STAGES REPERTORY THEATRE
3201 Allen Parkway at Waugh Drive, Houston, Texas 77019
www.stagestheatre.com

Presents

I LOVE YOU, YOU'RE PERFECT, NOW CHANGE!

Command Performance Kicks Off the Summer at Stages Repertory Theatre
I LOVE YOU, YOU'RE PERFECT, NOW CHANGE! Back by popular demand

Houston, TX - The New York Times called it "witty, funny, and as good as it gets;" the Houston Press deemed it "a crowd-pleasing review that sparkles like a tree full of Christmas lights;" and the Houston Chronicle said the show "gets off to a riotous start" and will "keep you laughing." It's the show for anyone who's ever felt awkward on a date or in a relationship, and would rather laugh about it than cry: It's I LOVE YOU, YOU'RE PERFECT, NOW CHANGE! So popular in its regional premiere at Stages in 1999 that it was extended four weeks, the show will run in Stages' Yeager theatre July 14 through September 12, 2004.

"Finally, I can respond positively to all the calls I've gotten, and to all the people who have stopped me in the grocery store for the past five years asking me to do this show again," commented Stages Artistic Director Rob Bundy. "So I you need something great to do on a date this summer, or your mother-in-law is in town, come see this show."

The longest running revue in off-Broadway history, I LOVE YOU, YOU'RE PERFECT, NOW CHANGE! was nominated for Drama Desk and Outer Critics Circle awards and exposes everything you've secretly thought about dating, mating, and romance but were afraid to admit. It's a musical about Everyman and Everywoman and everything that can go wrong when they try to get together. Laura Josepher, who directed Stages' original production, explains, "While a lot of people write characters you might aspire to know or be like, (playwright) Joe DiPietro writes about the people you are. The things that make you laugh the most are the things you can identify with." Stages 1999 production marked Josepher's (Dirty Blonde, Turn of the Screw) Houston directorial debut, and the upcoming 2004 production retains both her original staging and the ingenious original set design by Thom Guthrie. Director Jimmy Phillips, who directed Stages' smash hit Always.….Patsy Cline, will re-stage Josepher's original direction.

Joe DiPietro (book and lyrics) received the 1997 William Inge Festival New Voices in American Theater Award, as well as the O'Neill / National Playwright's Conference MacArthur Award for comic writing, and the 2000 Edgar Award for his comic thriller The Art of Murder. He is the author of Over the River and Through the Woods, and All Shook Up, a musical comedy inspired by and featuring the songs of Elvis Presley that premiered in May 2004, set to open on Broadway in 2005. Jimmy Roberts (music) is a graduate of Manhattan School of Music and the recipient of numerous ASCAP theatre awards. His children's musical, The Velveteen Rabbit, produced by Theatre works / USA has played all across the United States for nearly a decade.

The presentation of I LOVE YOU, YOU'RE PERFECT, NOW CHANGE! builds upon Stages' reputation as an innovative theatre that inspires an active engagement with its audiences. Now entering its 26th Season, Stages has introduced world, national and regional premiere of innovative contemporary plays to audiences in Houston and surrounding areas. Stages is a member of the Fresh Arts Coalition, a collaboration of 19 arts organizations that work collectively to raise awareness of the size and diversity of the arts in Houston, and a constituent of Theatre Communications Group (TCG), the national service organization for not-for profit theatres. Stages operates under an agreement with Actor's Equity Association (AEA), the union of professional actors and stage managers in the United States.

Jennie Welch

MAINSTAGE: I LOVE YOU, YOU'RE PERFECT, NOW CHANGE!
Book and Lyrics by Joe DiPietro
Music by Jimmy Roberts

DIRECTOR: Jimmy Phillips

CAST:

Woman 1……………..............…….Elziabeth Byrd (July 14 through August 15, 2004)
Woman 1………………….Joanne Bonasso (August 18 through September 12, 2004)
Woman 2………….....................................................................……….Jennie Welch
Man 1……..................................................................………………...Thomas Prior
Man 2……………….................................................................………Jeffrey Gimble

Jeffrey Gimble

DATES: Previews: July 14 and 15, 2004
Opening: July 16, 2004 Friday
Close: September 12, 2004 Sunday

TIMES: Opening Night: 8:00pm
Wednesday and Thursday: 7:30pm
Friday and Saturday: 8:00pm
Sunday: 3:00pm

ALL TICKETS: $25

DISCOUNTS: Group Discounts available. Call the Box Office for more information.

BOX OFFICE: Phone 713-527-0123
3201 Allen Parkway at Waugh Drive
Tickets available online at www.stagestheatre.com.