STAGE REVIEW : ‘Value of Names’ and the Grudges That Bind

What’s in a name? Plenty--if, by someone’s name, we really mean someone’s reputation.

In “The Value of Names,” Jeffrey Sweet’s extended one-act at the Skylight, Benny Silverman (Ronny Graham) knows only that a single mention of his name, by his old pal Leo (Keene Curtis) before a House committee, resulted in his being blacklisted in the entertainment industry.

Now, decades later, Benny’s daughter Norma (Helen Hunt), an aspiring actress, plans to drop the name “Silverman” as part of her career strategy.

Because the name is still tainted from the blacklist era? No. Benny survived the lean years and eventually landed a role on a successful sitcom. Now he lives in a house in the hills with an expansive view of the Pacific.

Norma’s decision to drop her father’s name is, in fact, a tribute to his success. She wants to make it on her own, not because she’s Benny’s kid. But Benny has a hard time following this logic, especially when he learns that his old nemesis Leo has taken over the direction of a play that Norma’s in.

Norma isn’t sure whether she should work with Leo. When Leo shows up at Benny’s house to talk to her, the two men finally let down their hair and let out their feelings about each other.

Leo offers the most unexpected perspective. He feels as if he, too, has been hounded by those red-hunting days. Although he didn’t lose his livelihood, he is constantly asked to make amends and mea culpas. In the long run, Leo’s reputation has taken more blows than Benny’s.

Leo is willing to let bygones be bygones. Benny isn’t. Though he appears to enjoy talking to Leo, he can’t forgive or forget.

Sweet’s play is a good-humored meditation on the grudges that bind, the feuds that just won’t die. It’s a small piece, and it would carry more weight if we saw these two in the heat of battle, as it happened, as well as in its materially comfortable aftermath. It’s hard to feel terribly sorry for either one of these guys.

Graham was well cast by director Gordon Hunt. His shoulders rear back in an unnaturally stiff posture when he feels agitated; his raspy voice and shock of hair are natural resources for someone in Benny’s line of work. Unfortunately, he hadn’t learned all of his lines by last Sunday’s opening.

Curtis is a smooth, seductive opponent, and Helen Hunt makes a capable sparring partner for crotchety Benny.

Performances are at 1816 1/2 N. Vermont Ave., Fridays and Saturdays at 8 p.m., Sundays at 7 p.m. Tickets: $12.50; (213) 466-1767.