Batman Live opened in Manchester on Tuesday and appeared to go smoothly after the Batmobile crashed on stage during rehearsals last week.
A spare was brought in from the city centre, where it was on public display.
Producers are keen to avoid comparisons with Broadway’s Spider-Man musical, which has been beset by problems.
Unlike Spider-Man, the Batman show is not a musical, and the Batmobile’s accident was minor in comparison to the problems that caused the opening of Spider-Man: Turn Off The Dark to be postponed six times.
The Batmobile, created by Formula One designer Gordon Murray, crashed into part of the Gotham City set during a rehearsal.
“But we hope that won’t ever happen again,” Batman Live set designer Es Devlin told BBC News. “Luckily we had two [cars]. It wasn’t good. You couldn’t have put it on stage.
“It literally came out, swizzled around and crashed into the Bank of Gotham. The Bank of Gotham took a bit of a hit but we patched it up and I don’t think anyone would notice.
“But the Batmobile, we had to rescue the one that we had sitting in the Printworks in Manchester.”
In a rare attempt to stage a theatrical production in an arena, Batman Live tells the story of how Batman and Robin came to team up.
It makes use of acrobatics, aerial stunts and big screen effects and pits the caped crusader against his arch enemies including The Joker, The Riddler and The Penguin.
The show will be staged 87 times in the UK and Ireland between now and October, including 19 performances at the O2 in London. It will then visit Europe before reaching North America next August.
If it is a success, producers hope it will stay on the road until 2016.
It got a positive reaction from the crowd at the first night at the MEN Arena in Manchester.
“It’s Cirque Du Batman meets David Copperfield meets a West End show,” said Martin Ingham, 43, from Nottingham. “The acrobats are amazing but the screen is the star of the show with the effects they manage to put on there.”
I cannot pretend to understand the drive to develop comic book creations into musical stage shows, but apparently there is a strong need to do so. Despite the negative reviews and infamy surrounding Spider-Man: Turn Off the Dark, an even grander extravaganza is under way starring Warner Bros. premier creation, the Dark Knight Batman.
The Batman Live show will transport the audience into Gotham City by building the fictional structures into the actual seating area. A massive holographic screen in the shape of the familiar bat signal will present 3-D renditions of iconic comic book moments as actors dressed as the heroes and villains of the printed page do battle in extraordinary stunt sequences.
Batman poised to make his stage debut
Emily Shardlow
Last Updated: Apr 17, 2011
Peter Parker’s alter ego certainly encountered some problems in his time. Almost as many, you could say, as Broadway’s Spider Man, Turn Off the Dark. The now notoriously problem-plagued production has become the most expensive theatre show ever, opening night has been delayed several times and there have been a number of cast injuries. All of this has been very well documented in the media.
So it perhaps comes as a surprise that another comic book superhero is winging his way on to the stage. Oh yes, Batman is going on a world arena tour, with the Batmobile (created by Formula One car designer Gordon Murray), Robin and the Joker in tow.
Although production costs of £12million (Dh72m) are far less than Spider Man’s £40m, Batman Live has been billed as a high-octane tour de force, with daring stunts, circus acrobatics and a dystopian Gotham City to boot. The action will, according to the creative director Anthony Van Laast, have something of a rock and roll edge, designed to enthral audiences. It isn’t, he has said, with a not so subtle nod towards the problems faced by the Spider Man show, a musical, but an action-filled stage extravaganza charting Dick Grayson’s transformation from orphaned circus performer to Batman’s trusty sidekick, Robin.
Batman Live will premiere in the UK in July, an event which will mark the theatre debut of the Caped Crusader, who first appeared in an issue of Detective Comics in 1939.
Batman is the rock star of this show and he dropped in looking every inch the 21st century Dark Knight, in a battle-ready suit of shining armour, wearing his traditional cowl mask, bat-winged cape and with trusty Robin by his side.
Preparing a night of mayhem for the world’s best-loved crime fighting duo are all the top Arkham Asylum breakout villains, including the Penguin, Riddler, Poison Ivy, Harlequin, Catwoman and the leader of the pack – the Joker.
The new look character costumes are based on the comic books drawn by legendary Batman artist Jim Lee.
A hot new Batmobile, by Formula One car designer Gordon Murray, is still under wraps.
The Arena will be turned into a mini Manhattan, complete with scattered skyscrapers and looming apartment blocks, covering most of the floor – with space for Gotham City seats, putting some lucky fans right next to the action.
“The stage thrusts out 100ft into the arena and we’ve filled the air space with helicopters, smoke, noise and bat signals,” said Es Devlin, set and props designer, who has worked for Lady Gaga.
A bat-shaped 130ft wide HD video wall will provide backdrops for Arkham Asylum, Wayne Manor and the Batcave, with special effects to blend comic book images with real actors, combining stunts, illusions and pyrotechnics.
Fans were warned to get there early, at least 15-minutes before show time when the set will come to life with dazzling images and a comic book city soundscape.
Anthony Van Laast, the creative director who choreographed the movie Mamma Mia! and is working on Broadway’s Sister Act, said a strong storyline was as important as the special effects.
“When Batman starts from 30ft up in the air and flies down across the arena, and we’ve done the flying test and I’ve seen what it looks like, it is absolutely amazing.”
The show will be staged 87 times in the UK and Ireland between now and October, including 19 performances at the O2 in London. It will then visit Europe before reaching North America next August.
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