It's not clear what possessed the Goodman Theatre to give over a slot in its subscription season to Kenneth Lonergan's slight comedy-drama about cops and cop wannabes. No, that's not true: it is clear. The play was an off-Broadway hit, written by an award-winning screenwriter and film director, and from a marketing and prestige standpoint that makes it a natural for the Goodman, Chicago's most venerable professional theater. (Wouldn't it be nice, though, if the theater used its venerability a bit more daringly, leaving sure-fire hits to smaller houses that really need them?--But that's a whole other conversation.). Strictly on its own merits, Lobby Hero is too slight to deserve the attention it gets here. Though briskly directed by Artistic Director Robert Falls and impeccably acted by its cast of four, the play--a drama with humor, or a comedy with a touch of serious reflection--is never more than pleasant and evaporates from memory almost at once. It raises interesting issues but never quite grapples with them, contenting itself with being a kind of Issues Theater Lite.
The plot is both complex and formulaic: security guard Jeff has a crush on rookie cop Dawn; Dawn has a crush on veteran partner Bill. Overlaid on these complementary futile yearnings are the characters' equally futile efforts to escape being morally compromised in their professional lives. Bill is a schmuck from the get-go, but Jeff and Dawn try in their different ways to live up to the fantasy meanings they've assigned their uniforms. Unfortunately, neither has the strength of character--or the community support--necessary to do so. When Jeff's boss and friend the upright William finds himself involved in trouble with the law, he tries to lean on them, and all fall down. Everyone somehow betrays everyone else, and the more innocent and virtuous a character the worse s/he gets hurt. This is quite a moral stew--love, honor, betrayal--but nothing really seems to be at stake. It's supposed to be Jeff's play, but when all is said and done Jeff is right where he started, as are Dawn and Bill. Only William has made any kind of journey, and moving as that is it also feels awkward, like having The Glass Menagerie presented from the perspective of the Gentleman Caller. The problem might be the production, but to know that I'd have to see a version that works. More likely it's the play.
That said, Lobby Hero is a pleasant way to spend an evening: Lonergan's dialogue is clever and the acting is superb. Lance Stuart Baker brings a James Spader-like aimlessness to Jeff, making clear that he's a man who's not only half-baked but incapable of cooking further. Yet he's appealing, and though we're not surprised when this good loser winds up a loser, we are sorry. Baker does a splendid job of conveying Jeff's diffident longing for Dawn, portrayed by Julie Granata with a sympathetic mix of innocence and bravado. Rolando Boyce, in the toughest role of all, manages to display William's tight-ass self-righteousness while still keeping the character's actual goodness in sight. It's no picnic being the moral center of a piece, but Boyce handles it with aplomb. Scott Cummins, handed a stereotypical dirty cop, makes him a recognizable (if repugnant) human being. Falls keeps the single-location drama from becoming static, and Linda Buchanan's lobby set does an elegant job of establishing the difference between inside and outside, between what can be seen and what's invisible. In fact Buchanan's set presents the play's themes with greater sophistication than the playwright.
As I watched Lobby Hero, I couldn't help thinking of all the superior plays languishing in dramaturgs' in-boxes because they weren't written by someone who made his name in Hollywood. If you see the play you'll probably enjoy it, but if you miss it you won't have missed much.