Alan Ayckbourn’s If I Were You, being staged by Maleth this weekend, is a hilarious new take on role reversal.

“If only you could spend a day in my shoes, you understand and appreciate me better!”

Alan Ayckbourn has the ability to make an audience laugh out loud in the midst of utter tragedy

Anyone who has been in a long-term relationship has probably heard or uttered these words, or variants of them, at least once.

But what would really happen if a couple were suddenly to switch bodies, even for a day?

In the 2006 play by British playwright Alan Ayckbourn called If I Were You, we get to explore that possibility when an unhappily-married couple are given the chance to understand each other more, by discovering what they would do if they spend some time living in each other’s bodies.

The plot If I Were You revolves round Mal and Jill Rodale whose marriage is on the rocks, mainly because communication has gone right out the window. Mal, a manager at a home-fittings store, is having an affair largely conducted during his lunch-breaks at work. Jill, a housewife who has not worked for 15 years and regrets it, is aware of Mal’s infidelities (although Mal does not know this).

In the meantime, their daughter Chrissie is being physically abused by her husband Dean, who works with Mal. And Sam, their son, desperately wants to appear in the school’s Shakespearean production. Although he has his mother’s support, his father opposes it as he believes acting is “not for men”.

In the midst of this turmoil, Mal and Jill go to bed… and when they wake up the next morning, they make the horrific discovery that they have swapped bodies. Although Mal is super-freaked out, Jill is calmer and insists that they go about their daily life. Hi-jinks ensue when Mal (Jill) has to go to work while Jill (Mal) stays home.

But this is not your run-of-the-mill comedy – in the course of this play, lessons are learnt and wrongs are righted as well.Maleth Theatre Group will be staging If I Were You this weekend, with Jane Pillow, Peter Galea, Sean Briffa, Kate de Cesare and Isaac Cutajar. The play is being directed by veteran thespian Salvu Mallia who says that it is not just hilarious in a very intelligent way, but also very relevant to modern life.

“It really underlines the fact that men come from Mars and women come from Venus,” he smiles, “Many married couples, I’m sure, can easily identify themselves and their family with the characters of this play, in what they say, do and feel. Alan Ayckbourn has an uncanny way of using humour and humorous situations to tackle some very sticky contemporary themes. He has the ability to make an audience laugh out loud in the midst of utter tragedy and finally deliver a very positive message.”

Mr Mallia says that he is fascinated by the very simple structure of the play, with the second act being a mirror image of the first, but with a very important twist.

“Almost identical words and situations provoke very different reactions both on stage and in the auditorium. Also very clever is the use of one set for two very different locations: home and work. I also admire Ayckbourn for his economy; he is always straight to the point and says everything that needs to be said using the bare essentials,” he concludes.

Jane Pillow, who plays Jill says that she can indentify very well with her character:

“The main challenge for me is to remember that it’s just a play… it is so close to reality and sometimes I forget myself and get lost in the part,” she laughs.

The part of Chrissie is being played by Kate De Cesare who says that the main challenge of playing her character is that she switches from trivial to tragic and back in a short span of time.

“Chrissie is going through a pretty big crisis in her personal life but she’s also getting on with her daily duties and routine,” she explains.

“Although the play deals with serious subjects there is a lot of humour in it.  I think a lot of people will relate to the characters in this production.  It’s an interesting concept and a very dynamic play.”

• If I Were You is being staged at the Manoel Theatre tomorrow, Saturday and Sunday. Tickets may be obtained by phone on 2124 6389, e-mail: bookings@teatrumanoel.com.mt or online: www.teatrumanoel.com.mt