The Bushnell Broadway Series, Hartford, CT
through June 2, 2013
by Kait Rankins
Catch Me If You Can is based on the true story of Frank W.
Abagnale, Jr., who in the 1960s stole nearly two million dollars in bad checks
and got away with it by impersonating a pilot, a doctor, and a lawyer -- all
before he was 21 years old. After serving time in prison, Abagnale has since
gone on to work with the FBI ever since, using his expertise to prevent crimes
like his own. With his deeds immortalized in a memoir and then a Steven
Spielberg film of the same name starring Leonardo DiCaprio and Tom Hanks, it at
first seems like an unusual topic for a musical. However, the Frank Jr. of the
musical possesses a charm and flash not unlike Harold Hill, musical theatre's
most legendary con artist from The Music Man. Under Frank Jr.'s leadership, it
becomes difficult to imagine this story in any other medium: After being
cornered by the FBI in an airport, Frank Jr. insists on telling the story of
his crimes "his way" -- and it turns out his way is to break the
fourth wall, bring on the dancing girls and flashy colors, and present his life
as if he's host of his own television show.
There's no mystery in what's going to happen: the show
starts at the ending scene and is then told through flashbacks, and the program
includes a short biography of the real Frank W. Abagnale Jr. that details
events set after the show's end. Instead, we know what happened -- but like FBI
Agent Carl Hanratty, who has doggedly pursued Abagnale, we want to know how.
How, exactly, does a teenager go from being in high school to being on the run?
How does a teenager commit grand larceny? Most pressingly, how in the world
does a teenager pass himself off as a pilot, a doctor, and a lawyer?
With songs by Marc Shaiman and Scott Wittman (Hairspray,
Smash) and a book by Terrence McNally (The Full Monty, Ragtime), with
choreography by Jerry Mitchell (Hairspray, Legally Blonde) and directed by Jack
O'Brien (Hairspray, The Full Monty, Dirty Rotten Scoundrels), Catch Me If You
Can is clever and stylish. Despite wildly different subjects and settings, it
inevitably draws comparisons to Hairspray, another Shaiman/Wittman musical set
in the 1960s. While the songs are not as infectious or instantly memorable as
Hairspray, the music is mostly catchy and the lyrics are consistently clever.
Highlights include FBI agent Carl Hanratty's showstopping dance number
"Don't Break the Rules" and Frank Jr.'s emotional "Good-bye"
when he finds himself cornered with no way out. Some of the songs are
forgettable, which probably led to its lack of success on Broadway, but it's
McNally's book that saves the day. Though at times strangely paced, the
dialogue is clever and quick, all culminating in an emotional ending scene that
strips away the flash and style and showcases two actors at their very best.
Catch Me If You Can might border on being too flashy, but
relies completely on the likeability of its two lead actors. Stephen Anthony
plays Frank Jr. with a geeky, childlike charm. It is impossible to forget that
he's just a kid, treating this as a game. He doesn't mean to hurt anyone -- in
fact, it doesn't seem like he could hurt anyone. He gleefully tells the story
of his crimes, appears and disappears from the stage by slipping in and out of
crowds and making use of misdirection, and makes us all forget that what he's
doing is horribly illegal. It's easy to want him to succeed. As the walls close
in on him, Anthony showcases Frank Jr.'s youth and vulnerability: he goes from
expert showman to frightened child with complete believability.
As Agent Carl Hanratty, Merritt David Janes is middle-aged
and weary, a dogged lawman who takes the job more seriously than his
colleagues. He is incredibly "uncool" by his own admission, lacks the
flair of Frank Jr., but has a naturally father-like attitude that slowly starts
to reveal itself throughout the story. As these two characters connect,
beginning with the end of Act I, we find ourselves less with a Jean
Valjean-versus-Javert situation (good-hearted criminal chased by uptight lawman
with no pity) and more with two people desperately seeking family and finding
it in the most unlikely place.
Strip away all of the flash and color, and this relationship
is ultimately the heart of the show and what makes it unique. Anthony and Janes
nail their performances and their chemistry, giving the audience two characters
to root for and a story to care about.
