Fourth Actor Suffers Injuries on Troubled 'Spider-Man' Broadway Production

At this point, using the epithet "cursed" to describe the troubled Broadway production of "Spider-Man Turn Off the Dark" would be logical to even the most hard-core realist. This is the fourth accident to befall the cast of this injury-prone show.

Stuntman Christopher Tierney suffered a fall while tethered on Monday, Dec. 20, 2010, during a show and suffered back injuries. He is scheduled for surgery, and his future career may be in jeopardy because of the seriousness of these injuries. Three similar accidents have also occurred: Actress Natalie Mendoza suffered a concussion when she was struck in the head with a rope, another actor broke both wrists practicing a stunt that was air-born and an unnamed actor suffered broken feet also practicing a stunt.

This could be the first time in cultural history that a Broadway show has developed the same audience attraction as the Indy 500. Media attention is spotlighting the current hit production because of its short but troubled history. In addition to the injuries, the show's opening night performance was delayed apparently because of "technical difficulties." Federal and state investigators arrived at the Foxwoods Theater the day after the latest accident.

Other Troubled Productions

This is certainly not the only "troubled" production recently. During the filming of the movie "Drive," Ron Perlman was injured while filming a beach scene in Santa Monica, Calif.. Mr. Perlman, famous from the "Hellboy" movies, stated he suffered injuries before while filming the top-earning movie series.

In another incident, an actor, Adrian Bailey, working on the stage of Disney's production of "The Little Mermaid," suffered extensive injuries after falling through a trap door. Mr. Bailey is suing Disney as a result of his injuries.

If that suit is indicative of the future, then "Spider-Man" makers will be in court for many years to come. It's interesting enough to imagine an actor who has a history of injuries, but when a stage show starts producing casualties and is investigated by the government, it becomes easy to believe in the "Curse of Macbeth."

"Macbeth" has for hundreds of years been called the "Scottish Play" in order to avoid invoking the curse; a reputation earned with a history of mishaps during performances and the haunted feel of the production in general.

It is not the only performance to be plagued, and stuntmen are always being injured while on movie sets. With the intense competition for seats, special effects have become inherently more dangerous of late, and that has affected the number of injured actors and stunt professionals overall. Nevertheless, to have so many problems plaguing one show in one location, alarm bells must be going off.

Perhaps ticket sales will be even stronger with everyone hoping to be the next theater-goers in the audience when the next big crash comes. It is truly a shame for the most expensive Broadway production -- at $65 million with over eight years in the making -- to ultimately be famous for its spectacular accidents rather than the spectacular production itself.