"This is my life!"
Written: Jul 22 '00
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Product Rating:
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Pros: Hilarious, touching, and true to life
Cons: Cons? What cons?
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| BroadwayBaby's Full Review: I Love You, You're Perfect, Now Change |
I woke up this morning with stomach pains. Why? Because I went to see I Love You, You're Perfect, Now Change last night, and the show had me laughing almost non-stop! After seeing it once, I'm making plans to go again and again, because it was one of the best musical comedies I've ever seen. The script was superb, and the four (yes, just four) actors who played numerous parts were energetic and refreshing.
The Technical Aspects
I'm a big fan of Capital Repertory Theater (located in Albany, NY), because of their skill at picking a good show and making it into a wonderful show. The set for I Love You, You're Perfect, Now Change was basic, but it served its purpose well. It had a flashy, futuristic look, with tiled columns comprising the wings, and a shiny green dance floor and green carpet covering the rest of the stage. The backdrop was a cityscape of silver buildings, which provided just the right setting for most of the scenes, and provided something for the actors to hide behind when waiting for an entrance. Not that they ended up waiting a lot; the show was full of super-fast costume changes, some of which even happened on stage (and don't worry, no skin was revealed *s*)!
Furniture and other pieces of the set were brought on stage specifically for certain scenes, such as large urns of flowers for the wedding scene, and a table and chairs for the dating scenes. These pieces of the set were brought in very quickly by efficient stagehands, and there was none of that annoying waiting for a scene change, which is common to some theaters.
A little inside info about the costumes: having been backstage (I'm currently rehearsing a show at Cap Rep), I've seen how the costume changes are accomplished so quickly. One entire wall is covered with photos of the actors in each of their costumes, all lined up in the order they appear on stage. This way, the dressers can simply glance to see what costume is next. Without these pictures, the costume crew might have trouble remembering what change is next, because there are so many changes in the show. The costumes themselves were great, ranging from white robes in the opening scene, lingerie and underwear in another scene, a gaudy green bridesmaid dress with large magenta flowers for the wedding scene, and an orange convict costume.
The lighting was also well done. No special effects in lighting, but there really isn't room for them in the script. As for other special effects, there are some things which "fly in" from the ceiling, or shower down. For example, in the wedding scene, rose petals slowly fall onto the couple. Another neat thing was the two TV monitors, one on each side of the stage. These were used to flash a title before each scene, and to get a close up camera shot during "The First Dating Video of Rose Ritz".
Overall, the technical aspects were very well done, just as I would have expected from a great theater such as Capital Rep.
The Plot
There really isn't much of a plot to tie the whole show together, but the format which is used works well. I Love You, You're Perfect, Now Change was composed of many short scenes, most of which had a song. Each scene had a title which was flashed onto the video monitor just before each scene, so you had some idea of what was coming up. These were catchy titles, such as "The Lasagna Incident" or "The First Dating Video of Rose Ritz." At each one, the audience chuckled as we waited for the next scene to begin. Although some may not enjoy this particular format in which characters are only seen for one scene, it fits well for this type of play, and Joe DiPietro (the author) does a great job giving each scene a clear beginning, middle, and end.
Each scene had countless jokes, some verbal, and some simply body language. For example, in one scene about a married couple, the husband and wife are sitting at the kitchen table. The man gulps his coffee down black while reading the sports section of the paper, while the woman went through a whole rigamarole to first add cream, then stir noisily with a spoon, then add exactly two (completely level) teaspoons of sugar, and then stir noisily. All the while reading Vogue :) The show has subtle humor like this, as well as if-you-don't-notice-this-you-must-be-dead jokes which were spoken by the actors. When I looked around, I did not see a single person who looked as if they weren't enjoying themselves. At intermission, when I overheard people discussing the show, I overheard people saying "This is the best show I've ever seen... I was laughing so hard." Not only did I hear others saying that, I was saying that, and I'm pretty critical of shows.
I Love You, You're Perfect, Now Change depicts couples at every stage of a relationship. From the first date, to the first fight, to the wedding, to kids, and to the funeral, the show is packed with hilarious (but true) tidbits. As someone currently only as far along as the dating stage, I couldn't relate to some of the later stages of the relationships that the show explored, but they certainly seemed true, and I still got a lot of laughs out of the show.
There are some serious skits in the show as well. For example, "The Lasagna Incident" is quite funny, but it features a serious love ballad about how the girl is thrilled to have a date. Another serious part is the song during the funeral scene, which I didn't enjoy too much. The funeral scene was really the only part of the show that I didn't like, simply because the humor wasn't as obvious.
The Acting
The actors were simply wonderful! Having less than 30 seconds to do a complete change of costumes and characters, they managed to do it, and do it well! My favorite change was the change of Michael Thomas Holmes (Man #2) from convict on death row to gospel preacher. He only had a minute to do a costume change (on stage!), and yet he still made the characters completely believable. This change was one of the funniest in the show.
Although there are only four actors, these four actors play 15 roles, and play them well! The other actors were Tony Freeman (as Man #1), Christine Kienzle (Woman #1), and Diana Pappas (Woman #2). Each of them did a superb job in making their many characters come alive. I particularly enjoyed Christine Kienzle's voice in the musical numbers, of which there are 17. Diana Pappas was hilarious in her jungle-green-with-magenta-rosettes-bridesmaid gown, when she sang "Always a Bridesmaid (But Never a Bride)". And Tony Freeman was wonderful in the third scene, "A Stud and a Babe", in which he played the dorky golfer who desperately wanted to be a stud. Overall, a five star (or five dots on Epinions *s*) cast!
The Price
Capital Rep is pretty reasonably priced for the quality of shows they offer, especially if you compare them to some of the cabaret-style dinner theaters in NYC which charge an arm and a leg. Capital Repertory Theater isn't really a dinner theater; they're a regular theater. However, in the summer, their shows have a cabaret section in the front, and cold drinks are allowed in. Tickets are $25-$35 per person, and at the end of the show, ushers will pass out coupons for $10 off the next time you come to the theater (and believe me, you will want to come again!). If any price is too high for you, consider ushering. Capital Rep doesn't require the long training program that some theaters do; once you've signed up, just come an hour ahead of time, and they'll tell you exactly what to do. As a student, I love doing this, because it means I can save my money for Broadway, when I can't usher :)
Overall?
You may think I'm exaggerating, but my overall reaction is "the best show I've ever seen!" When I talked to others, they felt the same way, and in reading the playbill, there's an interesting blurb which I'd like to share:
I Love You, You're Perfect, Now Change, with book and lyrics by Joe DiPietro and music by Jimmy Roberts, premiered at New Jersey's American Stage Company in 1995. In the middle of an early performance, a woman blurted out, "This is my life!".
I feel that anyone who sees this wonderful show will have to fight the impulse to say the same thing as that woman, "This is my life!". I Love You, You're Perfect, Now Change is a wonderful comedy which has a few touching moments as well, and fantastically written. It makes for a combination which is pretty hard to beat! So drag your friends, family, and anyone else you can find, and run, drive, take the train, or fly to Capital Repertory Theater in Albany, New York, for a special engagement of I Love You, You're Perfect, Now Change which shouldn't be missed. Come on any night, and you'll probably see me there, as I'll definitely be going back for more of this hilarious show.
Recommended:
Yes
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Epinions.com ID:
BroadwayBaby
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Member: Laura
Location: NY state
Reviews written: 24
Trusted by: 25 members
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