Glengarry Glen Ross reviews: strong performances but critics divided on all-female revival

“Crack all-female cast make scintillating work of David Mamet’s motormouthed 1980s drama.”

“The text hasn’t been changed, so the actors are still playing characters called George or John; they’re men, but their portrayal by women – some with big 1980s hair or bright makeup – throws their behaviour, and the way they treat one another, into sharper relief.”

“The pace and intensity of Marber’s direction is so thrilling that you almost forget the lack of substance at the play’s centre.”

“This is true ensemble work by some of the finest actors working in British theatre, but if there is a standout, it’s Rosa Salazar’s Roma – costumed by Howell in a pair of mean shades and a sinister long leather coat.”

“Indira Varma is equally entertaining, and ultimately heartbreaking, as the sweatily desperate Levene.”

"Patrick Marber’s all-female staging of David Mamet’s hyper-masculine 1984 study of desperate real-estate salesmen somehow feels compellingly new and strange."

“Even as Mamet’s machine-tooled, combative dialogue locks in your attention, the casting throws a light on the deliberate shallowness of his characterisation.”

“It’s an arresting but oddly distancing experience, as if you’re watching two plays at once, your brain constantly trying to unpick them.”

“The casting accentuates the testosterone of Mamet’s writing rather than finding anything new in it. We are always aware we are watching a performance. Which is not to detract from the grip of Marber’s production and the achievements of the cast.”

“Varma brings a desperate bravado to the defeated Shelley and Salazar is simply outstanding as the swaggering Roma.”

"Some great performances aside, Patrick Marber’s stripped-back staging leaves this all-female production feeling like a missed opportunity."

“It's quite the spectacle, even if the production doesn't feel quite as carefully put together as their powersuit-based ensembles.”

“Indira Varma is a standout as Levene, a horrible specimen from a past era who's brought back from the dead by one big sale. Rosa Salazar is terrific as a newly queer-coded Richard Roma.”

“The gender-swapped casting also gives some lines new poignancy.”

“Maybe there's just a lack of specificity to this staging, which keeps the male names of the original, without making it clear what gender each individual character is. By keeping things vague, the production loses its bite.”

"This all-female revival at the Old Vic makes an intelligent case for itself, yet never fully captures what made the original so thrilling."

“The play still works, but why mess with perfection?”

“The female cast doesn’t have much room for manoeuvre. Adhere to the gender fixity of the roles and risk pale imitation. Counteract the template, dig beneath the pugilistic exteriors, and you can lessen the impact. It’s a tribute to the company that they walk this tightrope so well, combining ruthlessness and vulnerability.”

“Indira Varma stands out as Levene, the old-timer who insists that the company owes him, but knows he is over the hill.”

“In short, for a play that’s all about ownership – everything is up for grabs, but nothing is secure – these pioneering performers do the work without fully claiming the territory.”

"Indira Varma and the American actress Rosa Salazar lead an all-female cast through the barrage of testosterone-charged profanities and racial slurs. Does it work? I’m not convinced"

"It’s still a provocative evening at times, simply because the dialogue is so raw."

“This reinvention has the aura of a rehearsal room exercise in which accomplished actors sketch personalities without, for the most part, getting to the heart of the characters.”

Niky Wardley makes a bigger impression as Moss, the brassy contender who comes up with a plan to burgle his firm.

"Rob Howell’s unfussy design shifts from spartan Chinese restaurant to an office whose floor is littered with documents after the burglary."

"For all its promise, the purpose of the gender reversal here feels unresolved."

“Mamet’s gender-swapped motormouths fail to close the deal”

“Patrick Marber’s perplexing revival of the salesmen classic amps up the comedy and the performance of masculinity but veers into Bugsy Malone territory”

“The darkness is missing. Mamet’s whip-smart patter is there but the high energy and volume come to feel relentless and tonally flattening.”

Salazar makes a smooth wheeler-dealer, pumped up on his selling powers, and becomes the highlight of the production.”