Bono on 'Spider-Man: Turn Off the Dark': 'I Promise It's Not Been Canceled'

The U2 frontman, who composed the music for problem-plagued $70 million Broadway production with the Edge, says the revamped show "will be there by opening night."
Despite all the technical glitches, cast injuries and opening-night delays, Bono said the Broadway musical Spider-Man: Turn Off the Dark is still a firm go for a June 14 opening.
The U2 frontman -- who composed the production's music with bandmate the Edge -- told reporters Wednesday night that the show will most definitely go on.
"We're opening Spider-Man on the 14th," he said after the American Idol finale, during which he and the Edge performed "Rise Above," a song from the production. "I promise it's not been canceled, and we're very excited about it. It's almost there -- it will be there by opening night."
The $70 million production -- the most expense Broadway musical ever -- had undergone a revamp that saw director and chief creative force Julie Taymor exit and replaced by The Boy From Oz director Philip McKinley.
"He came in to fill impossible shoes -- Julie Taymor -- she's a genius and I miss her so much," Bono said.
As for "Rise Above," the song performed on Idol, "There's another version of it in the play, and it was this beautiful hook about trying to transcend your circumstances. This song is one of the first songs that jumped out at us."
Meanwhile, Bono also said it was "exciting" to perform on Idol, which he likened to "being at the center of pop culture."
"This show is really like I remember as kids growing up and hearing about The Ed Sullivan Show Elvis would be on and the Beatles, since then television is so fragmented and everybody watches something different this is probably the only show that every one watches so it's a very interesting thing," he added.
The singer also addressed his year-ago back surgery, which was successfully performed by a doctor in Germany. The emergency operation was the result of an injury he suffered during rehearsals for the band's 360 tour.
"I've now got Made in Germany tattooed on my ass," he quipped.
Joked the Edge: "He's also an inch and a half taller."
U2's 360 tour has now become the highest-grossing tour of all time. On Sunday night, the band accepted the Touring Award -- for both the biggest tour of the year and of all-time -- at the 2011 Billboard Music Awards.
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