Five work colleagues meet regularly on Sunday nights to play poker. What drives them? Money? Competition? Desperation? Find out in this award-winning play, on stage at Titchfield Festival Theatre from 26-30 March.

Dave Lee is director of Dealer’s Choice:

“I discovered Dealer's Choice some years ago. Plays with a small cast, and with a modern setting always appeal to me. I like to explore stories that have slightly unusual situations; Dealer's Choice, set in a restaurant in London with a cast of threatened characters, is a perfect scenario for me.

“Dealer’s Choice is a play with six disparate personalities, all who are recognisable to audiences. But their motivation to play poker on a regular basis is fascinating. Why do they seem so hooked into a pattern of behaviour that is risky, that can take them from affluent to paupers with the turn of a card? There are moments of great humour coupled with those of desperation and dishonesty. The compulsion, the self-destructive behaviour, is fascinating and repulsive in equal measure.

“Everyone has heard of poker, haven't they? It's a way to get rich quick! The play’s narrative looks at the underlying reasons why people are driven by what initially seems to be a simple game of cards. It deals with themes of addictive behaviour, compulsive risk taking and recklessness, mixed with unattainable goals and fantasised dreams. Dealer's Choice is an award winning example of contemporary theatre that is a stark portrayal of hopelessness and soaring ambition, all set in a small restaurant.”

Dealer’s Choice performs in the Acorn Studio at Titchfield Festival Theatre from 26 – 30 March 2024. For more information including booking tickets please go to http://titchfieldfestivaltheatre.com/  or contact our Box Office on 0333 666 3366.