After a boffo production of Bad Books, Round House’s season-closer production of King James balances the gender quotient and throws in an extended sports analogy to boot. We are invited to consider an unlikely pair of obsessed fans in scruffy Cleveland bonded by love of basketball and LeBron James. You don’t have to know a thing about the last two to enjoy this play, but I got the impression there were some references that went over my head. It didn’t matter.
We meet Matt and Shawn in the first act (or “quarter” – yes, the metaphor starts there) when an extended haggle over the sale of Cavaliers season tickets results in the start of a long-standing friendship. Two-handers depend wholly on the quality of the performances; this one holds us by the interplay between the manic energy of Gregory Perri as Matt and the contrastingly laid-back but no less fascinating performance of Blake Morris as Shawn.
The life fortunes of our two protagonists rise and fall, mirroring the Cav’s fortunes as King James kindles hope for seven seasons but then leaves for greener pastures. The energy between them shifts and simmers. Matt makes money from an investment while Shawn goes into debt to finance a graduate degree in screenwriting; Shawn returns to Cleveland to work in Matt’s mother’s curio shop when his career stalls; Matt prospers for a while but slides down the slippery slope again, while Shawn tries to make it in LA.
By the fourth act (I mean “quarter”) Matt is reduced to working in the shop (which he swore he’d never do) while Shawn returns to Cleveland wearing blindingly white Air Jordans. One could tell poor Matt’s on the downswing by his posture and unkempt hair, even without the shop-logo shirt he’s reduced to wearing. But the play ends on a note of hope and, yes, hoop dreams.
The Fourth Wall Bar and Café at the Round House has developed some new specialty cocktails to channel the spirit of King James. The Heat Spritzer, Lebron’s Lakers Lemonade, Gameday Gatorade, Tip-Off Tequila Sunrise, and The King’s Crown all can set you up to root for your favorite team. They even feature a zero-proof offering, the Cavalier’s Championship Cup.
King James continues at the Round House Theatre thru June 22.