A riveting retelling of 1924's Leopold and Loeb murder

"Hate the sin but never the sinner." Thus spake Clarence Darrow, the legendary attorney who defended young Chicagoans Nathan Leopold and Richard Loeb in their 1924 "trial of the century."

Though there was, of course, plenty of century left for hateful wrongdoings, the Leopold and Loeb case captured the imagination of a public that found sociopaths and homosexuals wildly sensational. But since it now takes more than that to seize our jaded attention, John Logan's courtroom drama Never the Sinner - presented by Mauckingbird Theatre Company at the Adrienne - attempts to explain it all.

With Peter Reynolds' skillful direction on an unadorned stage and Evan Jonigkeit's terrific acting in the role of Loeb, Never the Sinner does in fact rivet our attention, despite our knowing how it turns out, and despite inconsistencies in character development. Character is the fascination: Why would two rich, smart teenagers brutally murder (chisel, acid) a 14-year-old boy who was their neighbor?

These "thrill killers" had a pact: Leopold (Brian Kurtas) would get from Loeb the sexual pleasure he wanted in exchange for Loeb getting the criminal pleasure he wanted. Both were convinced of their superiority to ordinary people, and, under the influence of Nietzsche's idea of the Ubermensch, they chose to murder as a philosophical experiment. (We are certainly convinced of the superiority of their suits - costumes by Marie Anne Chiment.)

The play zooms along in many scenes: the courtroom interrogations, the newspaper reporters, the seductive conversations between the two young men, the attack itself, testimony of psychiatrist and girlfriend, and Darrow (Dan Kern) making his impassioned summation arguing, successfully, against capital punishment. And this is probably the point of Logan's play, although if you want to convince people today that the death penalty is barbaric and ultimately unjust, using Leopold and Loeb is an odd way to go about it.

The dialogue that Logan must have invented - the private conversations between the two young men - makes it clear that Leopold, who was gay, intellectual, and introverted, was the original seducer, while Loeb, the charmboy with the dazzling smile, was the manipulated psychopath. And despite evidence that Loeb also was indeed homosexual, Logan makes his sexuality purely opportunistic.

As Loeb says of his disaffected smirking while his fate is being decided, "I sit in the courtroom and watch the play." Mauckingbird's audience seemed to be doing the same - having a good time, intrigued and entertained, but unmoved, unsurprised.

Presented by Mauckingbird Theatre Co. at the Adrienne, 2030 Sansom St., through Aug. 30. Tickets $15-$20. Information: www.mauckingbirdtheatreco.org or 215-923-8909. EndText