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The Spider-Man musical on Broadway has been panned by US critics.
Spider-Man: Turn Off The Dark, which has a score composed by U2's Bono and The Edge, has suffered a number of set-backs in the run-up to its opening - including injuries to four cast members.
The latest reviews - and, for the most part, vicious pans - include assessments by The Washington Post ("a shrill, insipid mess"), The New York Times ("sheer ineptitude"), the Los Angeles Times ("an artistic form of megalomania"), the Chicago Tribune ("incoherent"), New York Post ("erratic"), Variety ("sketchy and ill-formed"), New York Daily News ("in need of a lot of work") and New York magazine ("underbaked, terrifying, confusing").
Many reviews of the 65 million dollar musical have been published even though it doesn't officially open until March 15, a move that violates the time-honoured agreement between producers and journalists.
"This pile-on by the critics is a huge disappointment," said a spokesman for the show. "Changes are still being made and any review that runs before the show is frozen is totally invalid."
Most of the critics have cited as reasons for their impatience the show's record-breaking preview period and the high cost of tickets, which for a single seat can approach 300 dollars.
The stunt-heavy show began previews on November 28 after years of delay. Its planned opening was initially set for December 21, but that was pushed back to January 11, then again to February 7 and now to March 15. By the time it opens, it will have had the longest preview period in Broadway history.
