In engaging supporting cast helps us understand why Lombardi's players revered rather than feared a man who spent so much of his time (and theirs) screaming at them. As the play points out, Lombardi may never have actually said, "Winning isn't everything; it's the only thing," but through Kail's efforts to breathe fresh life into Lombardi's spirit, we understand why that credo came to define him.
Keith Nobbs is terrific playing a composite of the sports journalists who tried -- and failed -- to capture Lombardi's essence when he was alive, as are Bill Dawes (Paul Hornung), Robert Christopher Riley (Dave Robinson) and Chris Sullivan (Jim Taylor), as the talented players whose toil helped create the Lombardi legacy.
Judith Light has the play's most challenging role as Marie, Lombardi's loyal but long-suffering wife who bristles at living in both remote Green Bay and her husband's considerable shadow. Light's charming portrayal allows her to steal every scene she's in and provides much of the show's laughter.
Still, a play named "Lombardi" will rise or crash based on the man in the title role, and Dan Lauria is triumphant. It would be easy for him to go with a straight impersonation, but simply reciting Lombardi's Greatest Hits would've come off like a bad Springsteen tribute band.
Rather, Lauria inhabits Lombardi. He yells, yes, but he also forces us to understand Lombardi the way his players did, and we're invested enough so that, when the journalist tells us of the coach's death, the audience reaction is audible.
Even if you never cared about Lombardi, you'll enjoy "Lombardi." And that really is everything.
Mike Vaccaro, The Post's lead sports columnist, has covered 11 Super Bowls.
Read more: http://www.nypost.com/p/entertainment/theater/broadway_tackles_the_in_vince_able_IP5vGoGrUe5VYPolJ4raGL#ixzz15vdVtuEx
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