Dealer’s Choice theatre review — Patrick Marber’s laddish 1995 drama still speaks to a brittle masculinity

Unlock the Editor’s Digest for free

Roula Khalaf, Editor of the FT, selects her favourite stories in this weekly newsletter.

“Luck be a lady tonight,” hums Hammed Animashaun’s Mugsy at the start of this smashing revival of Dealer’s Choice. It’s a nice tip of the hat to that theatrical gambling classic Guys and Dolls. And it’s fair to say that Patrick Marber’s sizzling comedy has acquired its own modern classic status in the 30 years since it breezed on to the stage, all laddish swagger and skewer-sharp wit.

A remarkably assured first play, developed over two weeks of poker-based workshops in the National Theatre Studio, it announced Marber as a major talent. In some respects, it’s now a period piece: the one mobile phone on stage is a clunky relic; there is talk of bouncing cheques; the loud, blokey banter is very much of its time. But the depiction of men scrabbling for connection and validation over an after-hours card game feels fresh as ever. So too does Marber’s compassionate exploration of masculinity, addiction and corroded hopes. The real-world options for these men offer poor odds.

It also contains a handful of juicy, well-crafted characters, which Matthew Dunster’s excellent cast seize on with glee. Assembled around the green baize are Theo Barklem-Biggs’s chef Sweeney — divorced, driven and determined to skip tonight’s game to be fresh and in funds at 9am for his five-year-old daughter; waiter Frankie (Alfie Allen), a likely lad who’s saving for Vegas and knocking back the red wine at speed; restaurateur Stephen (Daniel Lapaine), a brittle control freak who runs the game; and his 20-something son, Carl (Kasper Hilton-Hille), a serious slot-machine addict. There’s also waiter Mugsy, a sweet-natured dolt, whose dreams of opening his own eatery in a former East End toilet are constantly flushed away by his colleagues’ scorn. And then there is wildcard Ash, a taciturn stranger played with cold menace by Brendan Coyle.

Marber lays the ground well in the first half, so that by the time we arrive in the basement (via a neat coup de théâtre from set designer Moi Tran), we are keenly aware of the real-life stakes for each character. The dialogue is finger-clicking fast and funny, with more than a nod to Pinter (whom Marber reveres) and Mamet (whose Glengarry Glen Ross Marber is currently directing in New York). But under all the snap and crackle lie weighty themes: parenthood, responsibility, risk.

Everyone in the room is an addict, including Stephen who, for all his pernickety rules, can’t resist a bet and is essentially gambling his son’s future by believing he can “cure” him at the table. Lapaine is great, a real mess of care, anger and regret, all of which is mirrored in a different key by Barklem-Biggs’s wonderful, desolate Sweeney (who, of course, ends up playing after all). Hilton-Hille’s Carl — jumpy, headstrong and vulnerable as a young colt — looks like a chip off the old block.

But in this fine ensemble, the standout performance comes from Animashaun. Always a warm and funny presence on stage, he brings perfect comic timing and real feeling to Mugsy. Ironically, in 2025 his novelty public convenience restaurant would probably be a safe bet.   

★★★★☆

To June 15, donmarwarehouse.com