It's Fiyero vs. Fiyero in the Broadway-bound musical Catch Me If You Can. In one corner is Tony winner Norbert Leo Butz, who originated the role of Fiyero in Wicked. He's duking it out with young hunk Aaron Tveit, who played the Wicked charmer in 2008. Together they will musically recreate the true story of con man Frank Abagnale Jr. on Broadway in April.
“It’s funny because they both played the same role in Wicked only a few years apart,” Catch Me composer Marc Shaiman told Broadway.com, adding that now the actors will play men of different generations in the new musical. Even though Butz's character is on the hunt to arrest Tveit (who plays Abagnale), he functions almost as a father figure to the clever criminal. “Norbert is entering the phase of playing [older parts], so it’s a little like when Anne Bancroft and Dustin Hoffman were in The Graduate and there was only a six-year difference,” Shaiman laughed.
So can we expect a Fiyero rivalry between Butz and Tveit? Nah.“They’re both huge fans of each other and even have the same manager," Shaiman revealed. "They’re both just so good. Aaron is a star in the making and Norbert brings so much heart to the show.”
While the actors may get along just fine, Butz and Tveit did playfully pretend to "loathe" each other during a 2009 benefit concert as they performed the Wicked song, “What is This Feeling?” Check out the vocal battle below!