“Spider-Man” Has Company

With recent news that the producers of “Spider-Man: Turn Off The Dark” have recruited a consultant to make improvements to the show comes word that the big-budget production could be in for some competition.

“The Spidey Project: With Great Power Comes Great Responsibility,” is scheduled to debut off Broadway just one day before the Michael Cohl-produced $65 million musical opens.

Justin Moran, a comedian and playwright, announced last week that he was launching a guerilla theatre project to “write, rehearse, and perform a fully realized musical based on the character Spiderman in under 30 days with a budget of $0.”

“How important is $65 Million in making good theatre?” Moran joked in a statement. “We’re going to develop a story, write a complete musical score and script, design sets and costumes, cast, rehearse, advertise and ultimately mount the production on March 14th, 2011 at the The People’s Improv Theatre in NYC.”

According to a blog documenting the project, the script and score for the show are complete and rehearsals are scheduled to begin shortly.

Moran told the New York Times that if he could stage even one performance “without getting any cease-and-desist letters,” he’d count his blessings.

Meanwhile, rumors are circling that “Spider-Man: Turn Off The Dark” could be in for yet another delay of opening night following the hiring of veteran musical supervisor Paul Bogaev.

Rick Miramontez, a spokesman for “Spider-Man: Turn Off The Dark,” recently told the Times Bogaev had been brought aboard to help with the show’s sound and arrangements.

But Miramontez shot down rumors of “Spider-Man” hiring a co-director to help Julie Taymor with the production and a script doctor to fix the story, which critics roundly bashed during reviews. Sources reportedly close to the matter recently told the New York Post producers had sought out to the help of Phil McKinley, who previously served as director of the Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus.