The real life biography of Frank Abagnale, Jr. is so much stranger and more extraordinary than any believable fictionalization could possibly depict. Starting at age 16, this extraordinary con man passed 2.5 million dollars’ worth of forged checks across 26 countries; it took him five years. Almost as a sideline, he also successfully fabricated professions: pilot, doctor, lawyer, college teacher. When he was finally apprehended in 1969, he was only 21 years old.
His astonishing story has been told first in the 2002 Stephen Spielberg movie Catch Me If You Can, and now in a Broadway musical of the same name. The film featured Leonardo DiCaprio as Abagnale, and Tom Hanks as Agent Carl Hanratty, the Fed who finally nabbed him. The musical has Aaron Tveit starring as Frank, and Norbert Leo Butz as Hanratty. For both adaptations, charm and believability are essential. Otherwise, how could so many people have been duped for so long?
Tony winner (for Dirty Rotten Scoundrels) Butz is a big time crowd pleaser; expectations run high, and he never disappoints. He can belt with the best of them; and in his dowdy gray suit and fedora, he’s an actor who makes his schlumpy character exude a pain and longing that tugs at our hearts. His loneliness and obsession mirror those of his chief adversary.
It’s lucky that Butz is such a forceful presence, because otherwise, Tweit (pronounced “Tuh-vayt) would simply put this show in his pocket and walk away with it, as he did in Next to Normal. The result of that theater event was a brilliant play which became hopelessly lopsided; there’s no contest when one side of a fight is so obviously the stronger one. Here, some of the best moments are those that feature Tweit and Butz together.
Aaron Tveit is a Rock Star on stage. He’s got it all—terrific voice, great moves, killer looks, and most importantly, a sweetness and sincerity that draws in the audience, and makes us not just willing, but yearning, to believe him. I can’t think of a better reason to see this show than because in the years to come, you’ll be able to tell your kids you saw this superstar at the beginning of his career.
There are other noteworthy performances, too. Tom Wopat (above, right, with Tveit) couldn’t be better as “Dad,”(Frank Abagnale, Sr.)
Kerry Butler (above) brings down the house as Brenda, the would-be bride. Linda Hart is a pint-sized powerhouse as Brenda’s mom; she brings to mind that other diminutive dynamo, Kristin Chenoweth. Rachel de Benedet is a French Marlene Dietrich as young Frank’s mom. And the supporting players are equally fine.
So why couldn’t I warm to this show? The main problem is the music. It’s true to the 1960’s, but unfortunately, old hat in the style of much of that era’s forgettable tunes. Why redo this story, which was a very successful movie, on stage unless it’s going to be truly memorable?
The scene set in New Orleans with Brenda’s family is entertaining, but much of the rest of the show drags. The costumes are composed mostly of super-short miniskirts on the stewardesses/nurses who are all, apparently, constantly in heat. The white maillot swimsuits aren’t sexy, or even particularly flattering. In this season of Anything Goes, costume design just has to be more thrilling to keep up.
There are echoes of another, more fully realized, current production. When Frank gets a light bulb idea and does a smile take out to the house, there’s no way we’re not going to be reminded of How To Succeed and Daniel Radcliffe. It would be so much more effective to have Tveit flash his Jim Carrey grin within the context of the play.
Perhaps the main excitement of the evening occurred during intermission. A large crowd gathered around eagerly, to have Playbills signed by the man himself, who was there watching the performance. The real Frank Abagnale, Jr.’s personal autograph is now on several souvenir programs. Or so we think.
Catch Me If You Can
Neil Simon Theatre
250 West 52nd Street.
Michall Jeffers is an accomplished Cultural Journalist. She writes extensively, both in print and online. Her eponymous cable TV show is syndicated throughout the tri-state area, and features celebrity interviews, reviews, and commentary. She is a voting member of Drama Desk, Outer Critics Circle, American Theatre Critics Association, and International Association of Theatre Critics. www.michalljeffers.com
