Twenty years is a long run.
Yet when Ben Sprecher departs as general manager of the Lucille Lortel Theatre on Dec. 31, the spirit of the "queen of Off-Broadway" will stay with him as he spends more time on his work as a producer, as co-owner of the Promenade and Variety Arts Theatres, and as managing director of the new 499-seat Shubert Theatre on W. 42nd St., scheduled to open next year.
The Lucille Lortel Theatre was willed to the Lortel Foundation after the producer's death, and George Rhodes, the foundation's current executive director, will now assume general manager duties. Sprecher remains a consultant to the foundation.
Beginning as a lighting designer, illuminating Earth, Wind and Fire's 1974 world tour, Sprecher turned production stage manager, working on a short-lived Broadway Concert series that included "She Loves Me," starring Rita Moreno, and "Knickerbocker Holiday," starring Richard Kiley. After PSM-ing tours of "Wonderful Town," starring Lauren Bacall, "A Little Night Music," starring Jean Simmons, and "The Merry Widow," starring Roberta Peters, Sprecher moved to Broadway for "The World of Sholom Aleichem," starring Jack Gilford. From 1978 until 1981, when Lortel persuaded him to settle in New York, Sprecher worked exclusively for Mitzi Gaynor, fusing his skills above and behind the scenes.
In 1983, while still at the Lortel, Sprecher refurbished the Promenade Theatre, bringing vital theatrical activity to the recession-plagued Upper West Side. Then, in 1991, Sprecher refurbished and reopened the Variety Arts, a former 1911 nickelodeon house, spearheading an East Village theatrical renaissance.
For Sprecher, owning theatres is the only way to fight the frustrations of the industry. "As a theatre owner," he says, "you don't have to worry about a show closing, because you're trying to find the next show. Owning a theatre gives you a bit of control over your destiny."
The job isn't exactly worry-free, of course. Even with the ongoing lack of large Off-Broadway houses, for every "Dinner with Friends" that Sprecher has scored with, there has also been a "Reefer Madness." That's why Sprecher always has backup shows ready to bring in, and backups for the backups.
"Think of airports with planes waiting to land," he says. "You choose what shows to bring in based on instinct, who's involved, and what has the best chance of running. The cardinal rule is you may not be dark, ever."
With "Summer of '42," the musical based on the same-name film ensconced at the Variety Arts, and Neil LaBute's "The Shape of Things" in shape at the Promenade, Sprecher starts 2002 with his eyes on producing. Earlier this year, he formed SFS Productions with fellow showmen Julian Schlossberg and Roy Furman, and first up is "Fortune's Fool," starring Alan Bates and Frank Langella, opening at the Music Box Theatre on Broadway on Apr. 2. Also on tap: "Mr. Goldwyn," a solo play starring Alan King; "Triptych," a new play by Edna O'Brien; two new one-acts by Elaine May and Kenneth Lonergan; and the Shubert's opening attraction, as yet unannounced.