Actor injured in Spiderman tonight — Page 10

Julie Taymor? More like Julie Slay-more, amirite?








(Zing!)

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In response to adamgreer's post, Alice Ripley vs. Julie Taymor cage fight anyone?

but in all seriousness, broken ribs and [internal?] bleeding? this is awful and my thoughts are truly with Tierney and his family and I wish him a speedy recovery. Glad to hear equity has halted performances until further safety methods are in place. Though I can't help but feel maybe the best safety method at this point would be closing this mess.

"I was expressing concern about the adequate rehearsal time being given, given that the show's technical complexity and the show still being in previews and plagued with issues."

Flying/stunt rehearsals began well over a year ago. While the specifics were clearly not being rehearsed at that point the basic vocabulary and adjustment to the various rigs were being built into the performers' bodies since then. Obviously some have been with the show longer than others and will be more well trained. I'm sure there are some people who want to believe that there will be swing/understudies performing who have never been in these harnesses and attached to these rigs I sincerely believe, knowing the reputation of the two PSMs on this production, that that is not the case.

On a personal note, I think the reason I find the assumptions that nobody is looking out for the safety of the cast and crew on this show to be offensive is because it then implies that the stage management team is not doing their jobs properly. We are talking about two of the best PSMs in the business, and there is no doubt that the five stage managers they have assembled are also amongst the top. To suggest that these people are not doing their job is, quite frankly, a bit insulting.

An example of the work the stage managers are doing. Part of the delays was the instillation of an automated cue light system. The PSM said there was no way to run the show without it. It was installed, at the cost of two weeks' time after the show had already gone into tech. Does that sound like decisions being made with "no consideration of safety"?

In AMERICAN IDIOT, there is a Professional person {Sorry, I don't know the tech name for them} who MUST be there every performance, to check the rigging, harness etc or the Actors do not fly.And the same holds true for BILLY ELLIOTT , the 2nd time I saw that show, he did not Fly, and I was told it was bec the Person who had to be there to assist, was not. I just hope that the TOP PRIORITY for this show is the performers safety.

Updated On: 12/21/10 at 01:06 PM

Chris is doing well. He has some very serious injuries but he's talking and in good spirits.

This is a mess. I really hope the report sounds worse than it really is. That video is pretty frightening.

Matt Lauer and the 2 women he was talking with showed the video and they were laughing..and then said maybe i should go see this now...what the F---!!!
I feel horribly bad that this occurred when we keep pushing the envelope with special effects and 'more" entertaining hoopla these things are going to happen.
I pray that he is ok and that everything works out for both him and the show...No matter what the show is employing many people and the actors really want this to work...PRODUCERS AND DIRECTORS should make sure they are safe at all times

No, my post was not specifically addressed to you, Yero, just to the general attitude on these boards.

Again though, just because an actor says they are responsible for putting on their own harness and attaching themselves to the rig does not mean that there is nobody there who is checking the system pre-show and monitoring it during the performances. We all know how easy it is for the media to misrepresent a statement, either by selectively quoting, or even just putting it into the wrong context.

I've done shows with ZFX. All actors are trained in every aspect of putting on their harness and knowing how to attach themselves to the lines, mainly because there are going to be times when they have to do that due to staging, ie, needing to attach themselves to a line in the middle of a scene where the crew can not get to them.

Any actor who is doing stunt work without fully understanding the stunt, and the workings of any apparatus associated with said stunt, should not be doing stunt work, including flying.

Tag, I assumed it was for a mix of safety and aesthetic. He did flat out say there was no way he could run that sequence and keep an eye on the actors without it.

Seriously, Adam? Bono and The Edge? I'm pretty sure the backlash to the backlash starts here.

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Maybe Hunter Foster or Jen Cody will start another Facebook group to get Julie Taymor off of Broadway.

On a personal note, I think the reason I find the assumptions that nobody is looking out for the safety of the cast and crew on this show to be offensive is because it then implies that the stage management team is not doing their jobs properly. We are talking about two of the best PSMs in the business, and there is no doubt that the five stage managers they have assembled are also amongst the top. To suggest that these people are not doing their job is, quite frankly, a bit insulting.

Although I agree that most posts regarding the accident may be dramatic and misinformed, yours are coming off as condescending.

Of course most don't understand the complicated technical aspects of a show like this and I don't doubt that everyone working at the show wants nothing but to be safe and excel at what they do, but I personaly find your attitude as if accidents in a technically complex show are common and MUST be expected.

I'm sorry, but no performer should go onstage to fear broken ribs and internal bleeding, no matter the situation.

I don't doubt their intentions are good, but a few productions elements are still too risky to be giving regular performances - no matter how prepared, professional or well-trained the team might seem, they really are not quite there - the environment is just not safe.

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http://artsbeat.blogs.nytimes.com/2010/12/20/performer-is-injured-during-spider-man-performance/?hp

Christopher Tierney suffered broken ribs and internal bleeding. Ouch.