A LINGERING LOOK AT `A LIFE IN THE THEATER'.

Byline: Reed Johnson Daily News Critic

David Mamet always has been obsessed with student-teacher relationships. He sees them as metaphors for the human condition - the inevitable, somewhat chilling process by which a hungry young novice turns the tables on his mentors and seizes control of the classroom.

The playwright has explored this theme fruitfully many times, notably in ``Speed-the-Plow,'' ``Oleanna'' and his 1987 movie ``House of Games.'' But it's also the soul of an early work, ``A Life in the Theater,'' written in 1977 when Mamet was just 25.

In an unbalanced but intelligent new production at the Limelight Playhouse in North Hollywood, Barry Lynch is veteran actor Robert and Seth Gillum is his would-be acolyte, the ambitious, 20-something John. Each has something the other wants: knowledge and experience, in Robert's case; youth and beauty in the younger man's. ``A Life in the Theater'' traces the comic, bittersweet drift of their precarious friendship.

As the two men share a stage and a dressing room somewhere in the bowels of off-Broadway, Robert sets about schooling his protege in the basics of the craft. They practice swordplay. They analyze scripts and swap makeup brushes. They argue technique over Chinese takeout.

Between these punchy, revealing exchanges, Mamet crosscuts to scenes from the pretty awful plays the men are performing: a sappy World War I foxhole drama, a bit of Restoration foppery, a ludicrous yarn about two castaways at sea, and so on. Affectionately staged by director Lawrence Pressman (Dr. Benjamin Canfield on the old ``Doogie Howser, M.D.''), these amusing parodies-within-a-play echo the characters' increasingly strained relationship.

The production's strength is Lynch's ability to make Robert seem pretentious yet sincere, overbearing but vulnerable. He lets us enjoy Robert's vain, hammy, self-pitying side and his windy pronouncements (sample: ``To me, an ugly sound is a sign of an ugly soul'') without losing sight of his generous spirit.

Only Lynch's eyes reveal Robert's agonizing loneliness, as he realizes that his disciple has outgrown him. Though the director has chosen not to emphasize the homoerotic nature of Robert's longing, Lynch's pain is palpable.

If Gillum's presence were equally forceful, this production might give off real heat. The Falstaffian Robert needs a Prince Hal to spar with, and Gillum's overly passive portrayal doesn't provide enough friction.

Even so, Pressman's lighthearted direction keeps the action rolling along through Mamet's trademark staccato dialogue and pregnant pauses. ``A Life in the Theater'' is a crumpled valentine to the actor's craft, a mash note that any true theater lover should find tough to resist.

THE FACTS The show: ``A Life in the Theater.''

Where: Limelight Playhouse, 10634 Magnolia Blvd., North Hollywood.

When: 8 p.m. Fridays and Saturdays, 7 p.m. Sundays; through June 16.

Running time: One hour, 20 minutes; no intermission.

Tickets: $12 and $15; call [phone].

Our rating: Three Stars.