“Catch Me if You Can” is an extremely successful movie which tells the story of Frank Abagnale Jr., a master of fraud. The musical follows a similar plot to the famous movie from 2002, which stars Leonardo DiCaprio and Tom Hanks. The White Plains Performing Arts Center showed the musical version of “Catch Me if You Can” from April 10 to the final production on May 3. This musical brought a modern perspective to the story, with upbeat songs that added fun twists.

Frank Abagnale Jr. was an expert in check fraud and shared a long and exciting journey of escaping the FBI in his autobiography. This autobiography is not necessarily based in fact; however, it makes for an interesting story. Abagnale’s autobiography spins the tale of a man faking credentials as a Pan-Am Pilot, practicing law without a license, writing over $2.5 million in fraudulent checks and even supervising a night shift at a hospital.

This story is brought to life in the musical through starring actors and actresses like Ryan Norton (Frank Abognale Jr.), Robbie Beirnie (Agent Branton), Michelle Dawson (Paula Abagnale), Wesley Carpenter (Brenda Strong) and Joshua Woodie (Frank Abagnale Sr.). These actors are all very accomplished, having roles in successful theaters and productions previously. The high quality of actors and actresses allowed the audience to enjoy the show instead of cringing at novice mistakes in singing, dancing or acting.

The songs of this musical are fun and upbeat; however, I thought they all sounded similar. The song “Live in Living Color” is catchy and repeats many times throughout the production. Every time the song came back, it was nice and helped tie the fast-paced musical together. Additionally, emotional songs like “Fly, Fly Away” add deep emotion to Brenda Strong’s character, creating sympathy and adding depth to characters, just as good soundtracks should do.

This musical is modern, and this is clear through the set. An interesting part of the set is how the pit orchestra sits on the stage. This was extremely fun and highlighted the presence and importance of orchestras, which often gets overlooked. The WPPAC conductor is Stephen Ferri, who has conducted many of the past musicals. Having a live orchestra for a musical, especially one as professional as this, adds to the overall production immensely in a way brought to life by the presence of the pit on stage.

This musical’s quick plot is easier understood through the ensemble, who tell the unspoken parts of the story. These dancers come out in between different time periods, adding complicated dances and songs to the production. This also bridges the gap between the audience and show, adding to the same effect created by the pit orchestra’s presence on stage.

In the 2025-26 season at WPPAC, there were three productions, finishing strong with “Catch Me if You Can.” The season started off with Shania Morissette’s “Jagged Little Pill” from Oct. 3-26, 2025, a fantastic story with captivating music. From Dec. 12, 2025-Jan. 4, 2026, the WPPAC had “Finding Neverland” on stage, telling the endearing story of the creator of Peter Pan and the struggles he went to in writing stage plays for children.

This performing arts center is yet to disappoint, constantly putting on impressive performances that are definitely worth watching!