REVIEW: INSIGHTFUL STUDY OF FRIENDSHIP AND FANDOM LIGHTS UP STAGE @ GEORGE STREET PLAYHOUSE

By Ruth Ross

The phrase, “Men are from Mars; women are from Venus,” is a saying meant to explain the difference between the sexes, but it works just as well to differentiate between the source of friendships established by men and women. Women often choose friends with whom they can share their emotions while men often bond over what could be called a form of war: sports.

The latter is the premise Pulitzer Prize-finalist playwright Rajiv Joseph explores in the explosive, heartfelt two-hander that is George Street Playhouse’s current production.

Set in Cleveland, Ohio, the play traces the trajectory of a 12-year-long friendship between Matt (Doug Harris) and Shawn (Blake Morris), forged from their admiration and fervent fandom for Le Bron James (the “King James” of the title)—from his rookie season in 2004 through his defection from the Cleveland Cavaliers to the Miami Heat, back to the Cavs and, finally, his 2016 departure for the LA Lakers. While on the surface sports may drive the plot, Joseph examines bigger themes: loyalty, ambition, and the connections that keep us going.

The friendship and action unfold on two elaborate sets designed by Frank J. Oliva (Le Cave Wine Bar and Armand’s Curiosity Shop), complemented by video screens showing clips of Le Bron James playing for his various teams and interacting with his fans. Doug Harris’s Matt (left) is a bundle of insecurities and disappointment, fueled by a fraught relationship with his distant father and his disabled mother. His dream is to own an “establishment,” presumably a sports bar, one day. With his wiry body and expressive facial expressions, Harris makes us feel sympathy for this lonely young man who is forced to give up Cav’s season tickets (“good seats” he’s sat in since he was six years old) to cover debts he’s incurred. Over the course of the play, Harris splendidly conveys the changes in Matt, from insecure to super confident to defeated once again.

As his counterpart, Shawn, Blake Morris too has dreams—of becoming a writer. With his stocky, grounded, confident demeanor, he is the mirror image of Matt at the beginning, although along the way, the two change places several times! His swagger at having earned money from writing to purchase Matt’s season tickets is pride personified, and when he’s forced to give up the tickets to pay for a writing program in grad school in New York City, we sense his ambivalence about leaving his friend and the team he loves. Morris, too, conveys the dreams and disappointments experienced by Shawn to marvelous effect.

Putting aside the hype and enthusiasm for Le Bron James, the friendship between these two is, as Matt says, is more about the "experience than the fandom." And, when a misspoken remark by Matt threatens to derail their relationship, there was a gasp of surprise among the audience members, not to mention Shawn’s outrage. That the two reconcile in the final scene, playing basketball in slow motion, gives hope for these two young men—one white, one black; both dreamers and both disappointed.

Rajiv Joseph has written a magnificent study of male friendship based, at first, on sports fandom but developing deeper roots over the course of over a decade. His dialogue, delivered naturally and convincingly by Doug Harris and Blake Morris draws us in as though we are eavesdropping on an intimate relationship. Ryan George’s excellent production keeps the action moving over more than two hours, without dragging or losing focus.

Of the three plays about men’s friendship I have seen this year—A Case for the Existence of God and Lonely Planet, both produced by Luna Stage being the other two—King James provides a different spin on the subject. We are used to seeing and hearing women bare their emotions to their friends onstage. This production will knock your socks off with its honesty and candor. Beneath the bravado of two crazy sports fans are two young men who open up to each other, especially in the final scenes, with surprising and satisfying results.

King James runs through this coming weekend, ending on April 6. You won’t want to miss this terrific production. For information and tickets, call the box office at (732) 246-7717 or visit www.georgestreetplayhouse.org for information and tickets.