Monster Mash: Julie Taymor latest casualty of 'Spider-Man'; Rodin sculpture stolen from museum

Not quite fired: Director Julie Taymor is being relieved of her daily responsibilities on "Spider-Man: Turn Off the Dark" as the Broadway show is delayed until the early summer. (Los Angeles Times)

Not quite smooth: Wednesday's performance of "Spider-Man: Turn of the Dark" was halted for several minutes when the actor playing the Green Goblin was stuck in the air after a malfunction caused his steering mechanism to fail. (Broadway World)

Missing: A statue by artist Auguste Rodin was stolen from the Israel Museum during the facility's recently completed renovation. (Associated Press)

Money trouble: The Segerstrom Center for the Arts in Orange County faces more financial hurdles. (Los Angeles Times)

Headed home: London's Natural History Museum is returning the remains of 138 indigenous people taken from the Torres Strait Islands in the 19th century. (BBC News)

Windfall: The Museum for African Art in New York has announced a major contribution of $3 million from the Ford Foundation. (Art Daily)

Theatrical talent: South Coast Repertory announces the lineup for its annual Pacific Playwrights Festival. (Los Angeles Times)

Comedic: "All New People," a new play by actor Zach Braff, will open this summer at Second Stages in New York. (Playbill)

Accusation: A woman attending a recent performance at New York's Metropolitan Opera said she was abused by police officers after she misplaced her ticket. (New York Post)

Cuts everywhere: Major London arts groups are facing budget cutbacks. (ArtsJournal)

New leader: The Intrepid Sea-Air-Space Museum in New York has named its first female president. (NY1)

Birthday: London's Abbey Road recording facility is are marking its 80th anniversary with a competition to find "the great anthems of our time." (BBC News)

Also in the L.A. Times: Music critic Mark Swed compares the styles of Gustavo Dudamel and Esa-Pekka Salonen.

-- David Ng

Photo: Julie Taymor with "Spider-Man" star Reeve Carney. Credit: Jason Kempin / Getty Images