It would not surprise me if every single person who has seen Joe DiPietro and Jimmy Roberts' I Love You, You’re Perfect, Now Change could relate to it somewhat, as it is a very real, heartfelt yet hilarious look at the various stages of love and relationships. The show is told through a smorgasbord of different situations, almost playing out like romantic musical sketch comedy - it's worth noting that this production is an abridged version of the show, however we lose none of the wit, charm or humour that one associates with this musical.
Though the arc this show follows is not linear in and of itself, how this non-sequential series of vignettes link together and progress is delightfully clever, as the different stages of the relationships follow a very much linear path. We open with a first date situation, awkward and fraught with internal psychological turmoil for both parties, going through the different stages through marriage, having a family, and ultimately growing old together. The situations all differ greatly, but the themes and definitive progression that tie them all together make for a wonderful piece of theatre.
There was no shortage of talent on or off stage, director Karl Steele and musical director Nick Allen have put together something special, with some particularly effective set and lighting design utilised. The traditional cast of four, each portraying a variety of characters, all excelled, as each is afforded some wonderful solo moments, whilst also playing off one another brilliantly. Bradley Walwyn displayed fabulous diversity in the roles he portrayed, with his take on an imprisoned mass murderer particularly amusing, and Megan Carole in particular gave us both great humour and heart-on-sleeve sincerity, in a real performance of emotional complexity. When they all came together though, we were treated to some delicious harmonies, all four blending their vocals superbly. It is a shame they weren’t able to perform the show in its entirety, because what we have with this production is everything you could possibly want from a musical romcom.
I Love You, You're Perfect, Now Change runs at theSpace @ Surgeon's Hall until 24th August - for more information and tickets, you can follow the link here.
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ (5*)
Gifted tickets in return for an honest review (@theatretradge)
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