Glengarry Glen Ross

Glengarry Glen Ross
Glengarry Glen Ross is a play by David Mamet in 1984 which attained its glory and was recognized by Pulitzer Prize and Tony-Awards. The play is a classic blend of dualism in personalities and their actions which is evident from the parts of two days in the lives of four desperate Chicago real estate agents who are prepared to engage in any number of unethical and or illegal acts that may be from lies and flattery to bribery, threats and intimidation to burglary, having an intention to sell undesirable real estate to unwilling prospective buyers.

The play partly draws light on Mamet's experiences of life in a Chicago real estate office, where he worked for a very succinct time as a typist in the late 1960s. The title of the play comes from the names of two of the real estate developments being peddled by the salesmen characters.

The play opened on Broadway on March 25, 1984 and closed on February 17, 1985. The production was directed by Gregory Mosher and amongst the star cast included Joe Mantegna, Mike Nussbaum, Robert Prosky, Lane Smith, James Tolkan, Jack Wallace, and J.T. Walsh. The production was such an eminent success that it was nominated for four Tony awards including Best Play, Best Director, and two Best Actor nominations for Robert Prosky and Joe Mantegna, who won the production's one Tony.

The play is noteworthy for the flow of persuasive rhythm of the salesmen characters, who spend much time trying to convince customers, the oily office manager, and even each other to give them what they want: down payments for real estate, access to valuable sales leads, and even co-operation in conspiracies. The forceful dialogues portraying the real self of these characters is exquisitely entertaining for the viewers.

Gil Gunderson is a fictional character on The Simpsons and is loosely based on Jack Lemmon's portrayal of Shelley Levene in the film version of Glengarry Glen Ross: a nervous, middle-aged man with the inability to hold a steady job due to strings of misfortunes that tend to hit him at the worst of times. He shows Levene's neediness to make a sale and his depression, but never his hard-boiled, angry and profanity-ridden streak when customers aren't around. In the film Employee of the Month, the manager of the store is named Glen Gary, and his older brother is named Glen Ross. A drinking game based on the filmed version obliges players to drink every time profanity is uttered. The Bloodhound Gang makes a reference to the play in their song Magna Cum Nada from their album Hooray for Boobies. Radio talk show hosts Opie & Anthony use different profane clips from the movie interspersed during various bits and segments. A scene in Boiler Room (film), starring Vin Diesel and Giovanni Ribisi, makes reference to Glengarry Glen Ross. Boiler Room depicts salesmen using similar tactics to sell unsolicited product.

There exists significant controversy over lines in the play as well as the movie which was produced later, which are racist against Asian Indians. In order to avoid racial instability and negative impressions in the society, Mamet removed the language from the latest Broadway revival.

The world premiere of Glengarry Glen Ross was on September 21, 1983 at the Cottlesloe Theatre of the Royal National Theatre in London. It was directed by Bill Bryden.Glengarry Glen Ross premiered in the United States at the Goodman Theatre of the Arts Institute of Chicago in a Chicago Theatre Groups, Inc. production on February 6, 1984. The play opened on Broadway on March 25, 1984 at the John Golden Theatre, in a production directed by Gregory Mosher.

The play received numerous Tony Award nominations, including those for the director, Mosher, and actors Prosky and Mantegna, with Mantegna winning in the Best Featured Actor category. In 2005, Glengarry Glen Ross was revived on Broadway, opening on May 1, 2005 at the Bernard B Jacobs Theatre or the former Royale Theatre, in a production directed by Joe Mantello.

The revival received numerous Tony Award nominations, including Best Featured Actor nominations for Alda, Clapp, and Schreiber, with Schreiber taking home the prize. The production also won a Tony for Best Revival of a Play.

In September 2007, the production once again returned to London, at the Apollo Theatre where Jonathan Pryce is expected to star alongside Aidan Gillen and Paul Freeman. The production will be directed by James Macdonald, designed by Anthony Ward and lit by Howard Harrison.

Glengarry Glen Ross has also been produced as a radio play for BBC Radio 3, featuring Hector Elizondo, Stacy Keach, Bruce Davison, and Alfred Molina as Roma, with its first airing on March 20, 2005.