LINDA’S SUCH A CONSUMMATE STAGE ACTRESS THAT IT’S DAUNTING

WHAT can audiences expect when they come to see Catch Me If You Can?

I’ve never done one of these wonderful Agatha Christie-type whodunnits before, where the plot isn’t solved almost until the curtain comes down. But it’s very similar, interestingly enough, to the sitcom world that I was in for seven years when I did Step by Step with Suzanne Somers because everyone is telling one level of lie to the other person and the plot gets reconciled in the last few minutes. And it’s great fun playing both sides of the character – the villain and the hero – until the audience finds out which side is the real one.

The play premiered on Broadway in the 1960s but does it feel timely now?

I’d say it’s more timeless the way that a lot of great plots are. I don’t want to sound pompous but there are only about ten plots in the theatrical world and Shakespeare did all of them. It’s all about nuance; you put it in a different suit of clothes and set it in a different time period. The play is dated because we’re doing it a la the 60s but it’s not dated in terms of the content and thrust at all. It’s a timeless tale of duplicity and intrigue, and in the midst of it all there’s a comedy element which makes it extremely enjoyable.

Your co-star is also your partner Linda Purl, who plays

Margaret Corban. Have you worked together before?

We did a TV movie together last year [Doomsday Mom], which was after we’d fallen in love and were living with each other. But this is the first time I’ve been on stage with her and it’s frightening because she is such a consummate stage actress. She has such an amazing work ethic and such professionalism so when we got this job together I got cold feet at first. It’s daunting but also inspiring.

You became a couple after chatting on Zoom during lockdown. Do you think it would have happened under other circumstances?

I would tend to say, based on the almost two years we’ve been together now, that yes it would have because of the attraction, the pull and compatibility that we have for each other. All of those elements dictate to me that, yes, under any circumstances we’d be together, but I don’t know how long it might have taken.

You appeared in the West End in Art. How do British audiences compare to those in your American homeland?

I’m gonna get killed in America for saying this but British audiences are dedicated theatre-goers. People in America tend to go to see plays and shows in places like New York, Los Angeles and maybe Chicago but it seems like everybody in the UK knows theatre. They know ballet, they know opera, they know dramatic theatre, musicals and panto so they’re well-tuned to the theatre experience. They’re not going in on a learning curve and I find that really wonderful. British audiences to me are the quintessential audience to play to or to play with, I should say.

This your first time touring the UK? What are you most looking forward to about it?

I’m looking forward to travelling around the country. I won’t get to do as much sightseeing as I’d like but the beauty is that we’re in a new town every week and we’re driving ourselves so we’ll get to see a lot of the countryside.