theatre

Glengarry Glen Ross

Mamet's masculine study in avarice and desperation this week begins a welcome run in the august surroundings of the Gate theatre. The action takes place within the crucible of a Reagan-era realtor's office where sweaty, lupine salesmen compete to sell worthless tracts of Arizona scrub or Florida swamp to gullible Chicagoans. The brutal Darwinism of the era reduces men to positions on a sales board, superseding character and negating moral conscience. A fine cast deliver Mamet's spittle-flecked torrents of profanity believably, ably supported by Doug Hughes' taut direction and superb set design from Neil Patel. / Mr & Mrs Stevens