An Uneven Revival for Shores’ ‘Daddy’

On the heels of Del Shores’ successful “Sordid Lives” at Theatre/Theater, the revival of his “Daddy’s Dyin’ (Who’s Got the Will?)” in repertory must have seemed like a sure-fire idea, but the execution falls short of a successful resurrection.

Shores’ 1986 comedy about a clan of Texas misfits groveling for their dying patriarch’s inheritance has the earmarks of an early phase in a maturing playwright’s evolution. It’s a shaky mix of insightful conflicts and improbable choices, and the characters lurch awkwardly between corn-pone color and caricature.

Uneven performances further hamper this return engagement, which director Shores seems to have cast by type in some instances. Nevertheless, Newell Alexander’s doddering patriarch, Erin Chandler’s aging nymphomaniac and Dale Dickey’s long-suffering peacemaker consistently hit their marks. The most successful scenes occur in the middle, when we delve beneath the eccentric surfaces to core issues that the facile ending doesn’t come close to resolving.

* “Daddy’s Dyin’ (Who’s Got the Will?),” Theatre/Theater, 1713 Cahuenga Blvd., Hollywood. Fridays, 8 p.m.; Sundays, 3 p.m. Runs indefinitely. $15-$20. (818) 789-8499. Running time: 2 hours, 15 minutes.