Review: CATCH ME IF YOU CAN, Richmond Theatre

Photo Credit: Jack Merriman

Though advertised as a psychological thriller, Catch Me If You Can at Richmond Theatre gets many laughs because it perfectly blends tension with humour. The play, written by Jack Weinstock and Willie Gilbert, takes place in the Catskills mountains, where newlywed couple Daniel and Elizabeth Corbin are supposed to be having their honeymoon, but their celebration is brought to a halt when Elizabeth goes missing. But the biggest problems occur when Elizabeth returns, and Daniel is insistent that she’s not his wife.

Patrick Duffy is superb as Daniel Corbin, with outbursts that lead the audience to believe he’s on edge and can break at any point. With a dramatic flair, Linda Purl makes Elizabeth Corbin a likeable and hateable character. Her constant arrogance and self-assurance contrasts Duffy’s Daniel Corbin well, causing a great amount of tension onstage. Similarly, Gray O’Brien is absolutely brilliant as Inspector Levine, finding the perfect balance between being conceited and being funny. His interactions with Duffy prove to be some of the best writing in the play.

The cast is completed by Ben Nealon as Father Kelleher, Hugh Futcher as Sydney, Paul Levers as Everett Parker and Chloe Zeitounian as Mrs Parker. Each of these are splendid in their roles, Nealon does a great job of showing the two sides of his character, bringing a certain darkness at times. Hugh Futcher is a delight to watch, becoming one of the most loved characters from the moment he steps onstage as the kind sandwich shop owner, Sydney. Paul Levers and Chloe Zeitounian play the Parkers incredibly well and despite not being onstage for long, they get plenty of laughs.

The set, designed by Julie Godfrey, remains the same for the 2 hours 5-minute runtime and onstage is a remote but lovely cabin up in the mountains. The actors made use of the three doors onstage and this made scene changes seamless. Chris Davey uses lighting to show the different time of day, but also used colour changes to highlight the thrilling and darker moments in the play. Throughout the play, we hear some of Sinatra’s songs and Gershwin too, this helps create the atmosphere of a holiday in the mountains, but also is a clever reference to the script where we hear about Sinatra Records. As Sound Designer, Matt Bugg adds that extra bit that just brings the show together.

With its fantastic cast and crew, Catch Me If You Can is not one to miss out on. Full of twists and turns, the actors take you on a journey through many different emotions but leave you with a shocking yet satisfying ending.

It’s a thriller that leaves you laughing and on the edge of your seat.

***** Five stars

Reviewed by: Daisy Lee

Catch Me If You Can plays at Richmond Theatre until 16 April, with tickets available here.