* REVIEW Picture this: A man and a woman meet for a first date. She is running late and informs him that since she is a "busy, busy, busy woman," why don't they just save time and jump immediately to the second date. Seeing the logic in this, he suggests they take it a step further and skip right to the third date, thereby avoiding the awkwardness of clumsy goodnight kisses. Before their opening conversation is over, they've skipped through their entire relationship and gone straight to their break-up and cheerily say goodnight (and goodbye) to each other. Is dating really this difficult in the 21st century?

The above scenario is one of the opening segments of I LOVE YOU, YOU'RE PERFECT, NOW CHANGE, an audience-pleasing musical revue about the trials and tribulations of dating and mating that played at the Sangamon Auditorium last evening. This touring edition of the 1995 hit off-Broadway comedy played to over 1300 people, more than respectable for a show that has a lot of heart and laughs but not a lot of name recognition. Joel Bishoff directed this fast-paced, entertaining evening that featured enjoyable pop tunes by Jimmy Roberts and the witty book and lyrics of Joe Dipietro. The four cast members, Lance Roberts, Susan Hoffman, and the real-life husband-and-wife team of David and Charma Ward Bonanno, raced through the collection of catchy songs and humorous sketches, changing costumes and personalities at the drop of a hat.

The key to the success of this show is recognition: chiefly, the audience recognizing itself in the skits, songs and characters. I LOVE YOU takes us into the hazardous waters of relationships, from those tentative first dates, through marriage, children, middle age and all the way to the twilight years. Part of the fun of the evening is watching the other audience members recognize themselves (or their significant others) being represented on stage. The women in the audience laughed uproariously at the song "Single Man Drought," a tune about how difficult it is to find a man who doesn't blather on incessantly about golf, cars, or himself. The guys in the audience roared when a lone man walked out on stage over loaded with bags from Macy's Department store. "We came here to buy shoes," he sang. "I haven't seen my wife since noon."

My personal favorite was a skit entitled "Sex After Kids." The wife shuffles onto the stage in sweat pants and a flannel shirt and flops down onto a couch after a long day of dealing with her two active children. She is soon joined by her equally exhausted hubby, with his back aching from one too many horsey rides. As they sit side by side in a comatose state, with barely enough energy to carry on a monosyllabic conversation, they eventually realize they might actually have a moment to themselves. I assure you, every parent of small children has lived that scene on a weekly basis.

The four cast members were all excellent actors and singers, something absolutely necessary for a show of this nature to fly. The real-life married couple, David and Charma Ward Bonanno, both had expert comic timing and superb voices, whether playing polyester wearing nerds on a first date (in the song "A Stud and A Babe") or an attractive tennis playing couple, ready to take their romance to the next level. She was particularly effective in the sequence entitled "The Very First Dating Video of Rose Ritz," which she performed with her back to the audience, and her face broadcast on a large screen television set for the audience to watch. She starts by committing every video dating sin in the book: admitting her age; announcing that her husband left her; revealing that she has kids. Then "Rose" lets her guard down, and shows us the serious hurt underneath the cheery exterior of this awkward woman, who is re-entering the dating world after being dumped by her husband (for an OLDER woman, no less). In an evening of laughs, this is a nice change of pace, and Ward Bonanno handles it with enormous warmth.

Lance Roberts scores as the father who finds his castle in his car, and as an "action movie guy" who finds himself strangely affected by a "chick flick." His rhythm-and-blues voice soars as the minister in the marriage sequence and he is subtly effective as a widower trying to put the make on a fellow mourner at a funeral in his second act duet with Susan Hoffman. Hoffman spoke for many woman in the audience when she sang the song "Always a Bridesmaid, Never a Bride." Costumed in an aquamarine bridesmaid gown that wouldn't be out of place in GONE WITH THE WIND, Hoffman laments with a country twang that all of her bridesmaids gowns have lasted longer than any of the marriages they were purchased for.

The technical aspect of the evening wasn't quite up to the high standards set by the performers. The one-backdrop set was rather bland, and the lighting design missed the mark (and the actors) on several occasions. The staging by Joel Bishoff was smooth and well paced, and there was solid work by musical director Catherine Stornetta, who doubled as the accompanist.