The Suburban Players did it in style! So set back and let them be your— well it’s not a TV Guide— because they’re live in living color for their 51st production. And it’s a doozy! Catch Me If You Can is flying to Saint Demetrios Greek Orthodox Church this February and it’s a smashing success! Directed by Lauren Hampton with Musical Direction by Steven Edward Soltow and Choreography by Amie Bell, this zippy zinger of a musical comedy, based on a movie, based on real-life events, will have you toe-tapping every step of the way! Produced by Smaro & Tom Cook Jr (the infamously supportive mother-son duo at St. Demetrios), this musical is jet-setting its way to you for a three-weekend run and you’d better race to get your tickets because they’re living it up in style!
Technical Director Pete Beleos and all of his assistants (as it truly takes a village and he’s got a most fortified one under his command) have really built up the set, upped their lighting (designer Patrick Yarrington) and sound design games, and are bringing top-notch production quality to the performance of this quick-moving musical show. There are a great many colorful light fixtures— including swing-sweep gobos that roll in from all angles and out over the audience as well— many of which serve to augment and uplift the emotional context of the various musical numbers. You get a lot of cooled, moody blue lighting for some of those more solemn musical moments but also during those FBI scenes. Blue bathes “Don’t Break the Rules” for a wild and energetic feel (and then switches to red) but also creates that mellow dip for “The Man Inside The Clues.” Red also pops up to backlight the Hanratty-Frank Sr. duet of “Little Boy Be a Man.” And Yarrington’s work also features some gold runners that blink around the frame of the stage, all making for a fun visual spectacle throughout the performance. Beleos’ sound work is a dramatic improvement from last year’s production, with clean even balance between live orchestra pit and performers on stage, hardly a microphone issue to be heard. This is not only noteworthy but praiseworthy as a performance as good as the ones presented at The Suburban Players should sound as good as it looks, feels, and moves.
And Beleos and his crew outdoes themselves with the sweeping, albeit deceptive, simplicity of the set. The two-tier play-space complete with dueling side staircases allows for the ensemble to be spread out evenly so that overcrowding never seems like an issue during the performance. But his real shining glory is that astonishing ‘larger-than-life’ airplane that they’ve rigged to rise up from behind the platform; it’s really a fantastical trick to watch when it first rises, giving the show that Broadway feel with that fun and engaging piece of scenery. Bonus shoutout to Properties Master (and Stage Manager) Dan Morelli and his construction assistant Cat Kohlbus, who keep the props in the show minimal but functional.
Costumes (rented by ‘The Costumer’ and attended by Hope Cassidy-Stewart and Nicole Katsikides) really fit the bill for the production— The crisp blue Pan-Am flight stewardess uniforms and those smooth clean pilot uniforms are just a few of the praiseworthy ones that deserve a mention. If there’s one questionable costume choice it’s the ‘all-black dresses’ that the “featured vocalists” end up wearing. They’re all accented with their own ‘color-of-the-rainbow’ ribbon belt and fascinator and the concept that the production team was going for— “featured vocalists are the live, living colors that Frank Jr. keeps singing about”— is there it’s just not as zesty or as fun as some of the other period costumes. Maybe silver dresses with the same accents (especially since Frank Jr.’s featured dance ensemble shows up in silver lamé pants and matching sparkle tops) or gold or shiny sequins, something to give them that extra visual pop to match their really impressive vocals. Costume of the show is by far the mint evening affair that Paula Abagnale wears, delicate and flowing, with the sheer, feather-trimmed caplet adding that touch of elegance to her refined total look.
The Frank Abagnale Jr. Band is certainly playing live in living color under the direction and conduction of Steven Edward Soltow. Featuring Soltow on piano, Benny Griese on Keys2, Alex Thanicatt on bass, Dean Ceresini on drums/percussion, Johanna McGuire on reed1, Jacob Neville on reed2, Jamie Kim on reed3, Alex Perloth on trumpet1, Karl Tracy on trumpet2, Connor Mathers on trombone, Mari Hill on reed3-sub, and Andrew Giska on trumpet1-sub, they are playing the most evenly balanced production on this side of 2020. Soltow (and the recently updated sound system) has them perfectly balanced against the singers and for an open, unmasked pit, that’s a tremendous accomplishment. They sound lively, they engage with the music, and the keep the show rolling; it’s a trifecta of awesome when it comes to the swinging sounds sliding on out of the pit. Soltow, who also serves as the show’s musical director, really gets clean sounds of out the entirety of the ensemble, particularly when blending those larger group numbers to have both energy and emotion. And his dueting blends result in smooth harmonies as well; it’s an impressive feat all-round. Soltow gets extra polished sounds from his featured ensemble singers, which include Caroline McEligot, Chelsea Dixon, Dominique Brown, Jasmine Mays-Robinson, Jenna Campbell, Miranda Cockey, and Valerie Pasquale.
Visually, the show’s most polished asset is the dancing, by way of choreographer Amie Bell. There’s such variety and versatility and moves that are just flying off the stage— quite literally as the performers are often out on the front lip-apron section of the stage or even down in the house singing and dancing right in the middle of the audience (a clever way to keep the stage from looking and feeling overcrowded.) Hands down, my personal favorite number is “Don’t Break the Rules” which features shimmies, slides, shuffles, and then some with an all-male dance-corps backing up Hanratty. Their crouch-moon-shuffle is as wild as the pelvic hip swings when they hit the lyric in that number about the wild, wild west! And you get all kinds of gliding and spinning and twirling during the opening bid of “Live and Living Color” too. Bell utilizes her features dancers to really up the performative stakes of the group numbers and the audience really enjoys all of the variety of choreography featured in the production. Lead by Dance Captains Erin Acerno, Maegan Read, and Veronica Lane, the featured dancers include the aforementioned trio of captains as well as Alyssa Bell, Ananda Morrow, Austin Buerhaus, Benjamin Jones, Callum Howard, Caroline McEligot, Evelyn Acerno, Gianna Grace Norton, Jayden Perez, Joshua Reginald Allen, Katie Bartles, Maeve Acerno, Matthew Lischin, Ryder Piunti, and Selena Mason.
The overall experience of a Suburban Players show is an extraordinary one, what with all that delicious food offered at the dinner-show performances (kitchen coordinators Sam & Mary Tsakiris and their team, Angie McQueeny && Nina Georgopolous on Team-Bakalava, and Olga Polites & Mark Alberding coordinating the bar) the fun little center-pieces themed to the show— this year they have airplanes in them! And of course the show itself, directed by Lauren Hampton. The show moved so swiftly this year, it was truly impressive. (Again shout-out to Stage Manager Dan Morelli as a director’s vision can only truly succeed if they have good stage manager working with them to achieve excellence.) Hampton knows the space intimately and the values of the community theatre organization as a whole, which includes making sure there’s space for as many talented, enthusiastic, supportive individuals as possible and she does a fine job of spreading people out so that the cast of 65 never feels like they’re overwhelming the stage and so that Amie Bell’s choreography can breathe and exist lively and fully to its much-deserved glory.
In addition to all the featured vocalists and featured dancers, Hampton works the ensemble— including Alex Campbell, Angelo Poletis, Charity Gilbert, Danny Dance, Dean Pappas, Derek Cooper, Emily Valentine, Gabrielle Ham-Jones, Hope Cassidy-Stewart, Kaitlyn Jones, Katelyn Viszoki, Myles Taylor, Nico Thompson, Nicole Katsikides, Nora Acerno, Rita Mallouh, Ryan Bordenski, Victor Scigala, Zion Iyoribhe, Zoë Luckabaugh— into a great many moments all throughout the performance in a way that feels natural. Hampton encourages the dynamic between characters, gives a lot of the ensemble performers little feature moments and really lets the show exist as a fun story with singing, dancing, and music for all to enjoy.
You get a few named cameos in the bunch, including Alyssa Bell as ‘Cheryl Ann’ and although the character’s biggest claim to fame in this production is popping up and ‘disrupting the story’, you can catch Bell hidden amongst the featured dancer corps too, turning out spins and smiling with the best of them in the ensemble numbers. The trio of comedic crackups, Agent Branton (Michael Bevard), Agent Cod (Matthew Lischin), and Agent Dollar (Austin Buerhaus) add a real nice dynamic to the salty and stoic Agent Carl Hanratty at every turn when they’re featured. Buerhaus in particular, as the ‘newest of the agents’ is a real hoot, whether it’s being drug out by his arms from underneath the hotel room bed, having a spastic dance party in the FBI office at the Christmas scene towards the end of the first act, or blazing at the top of his energetic peak when he’s got his gun out for target practice, he’s definitely one to keep your eye on. Michael Bevard, as Agent Branton, balances that with cranky sarcasm and one-liners that really land blows at Hanratty, all while serving as your stereotypical ‘G-man’, which pulls the trio of agents together nicely.
The Strong Family shows up in the second act and really draws your attention divinely. Gary Dieter as Roger Strong, Tammy Oppel as Carol Strong, and Hunter Lubawski as Brenda, the love-interest for Frank Jr. Oppel and Dieter are in some sort of magical, comedically-driven scene-stealer competition and it’s impossible to tell who’s winning. Both Oppel and Dieter have superb N’ola accents, giving them this southern charm that’s just undeniably humorous. And while Oppel’s characterization is the epitome of over-the-top-debutant-past-her-prime, flirting mercilessly, shamelessly, and unabashedly right out in the open with Frank Jr., Dieter is playing the character with such a straight rigidity— really working the character for stalwart truth— that he compliments the heck out of Oppel’s performance and the pair have you all but busting a gut in hilarity for that whole scene. And you get to hear their glorious voices alight upon “(Our) Family Tree” and they’re just singing sensations. As Brenda, the love interest, Lubawski was the perfect pick for her characterization and acting capabilities. She’s got this adorably nasal affectation that makes Brenda charming and quirky, and the chemistry between her character and Frank Jr. feels authentic. Her voice holds steady during “Seven Wonders”, the duet shared with Frank Jr., and she puts emotion into “Fly, Fly Away” even if the song hits right around the break of her range and presents her with some difficult vocal challenges.
In a crowned princess track, Lisa Pastella drifts into the scene as Paula Abagnale, floats along on a charming French-ish accent, and glides right back out of sight and out of mind; it’s almost easy to forget that Frank Jr. has a mother because the character only exists early on and once in the second act where she’s gifted with a glorious song that’s presented as a duet-apart with Frank Sr., “Don’t Be a Stranger.” Pastella’s mellifluous voice is the perfect sound to carry that song and her explanation of life and her son to Hanratty feel heartfelt. Playing the role of Frank Abagnale Sr., Adam Biemiller makes some curious choices that attempts to endear the ‘bum-down-on-his-luck’ component of the character to the audience. He’s present and adds a nice vocal blend to support Frank Jr. during “Butter Outta Cream” and makes a nice compliment to Hanratty during “Little Boy Be a Man.” (though for visuals, late in the second act when he’s taken the ‘government job’ and appears in short sleeves, it would appear more period appropriate to cover-up the tattoo on his inside right arm.)
There’s a proper dynamism between Carl Hanratty (Jake Stuart) and Frank Abagnale Jr. (Michael Simpson.) You get a true sense of cat and mouse a la Tom and Jerry with the perpetually frenetic chase that builds up between them. The show starts at the end, jumps back to the start, and works its way through. Even from their first exchange you can tell these two actors have connected, share a camaraderie that speaks volumes of their talents and their understanding of the show. They only share two songs, technically, one duet-apart— “My Favorite Time of Year”, where they’re singing to each other through the phones, and “Stuck Together (Strange But True)” which is the show’s big finale. The latter of the two songs is a tongue-in-cheek delight that they both handle sublimely, and their voices blend together beautifully to really put a big, splashy bang of a finish on the production as a whole.
As the stoic, unyielding, humorless Hanratty, Jake Stuart has a masterful hand on his character. And his vocals are extraordinary. Whether he’s navigating the moody bluesy shifts in “The Man Inside the Clues”, sharing his own father-childhood experience during “Little Boy Be a Man” or singing those little incidentals (like “Hanratty’s Surprise”) he has a firm handle on how to traverse the score, make it sound brilliant, and still keep the character in line as this rigidly formidable agent of the law. What minimal humor is present in Stuart’s Hanratty is drier than Saharan desert sand and it works beautiful for the dynamic that gets developed between the agent and the crook. Stuart busts out the vocals, the hip-pops, and the shuffle-strut during “Don’t Break The Rules” and has the audience screaming and cheering; it’s fantastic. And the way he belts through that number showcases his true vocal capabilities in a way that makes you love his performance even more.
With a cheeky charm that could sell manure to a farmer, Michael Simpson is live in living color as Frank Abagnale Jr. Not only does he have the acting component of this character flawlessly in hand, with all the right expressions, all those wonderfully activated moments, and that genuine charisma that could snake the gold outta Fort Knox with no one being the wiser, but he’s a proper triple threat. He’s got some dance moves, and the boy’s got vocal belts and sustains and clear, tonal carries like no tomorrow. And he does it all while staying in character and emotionally connecting with each musical and spoken moment. There’s a versatility to Simpson’s Frank Jr. and a proper story arch embedded in his portrayal. You feel it hardest near the end when Hanratty delivers the news about another character and the immediate, childish outburst flies out of Simpson’s mouth with such force and such rage that you really empathize with him. His blast sustains during “Live in Living Color” are extraordinary; the gentle intentions that he brings to “Seven Wonders” are beautiful, and his overall stage presence is respectable. “Goodbye” is that powerhouse ballad that really wraps up Frank Jr.’s story and Simpson is living his best life belting and breathing his way through that song, never showing defeat, but more of a triumphant acceptance of finally giving up the goat. He’s a remarkable performer that is absolutely going places with his singing and performing skills.
So what are you waiting for? A plane ticket? A doctor’s order? A legal summons? Betcha Frank Jr. could get you one of each! Cruise on in to The Suburban Players this February before Catch Me If You Can flies out of town for good!
Running Time: Approximately 2 hours and 30 minutes with one intermission
Catch Me If You Can plays through February Saturday February 21st 2026 with the Suburban Players housed at the Saint Demetrios Greek Orthodox Church in the Hermes Rafailides Center— 2504 Cub Hill Road in Carney, MD. For tickets please call (443) 390-2981 or purchase them online.
