At Friday's opening of I Love You, You're Perfect, Now Change at Theater Three, when musical director Terry Dobson asked the capacity audience in T3s 90-seat downstairs theatre, how many people had never seen this play, only about 20 raised their hands. This attests to the popularity of this humorous musical revue about the relationships between the sexes. First produced at Theater Three in 2000, it ran continuously for three years. Each year, T3 artistic director Jac Alder reprises it for a limited run.
Written by Joe DiPietro and Jimmy Roberts, this two-man, two-woman cast portray an array of stereotypes as they interact in the battle of the sexes. The opening sketch telescopes a blind date into a long-term relationship -- all upon first meeting -- to avoid the awkwardness of a first date.
A thigh-slapping sketch by real-life husband and wife, Amy Mills and Doug Jackson, shows us a couple attending a tear-jerking chick flick when the guy would much have preferred an action film. Then there's the tennis match where the gal (Amy Corcoran Anders) beats the guy (Sonny Franks) in straight sets and wonders why he has never made a pass at her after four dates.
A very funny sketch shows a couple about to make a pronouncement to her parents -- but it's not what you may think. This skit is reminiscent of a "Mama's Family" TV segment in which Corcoran conjures up a dead-on impression of Vicki Lawrence as "Mama." The "couple in bed scene" is a hoot as Amy Mills appears in a surprise visit as a therapist associated with the litigation firm of -----; I won't ruin the surprise; you have to see this to believe it.
Adding to the insanity is the interfaith, over=30 singles group led by Amy Mills, which holds its meeting inside the confines of Attica State Prison. This one will have you wiping away tears of laughter.
Corcoran is hilarious enacting The Very First Dating Video of Rose Ritz. In a humorous yet touching scene, Mills and Jackson are charming as the older widow and widower who meet at a funeral home viewing and begin a flirtation. Jackson throws in a delightful Jimmy Durante impersonation.
The only problem with this production is its uneven pacing. As directed by Terry Dobson, an excellent musical director, all the musical numbers sparkle and move with alacrity while many of the non-musical scenes are allowed to drag, especially the funeral-home scene. Still, this is a fun show with lots of laughs.
