Poor Peter Parker. He survives encounters with Dr. Octopus, Electro, and Kraven the Hunter only to be humiliated by a much more sinister foe; Bono, evil master of musical theater! In news sure to sicken many, the U2 maestro and his sidekick the Edge are reportedly signed on to write songs for an upcoming Spider-man musical helmed by Broadway heavyweight Julie Taymor.
But at least they're not over-thinking it. From the Playbill casting notice:
"The character Arachne ("female, 20-35 years old, any ethnicity") is described as "a beautiful, boastful young woman turned into a spider for her hubris and lack of respect for the gods. She subsequently appears to Peter Parker and the audience as in turn a powerful spider-woman who comes from another time to inspire Peter; an otherworldly lover; a bride; a terrifying (and sexy) dark goddess of vengeance; a dance partner in a charged and violent spiders dance of death; and, finally, a lonely, fragile young woman." Casting is seeking a "strong Celtic, Balkan style, e.g., Sinead O'Connor," noting, "outside the box ideas are welcomed. Could be someone from the music industry."
Also, a "Geek Chorus" consisting of "three teenage boys and one girl" are described to "meet to ritualistically retell the greatest Spider-man stories.""
Yeah.