Every so often you go to the theatre and get really pleasantly surprised by what you are seeing on stage and that’s exactly what happened to me last night when I attended the opening of a brand new play entitled “Married People: A Comedy.”
“Married People” is not only a comedy, but it’s an extremely funny comedy, that not only will make you laugh out loud, but it will also touch your heart. Yes, it’s about marriage, but it’s also about friendship, parenthood, and realizing, that sometimes, you just have to let go of your beliefs in order to save what is most important to you in your life.
When the play opens we meet two married couples; Aviva (Michelle Bernard) and her husband, Jake (Andy Lauer) and their life long best friends, Henry (Paul Parducci) and his wife, Cookie (Kylie Delre). Both couples are simultaneously having a mid-life marriage crisis and things are going downhill fast for all four of them.
Henry and Cookie’s son is gay and being Catholic, they are having trouble coming to terms with it, especially Henry.. Aviva and Jake’s son has given up his Jewish heritage to marry out of his faith. This is especially hurtful to Aviva whose maternal and paternal grandparents died in the holocaust.
Of course that’s not their only problem. Intimacy and sex or rather lack of is a running theme through the play. Jake constantly complains about not ‘getting any’ and Henry’s nasty hygiene habits is making him less and less attractive to Cookie. I mean who wants to sleep with a guy that blows his nose in his socks and still owns underwear from his high school years.
‘Married People’ written by veteran comedy writers Steve Shaffer and Mark Schiff takes us on an hysterically funny, surprising and poignant journey through the institution of marriage and the difficulties of having a relationship in the 21st century.
Director Rick Shaw gets pitch perfect performances from all four actors, but I have to say as good as they all are, Andy Lauer (a former regular on ‘Caroline in the City’) is an absolute standout.
This is a must see play for anyone who has ever been in a relationship or for people just wanting to have a great night at the theatre.
‘Married People: A Comedy’ opened at the Zephyr Theatre, located at 7456 Melrose Avenue in Los Angeles, on Saturday evening, March 9th and runs through Sunday, April 2, 2017. Performances are Fridays at 8pm; Saturdays at 8:30pm and Sundays at 2pm.
Tickets are $35 and their are special group rates for parties of 8 or more. To purchase tickets please call 323-451-2813 or visit http//marriedpeople.bpt.me.
