A SAMUEL FRENCH, LTD. TITLE
Dealer's Choice
Full-Length Play, Drama / 6m
Dealer's Choice
by Patrick Marber
Five work colleagues meet regularly on Sunday nights to play poker. What drives them? Money? Competition? Desperation?
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Cast Size
6m
Accolades
- Nominee: 2008 Olivier Award for Best Revival of a Play
Winner! 1995 Evening Standard Award for Best Comedy
Winner! 1995 Writers' Guild Award for Best West End Play
Details
Summary
Stephen, a restaurateur, has a weekly poker game in the basement. The'stakes are high and the waiters often lose their paycheques. Stephen's son, Carl, is an obsessive gambler who has run up debts and when Ash, a professional gambler, threatens to kill Carl if he doesn't pay the 4000 he owes, Carl arranges for him to play in the weekly game. But Stephen can'spot a professional and confron's Ash who asks where Carl acquired his addiction. Who is the real addict, Carl or Stephen?
History
Dealer's Choice was first presented in the Cottesloe auditorium of the Royal National Theatre, London on 9 February 1995. Subsequently it transferred to the Vaudeville Theatre, London.
Cast Attributes
Keywords
Performing Groups
- Time Period Contemporary
- Setting A kitchen, restaurant, basement
Media
“A swaggering comedy.” – The Guardian
“An exceptionally accomplished first play... though I know nothing about poker, I testify to the compulsive grip this play exerts and to the accumulation of meanings it ignites in your head.” – Financial Times
Licensing & Materials
- Minimum Fee: £70 per performance plus VAT when applicable.
This title may have restrictions in place in Major Cities. Please submit a licence application to confirm specific availability.
Authors
Patrick Marber
Patrick Marber was born in London in 1964. He began his career as a writer in 1986. He co-wrote and appeared in a number of radio and television programmes including The Day Today and Knowing Me, Knowing You. In 1995 his first play, Dealer’s Choice, premiered at the National ...
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