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Broadway’s Darkest Angel

Who built the Georgia Guidestones? How was the Coral Castle in Florida constructed? Who cares! The real mystery is who made the musical “Rebecca.”

According to the New York Times, the story behind the play is one of Broadway’s strangest anomalies. A Broadway play is usually funded by one of three private organizations; not so, this $12 million musical.

“Rebecca” was financed in part by someone named Paul Abrams, unknown to any insider on Broadway.  He promised to raise $4.5 million, an “astounding sum” that is “easily 10 times more than the wealthiest regulars normally put down for a show,” according to the Times.

 
Then, this Abrams guy died. Reports in August claimed he passed away in Britain of malaria but there were no obituaries or death notices. From nowhere came a man who would only identify himself as “Wexler,” who represented the Abrams estate, refused to speak by phone and used an email that was created in August.
 
Also unusual: Ben Sprecher, the lead producer of the play who has been most associated with Off Broadway, said he never met Abrams or spoke to him on the phone.
 
“I’ve never heard of a situation where you didn’t at least meet the person raising 30 percent of your show budget,” Shubert Organization President Robert E. Wankel told the Times. Shubert, one of the big three Broadway investors, put six figures into the play.
 
“Broadway does business in its own strange way, I’ll grant you,” he said. “But this is the strangest bit of show business to come along in a long time.”
 
The play, based on a novel of the same name, has been a hit overseas. But if it doesn’t get the $4.5 million now lost, Sprecher will be up to his ears in repayments.
 
The Times noted that many producers have a hard time getting to Broadway, and Sprecher didn’t make it easier on himself by being an Off Broadway landlord with stringent terms. Major Broadway producers passed on “Rebecca,” causing Sprecher to find his shadowy angel.
 
One investor, Nanda Anand, put her money into the musical after learning of Abrams’ investment.
 
“When I heard that an investor had come along and fulfilled the lack of funds, I did not question the source or the amount of capitalization originating from one individual,” Anand told the Times. “I trust Ben Sprecher and find him to be very diligent. I saw no reason to raise any questions at all.”
 
Wexler was contacted by the paper. He declined to provide independent evidence that Abrams existed.
But maybe we now know who paid for those stones in Georgia.
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