In the play, what happens when emotions come in conflict with principles, and how do choices under pressure define who we really are? The lobby of a Manhattan apartment building is much more than a waiting area for four New Yorkers involved in a murder investigation. It’s a testing ground for what happens when personal and professional personas find themselves at odds. A young security guard with big ambitions clashes with his stern boss, an intense rookie cop and her unpredictable partner in a play from the 2017 Oscar-winning writer of Manchester by the Sea.
It's Henry, with his murky moral dilemma - should he step in to offer his brother the alibi he's begging for? - and low-key comic timing, who becomes the play's least showy MVP. His family quandary is also what the plot turns on; its jerry-rigged tension eventually comes to a head in a revelation that feels more schematic than earned, and the stress points of race and sex and power the script touches on are only glancingly resolved. but Lobby is still a smart, thoughtful piece of work, fairy-dusted by the starry presence of its celebrated cast.
Michael Cera is not a transformational actor. Whether in film or on Broadway in his 2014 debut, 'This Is Our Youth,' he repeatedly embodies the beta male. Nothing wrong with that. Several comic geniuses, from Charlie Chaplin to Woody Allen, present a defined persona over and over again and yet dazzle with their delivery and timing. Kenneth Lonergan's 'Lobby Hero' opened Monday at Second Stage's newly renovated Hayes Theater, and the role of the insecure security guard Jeff fits Cera as tightly as the blue collar and black tie the character wears every night manning the front desk of a large New York apartment building.
2001 | Off-Broadway |
Off-Broadway |
2001 | Off-Broadway |
Off-Broadway |
2018 | Broadway |
Second Stage Theater Original Broadway Production Broadway |
Year | Ceremony | Category | Nominee |
---|---|---|---|
2018 | Drama Desk Awards | Outstanding Featured Actor in a Play | Brian Tyree Henry |
2018 | Drama League Awards | Distinguished Performance Award | Chris Evans |
2018 | Drama League Awards | Distinguished Performance Award | Brian Tyree Henry |
2018 | Drama League Awards | Outstanding Revival of a Broadway or Off-Broadway Play | Lobby Hero |
2018 | Outer Critics Circle Awards | Outstanding Revival of a Play | Lobby Hero |
2018 | Tony Awards | Best Performance by an Actor in a Featured Role in a Play | Michael Cera |
2018 | Tony Awards | Best Performance by an Actor in a Featured Role in a Play | Brian Tyree Henry |
2018 | Tony Awards | Best Revival of a Play | Lobby Hero |
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