Those who have seen Rajiv Joseph’s plays—among several produced in the Bay Area are TheatreWorks Silicon Valley’s “The North Pool” and Marin Theatre Company’s 2017 “Guards at the Taj”—know he’s an absolute master at putting just a few characters onstage and bringing audiences to laughter, gasps and even tears.
Now, with “King James,” which premiered in Chicago in 2022, Rajiv works the same theatrical magic. TheatreWorks artistic director Giovanna Sardelli, an old hand at redirecting Joseph’s plays, knows exactly how to pace a play to bring it to a believable, and deeply moving, conclusion.
She also cast two excellent actors in this two-hander: Kenny Scott as Shawn, a Black aspiring writer, and Jordan Lane Shappell as Matt, a feckless, uneducated white guy.
The two-act, set in Cleveland, follows the men over the course of 12 years from the day they first meet, when Shawn pops into the wine bar where Matt works, having heard that Matt has a set of tickets to a Cavaliers basketball game that he wants to sell cheap. Shawn’s never actually been to a Cavaliers game, while Matt, who’s been going to games since he was 6, doesn’t know how to text.
Divided into four quarters (2004, 2010, 2014, 2016), the play follows their initial acrimonious efforts to barter over the precious tickets and continues on to track the bumpy but intense friendship that develops between them. Joseph digs deep into the nuances of this male-to-male relationship, and the actors are with him every step of the way.
Although from different backgrounds, both guys are devotees of their hometown basketball team and worship LeBron James, the “king” of the play’s title; both got through difficult childhoods by worshipping the long-losing team.
In theatrical time, events can move swiftly, and characters can change preternaturally fast, but—if the writing’s good—in entirely believable ways.
And so it is with “King James.” By just the second scene, Shawn is wondering, “Why do we care so much? . . . What am I getting out of this?” And Matt, who was such a goofball in the first scene, six years later, already seems more mature, more focused.
Joseph’s characters become increasingly open and introspective throughout the play, and the actors’ empathy for these struggling souls seems boundless.
Life happens along the way, with the play’s structure—which follows the fortunes of the Cavaliers and correspondingly of LeBron James’ career choices—so beautifully mirroring and shaping the progression of the two men’s deep and often troubled connection.
Any preconception audiences may have about Shawn and Matt will inevitably be challenged. When a deeply disappointed Matt says, “I’m outa sports”—that is, through with fandom—will you believe him?
This is the type of play that would work fine with just two men on an empty stage, but Christopher Fitzer’s scenic design, with a gorgeous interior of a curiosity shop in the second half, adds texture. Ultimately, though, it’s Joseph’s gift for making us care deeply for both characters that makes “King James” a winner.
TheatreWorks Silicon Valley’s “King James” continues through Nov. 3 at Mountain View Center for the Performing Arts, 500 Castro St., Mountain View. Tickets are $34 to $114 at theatreworks.org.
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