Dealer’s Choice review – Hammed Animashaun is the ace in a busted flush

Donmar Warehouse, LondonPatrick Marber’s debut play about a group of poker players brims with banter, but this pallid 30th-anniversary revival exposes its weaknessesIn 1995, two British playwrights made their debuts with all-male, six-character chamber-pieces strongly influenced by Pinter and Mamet, and set over one long, tense night in London. Jez Butterworth’s Mojo and Patrick Marber’s Dealer’s Choice proved to be superficially dazzling calling cards rather than enduring classics. Now a pallid 30th-anniversary revival of the latter reveals its weaknesses.Set in a restaurant where the manager Stephen (the Paul Bettany-esque Daniel Lapaine) and his employees Frankie (Alfie Allen), Sweeney (Theo Barklem-Biggs) and Mugsy (Hammed Animashaun) are gearing up for a late-night card game, the play brims with bants.At Donmar Warehouse, London, until 7 June Continue reading...

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