Software engineer by day, con artist by night.
That's the life of 21-year-old Bede Fulton this summer as he prepares for his lead role in the Pinewood Performing Arts summer outdoor musical.
Fulton plays the main protagonist, Frank Abagnale Jr., in “Catch Me If You Can," which opened Thursday at Pinewood Bowl. There are shows Friday, Saturday and Sunday, and July 20-23, all at 8 p.m.
“He’s amazing to work with,†producer Emily Maldavs said. “He’s a charming young man who knocks everyone’s socks off with his vocals.â€
This is Fulton’s second year performing in the annual Pinewood musical following his role last summer as Crutchie in “Newsies.â€
“('Newsies') was my first experience with Pinewood and it was just such a professional atmosphere and the directing team was amazing,†Fulton said. “I kind of fell in love with being at Pinewood and the atmosphere and especially the people.â€
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Prior to Pinewood, Fulton performed as a student at Pius X High School for four years. His older twin brothers were involved in the musical theater scene, and Fulton said he quickly fell in love with it.
As one of eight siblings, Fulton said musical theater is a "family thing" — each of his siblings who have reached high school has taken part in student performances.Â
“I loved watching them on stage,†Fulton said. “I was always like, ‘Yes, I want to do that. I want to try.’â€
As much as he loves performing, Fulton took the first couple of years off in college from acting to focus on academics. He will be a senior this fall at the University of Nebraska at Omaha, double majoring in computer science and math.
He spends his days working as a software engineer, which Fulton said is a completely different realm than theater, leading him to live very different lives.
“As soon as the workday is over, then I transition into theater mode, which is very outgoing," Fulton said. "The way you communicate and problem-solve (in theater) is talking and people skills, whereas with software engineering, it’s more problem-solving with code and your knowledge."
The two different parts of his life give him two very different ways of thinking that he must exercise.
“It’s great, but sometimes it feels like my life is kind of split in two because I have those two aspects,†Fulton said. “The theater is very emotionally intelligent and you have to be aware of how you portray yourself on stage.â€
The emotional intelligence comes in play when paving a path for his character. Director Courtney Piccoli said Fulton is great to work with.
“He is always open to suggestions while also knowing the direction he sees for the character he is playing,†Piccoli said.
To do so, Fulton utilizes other parts of his life to connect with his character, Abagnale Jr. He said getting to create and share his story as the character has been one of his favorite parts.
“Every musical has set guidelines for the characters to follow, and then you just get to take that character and then make it your own,†Fulton said. “Some people coming to this musical will have seen it in the past and they’ll have seen other people perform the role, but they’ve never seen my rendition of it.â€
His creativity for Abagnale Jr. stems from his own life experiences in high school. As a soccer player, Fulton often traveled, including a trip to Spain where he put on a persona to blend in with the locals.
“I had to fake that I knew the language,†Fulton said. “That’s something that I can kind of relate to where you have to fake like you know what you’re doing and then it just kind of works out.â€
Abagnale Jr. in “Catch Me If You Can†was a master of deception who worked as a doctor, lawyer and co-pilot, all before his 18th birthday.
“His story is pretty crazy and wild,†Fulton said. “He was just living the high life in New York and getting to see all these different things.â€
Fulton recommends the musical for those who enjoy singing, high energy, creative dancing and the outdoors.
“If you love the combination of all those things, this show would be perfect for you,†Fulton said. “It’s very exciting and you get to see the story of a very peculiar young man.â€
For more information and for tickets, visit .
IF YOU GO
WHAT:Â Pinewood Performing Arts' 73rd annual summer production, "Catch Me If You Can."
°Â±á·¡¸é·¡:ÌýPinewood Bowl, 3201 S. Coddington Ave.
WHEN:Â Friday-Saturday, 8 p.m. July 20-23, 8 p.m. Doors open at 5:30 p.m.
¶Ù±õ¸é·¡°ä°Õ°¿¸é:ÌýCourtney Piccoli.
PRODUCER:Â Emily Maldavs.
Cast:Â Bede Fulton, Sam Ninegar, Grant Schirmer, Claire Wilkinson, Karen Freimund-Wills, Ashley Bolton, Shawn Carlson, Alex Rownd, Adian Upton, Joe Hanson, Olivia Sis, Bryson Cole, Annaliese Saathoff.
TICKETS:Â $15 at Russ's, $16 online, $18 at the gate.
SEATING:Â You may bring in your own lawn chairs and bag chairs. The areas closest to the stage is a blanket-only section. Bench seating is also available.
MORE INFO: .