On the Thursday of my family’s week-long NYC/Broadway extravaganza, we spent the morning being tourists. We went to the Statue of Liberty and Ellis Island. On the ferry boat, I kept singing Ragtime. I don’t think my parents or any of the other passengers were super pleased to hear me in the deepest voice I could muster, “one going from, one coming to, Americaaaaaaaaaaa.” But that’s beside the point. The real excitement on Thursday was in the evening, when we saw Catch Me If You Can at the Neil Simon Theatre. However, our Catch Me adventure actually started the day before, right in the middle of Times Square.
On Wednesday, shortly before noon, my parents and I entered the Times Square Visitor Center for the weekly recording of Seth Rudetsky’s Sirius XM Satellite Radio Show, Live on Broadway. The guests that day were Marc Shaiman and Scott Wittman, who wrote the music and lyrics for Catch Me If You Can, and Aaron Tveit, who, of course, plays Frank Abagnale, Jr. There were perhaps fifty or so people there (being noon on a work day and all), and we found seats about five rows back. We were so close, and it was very exciting.
So, Seth chatted with Marc Shaiman and Scott Wittman about writing the show and what that experience was like. It was really cool to hear songwriters discuss their craft, especially since, although I love music, there’s no bone in my body with the ability to sing on key. It was awesome to hear about making music from people who are really good at it. Then, Aaron Tveit sang two songs. It was great to have him singing those songs in a smaller venue. One of the songs, it seemed like he was singing right to me – either because he was looking at about the middle of the audience, where I happened to be, or because he secretly loves me. Okay, I’m kidding. Unless he really does love me, in which case I’m not. Seth tried to convince him to do “Seven Wonders” authentically, like it is in the show – in his underwear. Unfortunately, he said no, but the performance was amazing nonetheless. He is a really talented performer, and it was a privilege to hear him sing in that venue. If you’re ever free in NYC on a Wednesday, head down to the Times Square Visitors center at noon – they do the show each week, always with exciting guests. It was so fun. Seth is so funny! My parents even enjoyed themselves, and they’re not even close to as theater-obsessed as I am. And, for a short time, the visitor center is home to a Tony Awards mini-museum with costumes from Broadway shows and other fun stuff.
Cut to Thursday night, when we saw the show for real. Our seats were in the center orchestra on the aisle, near the back of the house. The seats on the aisle turned out to be extra awesome because Aaron Tveit and Norbert Leo Butz ran down the aisle, right by us, a few times.
We absolutely loved the show! The score was absolutely swingin’, the acting was phenomenal, the singing blew me away, and the dancing was down-right cool. I have been listening to the cast recording ever since I got home. I’m particularly enamored with Norbert Leo Butz singing “Don’t Break the Rules.” I can’t get enough. The choreography was amazing – kudos to Jerry Mitchell and the entire ensemble of amazing dancers. I’ll admit that I’m a tad obsessed with Diary of a Chorus Girl, so it was fun to see their rehearsals chronicled and then see the finished product.
After the show, my parents headed back to our hotel, and I waited at the stage door. I must say, this is one of my top two stage door experiences ever (the other being during a blizzard at the In the Heights). Almost the entire cast came out to meet fans, including all the principals. It was so fun to tell them how much I love the show. I got to tell Tom Wopat that when I was a kid, my dad took me to the Kennedy Center to see him in Annie Get Your Gun with Bernadette Peters, and that it was that show that started me on this crazy journey of musical theater obsession. I got to get my picture taken with arguably Broadway’s number-one heartthrob. I got to chat with other fans and gush with them about the people we were meeting. The entire cast was so gracious and so friendly and just seemed to genuinely grateful to their fans and eager to be there, at the stage door, meeting them and signing autographs for them. It was such a delight. Even if you don’t regularly frequent the stage door, I urge you to head that way when you see Catch Me if You Can.
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