‘Catch Me If You Can’ Comes to Disappointing End September 4

This seems to be the time of year for closings on Broadway. In the past two weeks, we’ve gotten word that ‘Rain’ and ‘Baby It’s You’ will be playing their final performances. Now you can add ‘Catch Me If You Can’ to the musical graveyard. It is set to close its run at the Neil Simon Theatre on September 4. On that date, it will have logged 170 regular performances as well as 32 previews.

‘Catch Me If You Can’ was adapted for the stage from the Steven Spielberg film that starred Leonardo DiCaprio, Tom Hanks, Christopher Walken and Amy Adams. The 2002 film focused on con artist Frank Abagnale Jr. (DiCaprio) and his seemingly endless pursuit to stay one step ahead of the law, FBI agent Carl Hanratty (Hanks).

The Broadway musical stars Norbert Leo Butz (Carl Hanratty), Aaron Tveit (Frank Abagnale Jr.), Kerry Butler (Brenda Strong) and Tom Wopat (Frank Abagnale Sr.). Butz won a Tony Award in 2011 for his performance in the musical. The show was nominated for four Tony Awards including Best Musical, but it was no match for the tidal wave onslaught of the ‘Book of Mormon.’

The show’s book was written by Terrence McNally with music by Marc Shaiman and lyrics contributed by Shaiman and Scott Wittman. Direction was handled by Jack O’Brien. Much of the show’s creative team were reassembled from the Tony extravaganza ‘Hairspray.’

For those outside of New York who lament not catching the show in time, breathe a sigh of relief. ‘Catch Me If You Can’ is set to launch a national tour in the fall of 2012 starting in nearby Providence, RI.