At that moment, the staff member rushed onto the stage and charged toward the ball, which pummelled him to the floor as it descended.
The ball sprang away from impact back upstage as other employees rushed to check on their colleague, who appeared to have blood coming from his head and had to be assisted out of the theatre, the New York Daily News reported.
The audience was seen applauding his efforts, with one man heard saying, “He literally saved our lives, that guy… That guy legit saved our lives.”
Social media users hailed the man‘s fearless act as the clip circulated on TikTok, Instagram and Reddit.
“Not all heroes wear capes. He saved the crowd without hesitation,” one Reddit user wrote.
“Give that guy a bonus,” a TikTok commenter wrote.
The man was later identified on X as a former stuntman named Robert, the Daily News said.
Other commenters revealed he was later hospitalised and required six stitches.
“We’re focused on supporting our cast member, who is recovering,” the park said in a statement to the Daily News.
“Safety is at the heart of what we do, and that element of the show will be modified as our safety team completes a review of what happened.”
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