A Technicolor Extravaganza: Whittier’s “Catch Me If You Can” Is Now Live in Living Color
A notorious con-man is on the loose, and the FBI must find him before he can gouge out more money. But what happens when that dastardly crook is nothing more than a lonely teenage boy?
Whittier College’s Theatre, Film, and Communication Arts Department, in collaboration with the Music Department opened their production of Catch Me If You Can at the Shannon Center’s Robinson Theater on April 4. The production will occur April 5–6 at 7:30 p.m., and April 7 at 2 p.m. Tickets are available on Purplepass.com or at the box office for $15 for general admission, and $10 for alumni. See “Catch A Flight For Catch Me If You Can” on the Quaker Campus Medium if you would like to learn more about how the production was made.
Catch Me If You Can tells the intrepid story of Frank William Abagnale Jr. (Jonathan “J.J.” Trimble) — who you may know by one of his other aliases. He ran away from home after his father, Frank Abagnale Sr. (Aidan Alvarez), and mother, Paula Abagnale (Cielo Valenzuela-Lara), divorce, caused by the mother’s infidelity and father’s drunkenness and bad spending habits. But all that running around leaves Jr. broke. So he starts cashing in fake checks, going by different names, and taking up a variety of occupations including a pilot, doctor, and lawyer. But that catches the attention of some very important people — a.k.a. the Federal Bureau of Investigation. Chief Carl Hanratty (Joel Adell) will not stop until the boy is caught. But even under the hard exterior, Hanratty may learn a thing or two from Jr., and vice versa.
This production is one word — explosive. The musical starts off at the climax of the story, when Junior is about to be caught by Hanratty at the airport. Right when the climax is about to occur, Frank uses his most surefire assets — his wit and his charm — in order to tell the story of how he almost got away with all of it, but through jazzy song and dance! With a wink at the audience (a theme of metaness that plays throughout the entire production), the show kicks off on a high note.
The one hitting those high notes, and essentially the instigator/leader of the entire production is Trimble, who plays Frank with both the dazzle and sincerity the character demands. On one hand, Trimble can woo the audience with daring adventures and lovable swagger, but he also allows the character to have the emotional moments needed to fully realize the con-man persona of a teenage boy wanting attention. Great acting aside, Trimble is also an incredible singer, drawing out long notes with an almost operatic style to them. Trimble captivates the audience whenever he is on stage, and even when he’s off, you say to yourself, “Man, I wish I could see more of him.” A true musical theater star in the making.
Playing the narrative foil to Trimble is Adell. Adell is the straight-man in the over-exuberant world that Junior has created — and he plays expertly. Adell is headstrong, and one can tell that he cares deeply about a character that can come off as the villain of the show. It’s not easy being the antagonist, but Adell plays it oh so well. This talent is also seen in the singing. Adell really shines in numbers that allow him to sing in a lower register, but still ooze the jazzy coolness the show as a whole demands. While Adell does great on his own, when he is met with Trimble, it’s like a match made in heaven. The two play off each other’s differences in order to make something truly special, almost reminiscent of Mike and Sully from Monsters Inc. (I mean, that last number really feels like they are singing “If I Didn’t Have You,” right?) Movie references aside, Trimble and Adell are a duo for the ages, and I hope that continues on, and on, and on.
Duos are abundant in Catch Me If You Can, and while the the parents in this production do not necessarily like each other in the show, the emotion they carry works in symbiosis. Alvarez and Valenzuela-Lara are an enigma — both counteracting and working together with each other the entire show. They bring a real grounding sense of emotion into the production — soulful, sad, and ultimately, passionate. Alvarez is the “lighter” of the two, with fun duets between him and Trimble. But all the fun passes in the blink of an eye when the truth of his situation is revealed (no spoilers here!). The emotional spirit lies within Valenzuela-Lara, whose beautiful ballads can make any strong audience member wipe a tear away.
Valenzuela-Lara is not the only talented woman in the show. With a production that is so focused on the boys, seeing the girls command the stage through dance, song, and pure charm is a refreshing treat. Most notably is Frank’s love interest, Brenda Strong (Carly Mandell). Mandell, while bringing a comedic edge to Brenda, ultimately shines during her tender ballad “Fly, Fly Away,” invoking the feelings of wanting to make sure the one you love will be okay in the end. She demands the audience’s attention, even when they might have tears in their eyes. But nonetheless, all the women are scene-stealers throughout the production, like Alexandra Amaya’s alluring Cheryl Ann.
Ultimately, this production really shines when you see the entire ensemble come together for the huge numbers. This show has a lot of moving parts to it, and while energy can waver from section to section within the cast, they always know how to have a great time. When everyone comes on stage, you can feel the power and love for theater that they have. The singing blends together effortlessly, and the choreography is out of this world. (Seriously, the choreography is very fun, funky, and derivative of classic ’60s style.)
Along with a fun cast, the technical aspects of the musical are totally far-out, even when the microphone sound levels seemed a bit uneven at times. The set is large and colorful, incorporating the use of stairs and levels in order to make this already larger than life production even bigger. The costumes are fun and indicative of the time, and man, are there A LOT of them. But the best part was the lighting design, allowing for the funkadelic ideas of the time to come through, and create an almost palpable texture to the stage. Groovy!
This show feels like something huge. This is really the biggest show I have ever seen in the Robinson Theater. It is a beast of a production, but the cast and crew put it on effortlessly. So, if you want to live in a technicolor dreamscape for two and a half hours, don’t miss your flight to see Whittier College’s Catch Me If You Can.
Photos Courtesy of Jennifer S. Holmes.
