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'Spider-Man' stuntman falls during Broadway preview

Updated: 2010-12-22 09:04

(Agencies)

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NEW YORK - A leading stuntman in the Broadway musical "Spider-Man" was recovering in hospital on Tuesday after falling 30 feet (9.1 meters) during a performance in yet another setback for the troubled musical.

'Spider-Man' stuntman falls during Broadway preview
The poster for the Broadway show "Spider-Man: Turn Off The Dark" is seen outside the Foxwoods Theatre in New York December 21, 2010. A leading stuntman in the Broadway musical "Spider-Man" was recovering in a hospital on Tuesday after falling 30 feet (9.1 meters) during a performance in yet another setback for the troubled musical. [Photo/Agencies] 

The show's main aerialist Christopher Tierney was taken to a nearby hospital for observation after he fell from a high platform about seven minutes before the end of the performance, the show's spokesman Rick Miramontez said in a statement.

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Audience member Charlie Bernard told local television station NY1 that he saw the chord or cable that was supposed to be attached to the actor was either not attached properly or snapped.

"You just hear a bang. And then you hear the actress who plays Mary Jane, she was screaming and crying. The audience was a little disturbed and then everybody was quiet," he said.

The fall is the latest mishap for the $65 million musical in recent months. Actors were stuck suspended in mid-air during the show's first preview and there have been several delays to the official opening.

A lead actress in the musical, written by U2 rockers Bono and The Edge and easily the most expensive Broadway show ever produced, suffered a concussion earlier this month when she was hit by a rope while offstage.

That actress, Natalie Mendoza, said in a Twitter message posted Tuesday: "Please pray with me for my friend Chris, my superhero who quietly inspires me every day with his spirit. A light in my heart went dim tonight."

Last week the opening of the musical was officially delayed again until Feb 7 to change portions of the show.

 

 

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