ORONO – Seasoned University of Maine student actors are getting together as the Maine Masque tackles a hugely popular musical play that proves romance still sells.

“I Love You, You’re Perfect, Now Change,” opening April 7 at Hauck Auditorium on the UMaine campus in Orono, is about dating, relationships and personalities. It also is the longest-running Off-Broadway musical since “The Fantasticks,” according to Chicago theater critic Joseph Bowen.

From pickup lines to proposals, from intimacy to in-laws, the musical celebrates modern mating rituals of the young and old. The Maine Masque student production takes on the truths and myths behind the contemporary conundrum known as “the relationship.”

Bowen calls “I Love You, You’re Perfect, Now Change” the perfect date show.

“It doesn’t matter what stage your relationship is at, or whether you’re in a relationship at all. This show will speak to you, regardless,” Bowen said.

Director Dominick Varney, a UMaine higher education graduate student who teaches the fundamentals of acting, said he picked a musical, a rare genre for Maine Masquers, because of the fun and relevance of the subject matter in this play.

“It’s very funny,” Varney promised. “There are two serious ballads in the show and the rest of it’s all comedy – how people meet, the first date, getting married and being married for 40 years. Also, what happens when you’ve lost a loved one and are getting back into the dating game.”

The shows run 7:30 p.m. Wednesday-Saturday, April 7-10, and 2 p.m. Sunday, April 11. Admission is $8 and free to students with a MaineCard.

Audiences will see familiar faces in the eight-member cast. Some have appeared in recent UMaine student productions, including “Charlie Brown,” “The Rocky Horror Show” and “Much Ado About Nothing.”

“I Love You, You’re Perfect, Now Change” was written by Joe DiPietro and Jimmy Roberts.

An engaging and hilarious production, the musical is currently playing in many professional and amateur theaters around the country. Originally it had only four actors portraying a dozen or more characters, which change from scene to scene. Varney said he expanded the cast to eight because the play can support the expansion, and it also offers more exposure for UMaine student actors.

Cast members are Joshua Schmersal of Bangor, Alan Bailey of Bucksport, Elizabeth Braman of Hebron, Hans-Stefan Ducharme of Kennebunk, Amanda Eaton of Dexter, Janis Greim of Auburn, Kristin Johnson of Blue Hill and Domenic Mascis of North Berwick.

Working not far behind the scenes throughout the production will be stage manager Hillary Roberts of Atkinson, sound designer Adam Smith of Farmington and lighting and set designer Shannon Dougherty of Bowdoinham.

Schmersal, a senior performing arts voice major and veteran of five UMaine musicals, said the play was the most fun for him to perform.

“Based on a comparison of other performances, this is one I can’t wait to come to the rehearsal for,” he said. “Part of it is because of eight wonderful people in the cast. It’s also easy to access, because it’s something that we, as an ensemble, as college-age kids, can identify with.

“There are certain situations within the show that we have either been in or can foresee ourselves being in,” he said.

Information is available at the Maine Center for the Arts box office, 581-1755.