YOU HAVEN'T CHANGED A BIT AND OTHER LIES Opening March 12 At Santa Monica Playhouse

Santa Monica Playhouse returns to live theatre with the premiere of a new incarnation of Jerry and Steve Mayer's musical about the trials and tribulations of "aging" directed by veteran (and frequent Mayer) director Chris DeCarlo opening March 12, 2022 for a limited run.

Renowned playwright Jerry Mayer turned 90 on September 5, 2021, his pen and wit sharp as ever. Currently developing his 11th play, he took time out to revisit the acclaimed musical he wrote with composer son Steve.

From the hilarious Role Reversal Tango, to the tongue-firmly-in-cheek tribute to the not-so-firm Upper Arms of the over 60s set, to the heart-wrenching Whatever Happened to Our Love Song, the Mayer team's brilliance shines brightly on the trials and tribulations of "aging" - lovingly dissected, shredded, massaged and put back together again, through the eyes of three married couples - Jewish, Italian, Irish - who have known each other for over 35 years.

It's time for a renewal of vows. But much has changed...perhaps too much? Will all three couples make it to the altar again? Only time, and the Mayer team, will tell. "

You Haven't Changed a Bit and Other Lie features a stellar cast including Mayer production alumni Rachel Galper (A DeLUSIONAL Affair, Love and Politics, Turning Thirty), Kyle T. Heffner (Facts of Life, Seinfeld [Bizarro George], Mistakes Were Made, Sense8). Barbara Keegan (NCIS: Los Angeles, Saving Mr. Banks, Emmy-award winner, Almost Perfect), Evelyn Rudie (A Love Affair, Climax, AUDITION: The Musical), and DeCarlo (Author! Author! an evening with Sholom Aleichem, Moliere's The Fools, Almost Perfect), with newcomer to the Mayer catalogue Tom Van Dyke (Two Gentlemen of Verona, The Van Dyke Bros Band, The Naked Apes).

Playwright Jerry Mayer has had an impressive career in television, writing and producing such prized shows as M*A*S*H, The Bob Newhart Show, All in the Family, The Mary Tyler Moore Show, The Facts of Life and five Mitzi Gaynor's TV Specials, plus her famous Las Vegas Act. Mayer thoroughly enjoyed his TV career, but has happily discovered that by far his first love is writing for the theatre. Mayer's award winning plays and musicals, notably Aspirin & ELEPHANTS, A Love Affair, Killjoy, 2Across, Black & Bluestein, Dietrich and Chevalier, Mistakes Were Made, and You Haven't Changed a Bit and Other Lies all premiered in Los Angeles theaters and have appeared successfully in New York city (Off Broadway) and in hundreds of theatres all over the US and Canada, as well as in Europe. Most of Mayer's plays deal with the "ups, downs and sideways" of male/female relationships, for which he humbly thanks the guidance of his lovely muse/wife (for lots of years), Emily Bettman Mayer.

Celebrated Director Chris DeCarlo helms. His most recent projects include the world premiere of Albert Kallis's A Delusional Affair and Mayer's Mistakes Were Made, as well as the critically acclaimed revivals of Mayer's Almost Perfect, Aspirin & ELEPHANTS, and A Love Affair, Arnold Schulman's Sleeping Ugly, Lisa Phillips Visca's Climax, Raise Me Up and Turning Thirty, and the LA Times Critic's Choice productions of Last of the Knotts and Made Me Nuclear. Says DeCarlo, "Jerry Mayer's plays are a delight for a director, a cast and of course, an audience. He writes about issues people can identify with, laugh at, and care about. His plays are populated with everyday people leading everyday lives dealing with everyday problems-love, marriage, parents, sibling rivalry, divorce, elder sex, -things that artists and audiences alike can relate to. Experiencing a Jerry Mayer play brings us that much closer to the realization that no matter how serious life may appear, someone is always laughing. It might as well be us."

"LIES" plays Saturdays at 7:00pm, Sunday matinees at 2:30pm, March 12 through April 10 only. Tickets are $35. Call the box office at 1-310-394-9779 ext. 1 or buy online at https://www.santamonicaplayhouse.com/andotherlies.html

Santa Monica Playhouse is located at 1211 4th Street (between Wilshire and Arizona) in the heart of downtown Santa Monica. Convenient Parking is located directly across the street in city lot #1. By public transportation: take the Santa Monica Blue Bus or the LA Metro Rapid #720 and exit at 4th and Wilshire, or take the Expo line to 4th and Colorado.

Santa Monica Playhouse programs are supported in part by generous grants from the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors through the Los Angeles County Department of Arts and Culture, the City of Santa Monica and the Santa Monica Arts Commission, the Ahmanson Foundation, the Rotary Club Foundation, and Playhouse PALS. Produced through special arrangement with Playscripts, Inc.

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