The central image in Craig Lucas' script of the warrior slowly exsanguinating is unfortunately apt for this production, as it begins quite slowly and then slips into a bit of a coma before flatlining completely. Under the direction of Jon Lawrence Rivera, the pace is deadly dull, and not a single actor seems overly invested in his or her character. More than a few pivotal plot points are notable only for the manner in which they are elided.
Patrick Hancock plays Robert, the impecunious writer of the eponymous script that a studio is willing to pick up for serious money if only he will change the central gay couple to a heterosexual pair, it being 1995 and the country not being ready for a love story with two men in it. Hancock is quite adept at capturing the guileless qualities of the character but verges into petulance when a bit of strength is called for. There is, of course, the utterly amoral studio executive, and Ken Arquelio, with his compact build and GQ styling, couldn't look more perfect in the role of Jeffrey. Arquelio doesn't come across as terribly hungry, however, and the character is, if nothing else, a creature of endless outsized appetites that demand to be fed. Arquelio's initial instinct to give Jeffrey restless hands seems a good idea, but it gets dropped early on.
Most problematic is Mary-Ellen Loukas as Jeffrey's wife, Elaine. Her discovery of online chat rooms is crucial to the tale, but her behavior once in them is baffling, as the character has no edge whatsoever. Loukas plays her as a terribly sweet creature without a mean bone in her body, so when she adopts a persona and tracks Robert down online, her profoundly destructive conduct simply reads as bad ideas from a person who doesn't know any better and speaks more to the need for constructive midday activities for studio wives than to any flaw or desire in the character. As Robert's therapist, Nick Salamone delivers an almost texture-free performance. The directorial hand appears to have been used not to guide or enlighten but to squeeze out whatever life the production might have had.
Presented by the Fine Arts Players at the Elephant Theatre,
6322 Santa Monica Blvd., Hollywood.
Thu.-Sat. 8 p.m. Mar. 20-Apr. 19.
(323) 960-7745. www.plays411.com/dyinggaul.