Reportedly, this pleasant but innocuous compilation of skits and musical numbers is tops among nonprofit shows nationwide this season. A company of four portray twosomes, with the unifying theme being heterosexual(!) relationships from dating through marriage to geriatric widowhood. Here the performers make mundane material seem funnier than it is -- as when plaid-pantsed golf nut Nick Santa Maria bores the woman who "hangs" on everything he putts forward, or exhausted marrieds Carl Danielsen and Tina Stafford try to have sex "for a change." One of the more original skits shows Tina, "Always a Bridesmaid," detesting her purple gown with red trimmed hoop-skirt as well as most of the marriages she's stood up for. Maribeth Graham's big voice and expressive eyes bring unexpected poignancy to the overlong making of a dating video.
Among predictable topics are the man (dynamic Nick) who becomes king of the road "On the Highway of Love," as long as he's behind the wheel driving his car ù simulated by all four performers on rolling office chairs. Sexual explicitness is notable in a bedroom scene intruded upon by TV advertising lawyer and clinical expert. Most of the material in Perfect/Change is mild and predictable. Songs include ballads, country, rock, blues numbers that are pleasant but as undistinguished as the lyrics. All are rendered, however, in lively fashion by the singers and enthusiastic musicians. Would that the director had set a more lively pace to the generally bland proceedings.
It would be interesting to see a sociological inquiry into the reasons for the popularity of I Love You other than the competence of the entertainers.
