There are two very special moments in the Maui OnStage production of “I Love You, You’re Perfect, Now Change!” One comes near the beginning and the other is at the very end. In both cases, the four members of the cast look straight out at the audience and say “Hello.”
The way the word is delivered and the warmth of the performers’ smiles cuts through everything to the heart of the musical. To quote director Nolan Haims quoting the playwright Joe DiPietro: “It’s about people connecting.” In the Iao Theater, the cast most definitely connects with the audience.
“I Love You, You’re Perfect, Now Change!” is a light-hearted romp of a musical made up of 18 scenes. Each of the performers plays multiple characters (14 for three of them and 13 for the other) ranging from nerdy teen-agers to a couple in the autumn of their lives. The music by Jimmy Roberts ranges in style from jazz to blues to country with side trip to Tin Pan Alley and Broadway. Musical director Vania Jerome plays nearly constantly during the two-hour show and doesn’t miss a beat.
Sometimes the show is sweet. It is often sassy. And there are moments which will prompt the paired-up to thank their stars they are and other moments when men and or women will be muttering “Ain’t it the truth.” It’s the kind of show any writer would be proud to claim as his or her own.
Director Haims has his talented cast walking that thin line between funny social commentary (and despite earlier references to “Seinfeld,” this show is definitely about something) and parody. Haims, a New York professional brought to Maui to direct this show, aims for the kind of laughter that comes from understanding.
But this is a comedy and last Saturday night’s audience - including a high proportion of older folks - was smiling and laughing throughout. I suspect even an audience of 20-somethings and 30-somethings would be laughing as much, although maybe at different set ups.
The best art has an element of surprise to it so this review won’t be going into a lot of detail about some of the very funny bits. I can’t resist mentioning “Satisfaction Guaranteed,” a television commercial for a law firm that guarantees to get your lover in step with what you want or “Men who talk and the women who pretend they’re listening” which includes two neat tunes: “Single Man Drought" and “Why? ’Cause I’m a Guy.”
The female characters are played by Denni Paull and Patrice Scott; the male characters by Dale Button and Cliff Mooney. Paull and Button, two familiar Maui players, do some of the best work they have ever done. Scott, making her Maui musical debut, is a welcome addition to the island’s musical comedy leading ladies. Mooney, also debuting musically on Maui, is a solid singing actor.
Some favorites from the show include Paull’s “The Very First Dating Video of Rose Ritz," Scott’s “Always a Bridesmaid,” Button’s “Tear Jerk,” and Mooney’s “A Stud and a Babe.” The occasions when the entire cast sings together are another high point for anyone who enjoys well-done close harmony.
There is some inoffensive profanity done in the service of sophisticated comedy as in when she offers to make dinner and, in a Freudian slip, tells him he can bring the condoms. There is also a modicum of plain silliness to balance out the overall hip quality of the show. One broadly smiling patron last Saturday left saying, “Hey that was really different.”
Hana Hou!
“I Love You, You’re Perfect, Now Change!” plays the Iao Theater in Wailuku at 7:30 p.m. Fridays and Saturdays; 5 p.m. Sundays through March 25. Tickets are $18, $16 for seniors and students. For reservations, call 242-6969.
You have two more weekends to see this delightful small-cast musical about the eternal struggle to find and keep a mate.
Denni Paull, Patrice Scott, Cliff Mooney and Dale Button play a total of 54 characters, mostly while singing to the accompaniment of Vania Jerome, whose voice coaching shows in the ensemble work. Super blend.
This is a comedy directed by imported New York professional Nolan Haims. His fingerprints are all over the show, which cranks out its first laughs seconds after the opening curtain and maintains the pace throughout
The book and lyrics by Joe DiPietro take dead aim on the mating game and score bull’s-eyes with the audience laughing mostly out of understanding. There is a mute chorus in the audience of “Ain’t it the truth,” and “Gad, glad I’m not out there in the singles scene, anymore.” The music by Jimmy Roberts runs the gamut of pop, blues, jazz, and even one country tune about a bridesmaid with a closet full of dresses she wore once and never again.
The show is light but substantial, a real beat for both fans of traditional musicals and those who like their fare on the hip side.
“I Love You, You’re Perfect, Now Change!” plays the Iao Theater 7:30 p.m. Friday and Saturday; 5 p.m. Sunday this weekend and next. Tickets are $18, $16 seniors and students. Call 242-6969.
This weekend is your last chance to see a superb small-cast musical playing the Iao Theater in Wailuku. The Maui OnStage production of “I Love You, You’re Perfect, Now Change!” is a witty exploration of the mating game, getting and keeping.
Patrice Scott, Dale Button, Denni Paull, and Cliff Mooney play a total of 54 memorable characters in the thematic anthology where most of the dialogue is sung.
The Joe DiPietro book and lyrics are hip and droll, pulling laughs with the regularity of a sitcom but without the sappiness. Jimmy Roberts music pays homage to the blues, jazz, Tin Pan Alley, the Great White Way, and country and western.
Vania Jerome is a one-musician pit band, playing her keyboards down stage right while the four singers exhibit Jerome’s abilities as a musical director and vocal coach. Director Nolan Haims, a Broadway professional, modulated the performance for maximum effect, mining every laugh but not forgetting the show’s considerable heart.
“I Love You, You’re Perfect, Now Change!” plays the Iao at 7:30 p.m. Friday and Saturday. Tickets are $18, $16 seniors and students. For reservations, call the Maui OnStage box office at 242-6969.