Gamblers (V.Smith)

By: Valerie Smith

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Synopsis: Dark comedy \ 5 m., 1 f. \ Unit set. \ This suspenseful drama of desire and intrigue explores the dark world of high stakes gambling. Aboard a Mississippi river boat in the antebellum South, a team of professional con men become embroiled in the scheme of an unhappy wife to cheat her wealthy husband of his fortune. A government deputy and the boat's stewart, a free black man, find they too have a stake in the proceedings. Soon the game played for greed is overshadowed by another, deadlier game for control one in which desperate bluff, ruthless manipulation, and ever shifting alliances lead to the riskiest bet of all. In its Memphis debut, the play was praised by critics for its "wit and eloquent dialogue." The Gamblers provides a penetrating vision of the human struggle for ascendancy in the game of marriage, money and power.