'Geek Chorus' dropped from Spidey musical

The geeks are gone.

As the Broadway musical "Spider-Man: Turn Off the Dark" begins its revamp in the wake of director Julie Taymor being eased aside, a source close to the producers confirmed to Newsday on Friday that the new script does away with the much-derided "Geek Chorus" -- four teens whose ruminations on the superhero frame the story.

The group served as a contemporary Greek chorus and was used to distract from scenery changes. They will remain in the show, which continues in previews, until it goes on hiatus April 19. The $65-million musical will then spend three weeks restaging and rehearsing changes by the new creative team.

The first table reading of the new script was scheduled for Friday afternoon, according to BroadwayWorld.com.

Other possible changes, said the site, may be reducing the role of the spider goddess Arachne, a Taymor creation, in favor of focusing on Spider-Man's origin story and his battles with the Green Goblin, whose role is being expanded.