Glengarry Glen Ross [Paperback]

The characters make this play powerful. Shelly, in his 50s, has a great history as a salesman but struggles today. The play begins with him negotiating--almost begging--for a prime sales lead. Unfortunately the dog-eat-dog world that currently employes him has little or no appreciation for his current failures and past success. Meanwhile Shelly tries to pass off his current performance (or lack of) as a slump, a move that somewhat reminds me of Willy Loman making excuses. Though Willy Loman and the characters of this play live in the same American dream of manifest destiny, the similarities are limited. Starting with Shelly, the characters of Mamet's play seem to have a more vicious inward-looking and selfish perspective toward life. Their American dream seems shallow and selfish compared to Willy's.

We see this same selfishness in scene two where Moss and Aaronow discuss the opportunity to steal the best customer leads (lists of names) from their own office, sell them to a competitor, and then maybe go work for that competitor. Like Shelly, these two salesmen appear selfish as they first fantasize about the midnight adventure only to find that one of them is quite serious.

Next comes Roma, the apparently most successful salesman of this group who is in his 40s. Not seeing Roma until the third scene, we cannot help but wonder if he will one day end up with a merciless boss who doesn't care about past sucesses (just like Shelly and the others who are in their 50s)? Roma seems to articulate the most certain morality of the main characters. He initially appears most anchored, but toward the end he talks with a customer experiencing sales remorse and we are left to wonder about Roma as well.

The play's end is quite compelling. We are not surpised in one sense, giving the ethical code of this bunch. Yet, we are quite surprised to see who emerges "alpha male" inside this office. I cannot help feeling some compassion for these salesmen who manipulate, scheme, and appear to think little of anyone but themselves. It is an amazingly simple and powerful conclusion.

I read this play in a single evening. I could not put it down. The tensions Mamet creates are compelling and many. Not since Miller's "The Crucible" have I read such a powerful play. Though this is the first work I have read from Mamet, I think I can begin to see why his work is so highly regarded. I am only sorry that the play is short and does not require more than one evening to finish. I would have enjoyed spending more time with the text.

"Glengarry Glen Ross" casts its jaundiced eye on the attitudes of competitiveness and unbridled capitalism, and their destructive effects, that have characterized the last 25 years. In his conclusion, with the death of loyalty in the face of get-ahead-at-any-cost, Mamet demonstrates just why so many of us who have to work for a living are angry and unhappy these days.

The use of language in this play, with its musical use of fragmented sentences and almost operatic vulgarity, is as epoch-making as the content. Many aspiring playwrights who have great vision but lack Mamet's gift for lyrical speech have tried--and failed--to emulate the use of language in this play. Very little new material has come out of the American theatre in the past two decades that hasn't borne the stamp of language created in this play.

Read it. See it. Stage it. This play is the defining artistic statement of the final quarter of the Twentieth Century.

The play is about real estate salesmen who will do just about anything to get a sale. "Always Be Closing" is the motto to follow, however when they don't get the good leads they need, it makes it more difficult for them to close the deals. What's worse is that if they don't pick up the pace, more than one of them will find themselves out of the job. There are the "Glengarry Leads;" the premium leads, but they're reserved for closers only. Things take a dramatic turn when the office is broken into and the leads are nowhere to be found, leading us to a memorable climax.

I read the play after seeing the film. I enjoyed reading it just as much as I enjoyed seeing the movie. There are a few things that were added to the film version in order to make it a full length movie, but all of the important elements and classic lines are all there. Mamet has a great ear for dialogue and writes the way people talk. Sure, some people will think there's a lot of swearing and profanities, but this play is a reflection of the business world. And this is the way people talk. It is amazing how well written and structured it is.

"Glengarry Glen Ross" is a terrific drama and an enjoyable play to read. I recommend it to anyone who loves a great read. You'll have it finished in no time. The pages literally turn by themselves. Dripping with sharp dialogue, memorable characters, and quiet suspense and action, "Glengarry Glen Ross" is an outstanding achievement in American drama. Read this one as soon as you can.