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Reported in the Princeton Packet, Princeton, NJ, Feb. 18, 2010

Ode To Love: "So, You Missed Valentine's Day' is composed of sketches, readings, and songs

by ANTHONY STOEKERT

New relationships have their own set of thrills. Lovers are willing to do anything for a newfound love. Even sharing food can be a kind of ecstasy. But somewhere along the line, things change, and before we know it, we get a little protective of our plates.

Ken Britschge thought about that and wrote a sketch, title "Love and Shrimp", which is included in So, You Missed Valentine's Day , an ode to love that PCM Theatre Company will perform at Art Youniversity in Hamilton Feb. 21.

"What it essentially does is use a couple's experience with food and who offers the food off their plate to the other to eat and how when you're first dating you're saying, 'Oh yes, please take mine,'" Mr. Britschge says of his sketch. "And by the time you're married that has changed to, 'This my plate, that's your plate - fingers off.'"

So, You Missed Valentine's Day  takes a humorous look at love via sketches, readings, and songs. In addition to original pieces by Mr. Britschge and Constance Wilder-Wokoun (both also perform in the show and Ms. Wilder-Wokoun directs), it features writings by Erma Bombeck, Jean Kerr, Judith Viorst, and other.

Mr. Britschge says the evening looks at all aspects of a relationship - courtship, engagement, marriage. And marriage means joining your spouse's family, having children, going on vacation and teaching your kids to drive. All of that and more is fodder for the show.

And while So, You Missed Valentine's Day  goes for laughs, Mr. Britschge says it's heartfelt.

"It is not cynical, it is not sarcastic, I think you see the truth in it," he says. "You're spending every day with this person, hopefully your entire life, and stuff that happens is just funny. While it puts a spotlight on those comic aspects of love, in the end - really throughout - it illustrates the fact that there's nothing quite like it."

The show is a departure of sorts for PCM Theatre, which traditionally presents new plays written by Mr. Britschge and Ms. Wilder-Wokoun. Their new play is about Thanksgiving and will be performed in November. That meant an 18-month gap between productions, and a need to quickly put together a different type of show because, as Mr. Britschge puts it, "If you stay away too long, they forget who you are."

Mr. Britschge and Ms. Wilder-Wokoun revisited an idea they used for a Valentine's show about 15 years ago. "We went through the readings we had and said, 'Well this one's kind of outdated but this one still works,'" Mr. Britschge says. "And we looked at what we had and saw some gaps or some areas where we didn't have anything, so she and I wrote two or three new pieces and kind of assembled a journey from courtship to empty nest time. Each reading is a different phase of a relationship between two people in love, and you see from a comic point of view how your view of love changes depending on your circumstances."

Another original sketch involves a couple having a conversation consisting of song titles.

"I kind of put a little spin on it, rather than the woman being the sweet one and the guy thinking it's stupid, I reversed it," he says. "So he's the one who's saying 'Let's be in love,' and she's cutting him off." The conversation may feature the man saying "Love Me Tender," to which his girlfriend replies, "Love Stinks." "It works nicely in a funny way and in an interesting way," Mr. Britschge says.

The readings will be presented by seven performers, five of whom will also sing songs. Performers range in age from a teenager to a woman in her 60s.

If you're wondering why this ode to love is being performed a week after Valentine's Day, Mr. Britschge says that came about because the theater at Art Youniversity  was already booked for the 14th. But the different date offers a chance to extend your Valentine celebration or to make good if you forgot about the big day.

"There's probably a good reason why we set a day to honor that," Mr. Britschge says of Valentine's Day. "Yes you should honor love every day of the year, and I know there are probably cynical people out there who say, 'Why do we have this Valentine's Day, it's ridiculous.' But it's good to take a day and focus on that."

So, You Missed Valentine's Day  will be peformed by PCM Theatre Company at Art Youniversity, 4 Tennis Court, Hamilton, Feb. 21, 3 p.m. Tickets cost $8; 609-890-1738. Reservations can also be made by email at pcmtheatre@hotmail.com.

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