back to help develop the nefarious-sounding Plan X in an attempt to change the show to make it more coherent, which is bitchy but we're pretty sure is not illegal.

As the series of unforseen events unfolded, Berger and Tsypin apparently began privately to discuss a plan to re-write the Book of the Musical such that, among other things, the culmination of the current Act I—a dramatic fight scene between Spider-Man and the villain Green Goblin—would move to the end of Act II. Berger called this plan “Plan X.”212.

Among other things, and unbeknownst to Taymor, Plan X appears to have been conceived as a way to avoid the technical challenges Tsypin and his team were having with staging the finale called for by the Book of the Musical co-authored by Taymor.

3. Bono, Mr. Kohl, and Mr. Berger all emailed each other about the problems with the show! Without CC'ing Ms. Taymor!

On December 29, 2010, for example, Berger sent an e-mail to Tsypin stating that it was “best not to mention anything to J.” Tsypin responded: “I won’t say a word.”

Upon information and belief, Berger and Tsypin, without Taymor’s knowledge,then reached out secretly to Cohl, Harris, Bono, and Edge in an effort to further their clandestine plan. To this end, Berger and Tsypin apparently sent e-mails to Cohl and Harris describing their plan and imploring the producers to “please don’t let JT know I’m sending this.

4. Bono et. all were going to come clean to the director about the changes in a meeting set in a hotel room at night (where most meetings take place), only to show up drunk with super models. Come on, Bono was just trying to lighten the mood!

Upon information and belief, on January 13, 2011, Cohl, Berger, and Bono met with Taymor in the VIP room of the Foxwoods Theater. Unbeknownst to Taymor, Berger apparently understood that the purpose of the meeting was to finally disclose Plan X to Taymor. As Berger recounted in a later e-mail, however, “that meeting never happened”:

[t]he meeting was postponed until 11 p.m., when Bono was going to show up –except he showed up in our room with Christy Turlington and a couple other supermodels, and he had already had a few beers, rendering him useless — so the producers postponed the meeting till the next afternoon–but that meeting never happened.

(More importantly, since when does a "few beers" render an Irishman useless? And Christy Turlington isn't just any old floozy...she probably lent some actual class to the proceedings.)

5. Apparently, Turn of the Dark actually got some great early reviews...but no one read them because they were too busy focusing on how cast members were being put in mortal danger.

On February 7, 2011, critics published pre-emptive reviews of the Musical five weeks before the then-scheduled opening night of March 15. While some of the reviews contained criticism of the show, those that praised it praised elements that had been conceived and implemented largely by Taymor: “As a stager . . . Taymor is bold, elegant, and eloquent”;“The flying is thrilling, a full-tilt leap into the extraordinary”; “‘Spider-Man’ deftly spins substance and spectacle”; “The state-of-the-art visuals can be stunning”; “Taymor delivers”; “A visual feast.”

6. And the stuff that wasn't even reviewed?? Even better.

By many accounts, the version of the Musical as it was being performed in late February 2011—which version was never reviewed by the press—had greatly improved since the version that had been reviewed by the press at the beginning of February 2011.247.

On February 18, 2011, for example, Glenn Orsher, Cohl’s Executive Producer,sent an e-mail to Taymor stating: “Wow! What a great show!

7. Even after she was fired, the press was (apparently) still applauding Ms. Taymor, despite the producer's claims that the show was entirely revamped. (Though she's still listed as the author of Spider-Man's book.)

Rather Taymor’s substantial creative contributions to the Musical, including her work as co-author of the Book, remain an integral part of the Musical and a substantial reason for its success. The myriad press reviews of the revised Musical that the producers have touted on the Musical’s website promoting the show confirm this: “A fun, high-flying adventure”; “There's more flying than ever-And you can't help but feel a thrill as Spider-Man and the Goblin battle it out just a few dozen feet above your head!”; “it’s a fantastic spectacle”; “Thrilling high-flying acrobatics”; “dazzling sequences unprecedented on Broadway!”; “It was one of the most dazzling theatrical experiences we have ever seen! And, most of that, we think, can be attributed to the bold and inspired work of Julie Taymor”; “[e]ssential elements of [the Original]

8. Ms. Taymor barely had time to eat dinner, that's how hard she was working!
From disclosed email correspondence between Ms. Taymor and Bono.

It is nine pm in NYC. I am just about to sit down to a home cooked meal. I have been at it on [Spider-Man] nonstop. Glen has as well. We are writing lyrics, lines of dialogue, changes in music–all in service to the ending, to clarity. We know what the story is, we understand the stakes–but we do not have the lyrics to support it. I would like to talk to you before midnight my time– after I eat– to go over the situation and beg for lyrics. We need you. It is not easy to change anything but now I think it is a matter of lyrical and musical changes — and perhaps cutting a scene or two from a second act.

9. Most incredibly: Julie Taymor spent seven years on Spider-Man and still couldn't get it to opening night.

In total denigration of Taymor’s over seven years of work on the Musical and with obvious malice, defendants assert in paragraph 10 of their counterclaims that “[t]he show is a success despite Taymor, not because of her.”

10. Spider-Man's ticket sales have not increased since the show opened and Ms. Taymor was fired.

The producers also have not created a more financially viable production than Taymor’s original production. The first version of Spider-Man consistently ranked as the second- or third-highest grossing show on Broadway, despite the lack of promotion of the show to encourage ticket sales during the prolonged preview period. Its box office receipts were almost identical to the box office receipts that the revised version has earned since Taymor was dismissed from the production.

So basically: Julie Taymor did everything, Glen Berger is a jerk, and even though the show is entirely different now--scrapping entire elements and characters of the original and creating new content--Ms. Taymor should also be getting credit for this. (Except for the parts of the show which were a flop, in which case it was the fault of Bono being drunk.)

Also Spider-Man: Turn Off the Dark made a ton of money under Ms. Taymor's guidance, got rave reviews, everything was perfect, and nothing hurt. (Except for those internal injuries suffered by the show's actors.)

Julie Taymor makes Spidey spin green (Getty Images)

There's one less lawsuit plaguing the cast of Spider-Man: Turn Off the Dark today, as the theater-director union decided yesterday to settle claims in favor of Julie Taymor to continue receiving royalties for the production, despite the fact that she was booted out of her director's chair back in March. The New York Post reports that this decision could lead to $10k a week for the rest of Spidey's run.

Of course, there's still the dueling litigation between Ms. Taymor's company 8 Legged Productions LLC, and the producers of Spider-Man. On November 8th the stage-and-screen director filed a suit against the producers of the show--including Sony Entertainment, Michael Cohl, and Jeremiah J. Harris--claiming for copyright infringement after the revamped Spidey contained elements of her original production.

The producers then launched their own counter-suit last month, claiming that Ms. Taymor drove up costs, delayed the opening, and had no legal standing for copyright claims of the Marvel character.

Despite the $10k-a-week pay-out, these lawsuits are still in negotiation.

Julie Taymor and Bono, in better times. (Getty Images)

Though the production has been accident free since its official premiere at the Foxwood Theatre in June, there's still more blood to be spilled over Spider-Man: Turn Off the Dark. On November 8th, Julie Taymor, the ousted director of the play (along with her production company, LOH, Inc.) filed suit against the producers of the once-cursed production, saying that they had violated her creative rights and haven't compensated her for her work on the play.

The lead producers--who are listed in the Playbill item about the lawsuit--disagreed, and filed their own counter-suit in response to Ms. Taymor.

Ms. Taymor is requesting to be paid full royalties as a director and collaborator, according to the countersuit, "despite the fact that Taymor caused numerous delays, drove up costs, and failed to direct a musical about Spider-Man that could open on Broadway." The claim goes on to say:

“any similarities [between the final version and Taymor's original treatment]. . . exist by virtue of the fact that they are both based on the same pre-existing works in which Taymor cannot claim copyrights, including, but not limited to, the Spider-Man comic books and the 'Spider-Man' and 'Spider-Man' 2 films, which originated all of the main characters in the works at issue in this case, their settings, the Spider-Man origin story premise, and the plot elements that appear in the works.”

While this may or may not be true, it will be Ms. Taymor's name who is eligible for the Tony Awards this year, and not her successor, Philip Wm. McKinley, according to a recent ruling by the Tony Awards Administration Committee. Her name also appears in the credits for the show, under both "book by" and "original directing."

While Ms. Taymor might have an axe to grind against the show's producers, she's still on good enough terms with the cast to have turned up for their June premiere, where she was greeted by "wild applause" and embraced both Bono and the Edge.

"Spider-Man" makes it out of previews!

In honor of this momentous occasion, we put together a little timeline of the show's history. Enjoy! And try not to hurt yourself while reading this.

* $75 million+, and that's not even including the ongoing lawsuit with former director Julie Taymor and the worker's comp paid out to injured cast members.

So we just saw Spider-Man: Turn Off the Dark. Paid $79 a ticket, mezzanine seats. It was, how to say this? Breathtakingly bad.

That said, you didn't force us to see it. You haven't even opened the thing yet. You're in beta still, busily untangling the crossed wires and retooling the show for a new March 15 opening (the "Ides"? really?). Which means it's not too late to turn it around. We're on your side. In fact, we've put together notes to help you along. No charge.

So in hopes that a generation of children do not see this glittering, incoherent. nearly three-hour mess and think it is a Broadway musical, please accept our ruthless guide to how to improve it before it "officially" opens.

Now, we realize you may be a little too close to the material to see what needs to go. The answer: lots. We advise pouring yourself a stiff drink and slashing away.  America thanks you. 

1. Cut everything between the opening scene at the Brooklyn Bridge and the bit when Peter Parker's crushing on Mary Jane in the radioactivity lab. Yes, all of it. That means the awkward high school rumble, the slow walk around Queens, the Goddess Athena (!), the first Norman Osborn rant, Mary Jane's abusive dad. (The only thing you'll need to shoehorn back in is the beloved Uncle Ben and Aunt May.) Those scenes are mostly snores set in front of good scenery, and what we really care about is Peter becoming Spider-Man. We know cutting those numbers may make it a bit confusing. But, face it, the show doesn't make any sense now.
2. Cut every scene with Arachne except the spinning "Think Again," which is cool. Arachne, a daft villain who's pinned immobile, a stuck bug, for much of the show, sucks. Sure, you'd lose the title song, but you can't make out the words on most of the songs, anyway. We get that Arachne is your baby, your beloved contribution to the Spider-Man mythos. But let's go to the scoreboard. Stan Lee and Steve Ditko invented a pop-culture icon who has endured nearly half a century.  You: puppet giraffes.
3. Cut the comic-book writers. This laptop-toting Geek Chorus that narrates much of the action stop the proceedings cold whenever they show up. Perhaps you put them in thinking the teen audience would relate to them. Newsflash: They want to relate to the superhero. Or maybe they're just there to stall during scenery and set changes. Try something a bit more entertaining. Polka?
4. In the second act, Peter Parker loses his powers, but you never tell us how he magically recovers them.  Yet you spend a lot of time explaining how the super-villains came back to life. Super-villains always come back to life. Don't you read comic books?
5. Since Bono flatly refuses to write any more songs, make the Green Goblin's "I'll Take Manhattan" number on the top of the Chrysler Building more than just a few bars of the song.  The Rodgers & Hart classic, as voiced by a green-skinned megalomaniac, sounds so...melodically evil.
6. With Arachne gone, you need a big finish. But, maybe just this once, nothing shiny has to explode? How about Peter proposing marriage?  Mary Jane finding out Peter is Spider-Man? At least one of these is already in the show, just buried under the bombast.
7. By the way, when the dancers line up behind Spider-Man playing his mirror images, perhaps their movements should actually be synchronized. Just think about it. Talk to the Rockettes.

That said, best of luck. The remaining 110 minutes or so is actually pretty good, in some places, terrific.

And, about that $79? The thrilling moment when Spider-Man leaped from the stage and landed in the mezzanine, well, that was worth every cent.

Break a leg, 
The Observer

Perhaps not! Today the producers of the most expensive show in Broadway history announced that the much-afflicted musical will not in fact open on its already-late February 7 start date. It will open March 15, so they claim. Hold your breath at your peril.

Let's pick out the best parts of this face-saving press release.

Director Julie Taymor, on the delay:

We are so grateful for the enthusiastic audiences who have been coming to see SPIDER-MAN Turn Off The Dark and we are dedicated to giving them the very best show we can.

Producer Michael Cohl, on the delay:

We simply need more time to fully execute the creative team’s vision before freezing the show. I picked a date in March that allows me to ensure that this will be the final postponement.

Arbiters for world peace Bono and The Edge, on the delay:

Working on this show has been one of the great thrills of our lives, we’ll continue working as long as they let us. We are looking for the extraordinary here and we are nearly there.

The Observer, on the delay: there's a good chance they'll be another one.

Click for What Twitter Taught Us: Piers Morgan Defends A Cell-Abusing Arianna

nfreeman [at] observer.com | @nfreeman1234

Well, not quite yet. The most expensive musical in the history of New York City shall endure now that lead producer Michael Cohl has named T.V. Carpio as the new Arachne, The New York Times reports.

Out hearts go out to this brave T.V. Carpio, the actress now in the most dangerous role on Broadway. Let's hope the web-slinging keeps the cast aloft.

nfreeman at observer.com |@nfreeman1234

Click for Scandal Report: And Then The Model At Diddy's Party Burst Into Flames

With so much disaster afflicting the mondo-budget adaptation of the beloved superhero comic, it's time to face facts: when is thing going to be scrapped?

Eight years and $65 million into the making, Spider-Man: Turn Off The Dark has taken its loftiest of expectations -- Bono! The Edge! Julie Taymor! -- and run them into the ground. It's now known primarily for its failures, its faulty, potentially fatal stage contraptions. And with each new injury -- how can there not be another -- comes a maelstrom of bad press. We'd be surprised if the thing makes it to its much-pushed-back start time of February 1. It's not a stretch to say it'd be irresponsible if it does. It may be Broadway's biggest musical of all time, but maybe it should never happen.

More than anything, this production is starting to feel like the Macbeth, the most cursed of Shakespeare plays, so dangerous that those involved call it simply "The Scottish Play" for fear of some sort of retribution. Could Turn Off The Dark be in need of its own euphemistic nickname? Let's go with "The Webbish Play." Hey, maybe it will stave off more injuries.

nfreeman at observer.com |@nfreeman1234

Click for Scandal Report: And Then The Model At Diddy's Party Burst Into Flames

David Cronenberg’s follow-up to last year’s critical darling A History of Violence (#5) made $81,000 dollars on one screen, and Julie Taymor’s (Frida) troubled production Across the Universe (#2) averaged over $50,000 on 3 screens. Neither film cracked the top-15 grossing movies in the country in their first week of limited release, but both Focus Features, which is releasing Promises, and Sony Pictures, which is releasing Universe, should be heartened by their movies’ early success.

The Jodie Foster vehicle The Brave One (#1) grossed $271,000 in Manhattan at 10 theaters during a cool September weekend both for movies and temperatures. It was a relatively low opening for the Academy-Award winner, but in line with other revenge flicks, like—gasp!—Falling Down.

The Billy Bob Thornton comedy Mr. Woodcock (#8) and the Tranformers meets Jurassic Park actioner Dragon Wars (#10)—a sensation in South Korea!—grossed $9 million and $5 million respectively, but could fall off the New York City box office radar as early as next week. 3:10 to Yuma slipped to second in the national rankings and third here.

The Bourne Ultimatum, in its seventh week, found itself in the sixth spot in the city. With very little competition, the Matt Damon starrer has had a surprisingly stubborn hold on the box office, grossing over $215 million.

And while hindsight is 20/20, this raises the small question: Why didn’t Focus Features decide to go larger with the Eastern Promises opening? What was left to compete with the thriller? Stop giving Damon easy money! Luckily, it doesn’t look like Promises is going to fizzle out.

Manhattan Weekend Box Office: How moviegoers in the multiplexes of middle America choose to spend their ten-spot is probably a big deal in Hollywood. But here in Manhattan, the hottest movies aren't always the ones making the big bucks nationwide. Using Nielsen numbers for Manhattan theaters alone and comparing them to the performance of the national weekend box office can tell you a lot about our Blue State sensibilities. Or nothing at all! Each Monday afternoon, we will bring you the results.