Louise Forlenza

REBECCA Producer, Ben Sprecher, Sentenced to Probation in Child Pornography Case

Ben Sprecher, producer of the doomed Broadway musical Rebecca, was sentenced to probation today, following his August 2019 arrest for possession of child pornography.

REBECCA Producer, Ben Sprecher, Arrested for Child Pornography

According to the New York Post, Ben Sprecher, producer of the doomed Broadway musical Rebecca, was arrested today, August 13, for possession of child pornography.

REBECCA Producers Denied Motion to Set Aside Damages Verdict in Case Against Former Publicist

A verdict has been reached in the most recent phase of the Rebecca the Musical scandal, as the producers Ben Sprecher and Louise Forlenza have been denied their motion to set aside the damages verdict reached in their case against former publicist Marc Thibodeau.

Lead producers Ben Sprecher and Louise Forlenza, announced today that REBECCA, the musical based on the classic novel by Daphne du Maurier, has officially extended its rights through December 31, 2014 and is eyeing a Winter 2014 start. They are now joined by Co Producers Steven Colson, Peter Bezemes and Barbara Sellinger, along with the previously announced co-producers, who all remained committed to the project.

The New York Daily News reports that Mark C. Hotton admitted today, July 29, to conning funds from Broadway's REBECCA THE MUSCIAL by fictionalizing millionaire investors. Hotton said the scam was part of a plan to keep $65,000 in finder's fees. Hotton also plead guilty to a similar scheme with a Connecticut real estate firm, and will be tried tomorrow in Long Island in a money laundering conspiracy connected to Brooklyn's Maimonides Medical Center.

Back in April, BroadwayWorld reported that lead producer of REBECCA, Ben Sprecher, still intended to bring the new msuical to Broadway by the end of the year. After the Fall 2012 production was cancelled, Sprecher revealed to BroadwayWorld that another $7 million would be needed to reach the $15 million needed to bring the show to Broadway. For the show to open by the end of the year, the musical needed to raise an additional $7 million by the end of June.

As an online companion to Vanity Fair's feature article on Rebecca the Musical's scandalous Broadway collapse, David Kamp takes readers behind the scenes at Rebecca's first and only rehearsal.

Vanity Fair has dedicated a June 2013 feature article to uncovering the scandals that led to Rebecca the Musical's Broadway demise.

Lead producer of Rebecca, the Broadway musical that was cancelled last Fall, is still intent on bringing the show to Broadway this year. Sprecher told BroadwayWorld that the producing team has brought in an additional $2 million for the production. Another $7 million will need to be raised to reach the $15 million needed to bring the show to Broadway. If the show is to open by the end of 2013, the fundraising goal must be reached by the end of June, and if things go as planned, Sprecher intends to begin rehearsals in October 2013.

The drama surrounding Rebecca, the Broadway musical that was cancelled last Fall, continues to grow, as Bloomberg reports that the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission is now investigating what happened bewteen lead producer Ben Sprecher and potential investors for the show. The SEC is reortedly specifically looking into 'whether Sprecher misled a prospective investor, Larry Runsdorf.'

REBECCA, the new musical based on the classic novel by Daphne Du Maurier novel (and later turned into an Oscar-winning film by Alfred Hitchcock) will open on Broadway Sunday, November 18 at The Broadhurst Theatre (235 West 44th Street). Can't wait until November? BroadwayWorld brings you highlights from the Stuttgart production below!