Tony-winning Broadway star Ben Vereen has been accused of sexual assault during a 2015 production of “Hair.”
Several actresses complained of forced kisses, degrading comments, and overly long and aggressive hugs. Vereen also allegedly stripped naked during an acting exercise ahead of the play’s famous nude scene.
‘Private rehearsals’
Two actresses, Kaitlyn Terpstra and a woman who asked to be identified only as Kim, said that Ben Vereen took things a step further, inviting them to his house under the guise of “private rehearsals.” There, he asked them to get naked and get into a hot tub with him.
“He gave this whole speech about how nudity was not inherently sexual. ‘That’s not what it’s about.’ He made me feel that if I wasn’t mature enough to understand that, I wasn’t mature enough to be in ‘Hair,’” Terpstra told the New York Daily News.
“He basically told both of us, ‘Get over yourself. Nudity doesn’t have to be sexual.’ If we asked questions or hesitated, we were the ones making it weird,” Kim said.
Once the women got in the hot tub with him, Vereen would break them down emotionally by asking personal questions.
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“He was acting as my mentor, asking me about my parents, then that same night, he put me on his lap while I was crying, and I felt his erection,” Terpstra recalled.
“He asked me, ‘Feel that?’ It was terrifying. I said, ‘Feel what?’ I wanted to act like I didn’t. I pushed myself off with a laugh. Then later, he asked, ‘Do you think I want to f–k you?’ I said ‘Yes,’ and he got angry. He said, ‘Well, I don’t, and that’s unfortunate.’ He made me feel like I had my mind in the gutter.”
Asked for oral sex
Kim said things went further for her when Ben Vereen asked her for oral sex.
“I just think at the time, I didn’t feel like I had a choice. I didn’t want to do it, but I was intimidated and scared. He was being very intense and angry. He seemed very angry and offended. I had seen him behave this way toward others in the tribe during circle,” she recalled.
“I just felt powerless because I thought I really needed his help and guidance. And when he said nudity doesn’t have to be sexual, I was like, ‘OK, maybe this isn’t even sexual,’ ” she said.
He would get angry
Kim also became involved in a relationship with Ben Vereen, though she told herself it was a spiritual one. However, one day when she was trying to sleep, he started to have sex with her. He asked her consent, and she gave it, but when she started crying and asked him to stop, he berated her.
Another actress, Vera, said that she had gone to a private rehearsal with two other male actors but ended up the last to leave.
“(Vereen) proceeded to wrap his arms around me and lay me down on the couch. I was shocked. I had never been in a situation like that before,” she said. “He kept whispering things into my ear like ‘relax’ and ‘Give yourself to me.’ After the initial shock wore off I stopped his advances. He was never pleasant to me again.”
Things came to a head between Terpstra and Vereen when he made a comment on her robe being short. When she exploded at him for the comment, he waved her into the hallway to talk.
“He backed me against the wall. I started to walk away and he grabbed my arm so hard, it made a slapping noise,” she recalled.
“Don’t f*****g touch me!” she shouted at him.
Eventually, Executive Director Murray Chase stepped in and listened as she cried to him about what had happened, though he said that he thought it was an isolated incident.
Vereen apologizes
Vereen has since issued a statement apologizing for his actions. He didn’t deny any of the accusations in the statement.
“I would like to apologize directly to the female cast members of the musical ‘Hair’ for my inappropriate conduct when I directed the production in 2015,” he said.
“While it was my intention to create an environment that replicated the themes of that musical during the rehearsal process, I have since come to understand that it is my conduct, not my intentions, which are relevant here. So I am not going to make any excuses because the only thing that matters here is acknowledging and apologizing for the effects of my conduct on the lives of these women,” he also said.
“Going forward, my having come to terms with my past conduct will inform all my future interactions not only with women, but with all individuals. I hope these women will find it in their hearts to accept my sincere apology and forgive me.”
Defending Bill Cosby
Years before these allegations came to light, Vereen also made waves when he came to the defense of comedian Bill Cosby, who was accused of rape and sexual assault.
“I love the man. I support you, Bill. We’re praying for you,” Vereen said in 2014 at the New York premiere of Chris Rock’s Top Five.
“I think the majority of people are praying for him,” he added.