Dealer's Choice is an award winning 1995 play by Patrick Marber which originally staged at The National Theatre before being revived at Trafalgar Studios in 2007. It tells a story set in a restaurant in East London owned by poker enthusiast Stephen. Every Sunday night after the restaurant closes Stephen hosts a poker match for himself, his debt riddled son Carl, single dad and chef Sweeney, thuggish waiter Franky and idiotic waiter Mugsy who has aspirations of opening up a restaurant in a disused public toilet in Mile End (if he can secure financial backing from Stephen, that is). On this night however, Carl's friend Ash turns up demanding money he is owed by Carl and Carl fixes it for him to join the game as well.

This student production at The Burton Taylor Studio has good set design by Mica Schlosser which splits the action perfectly between the restaurant's kitchen and front of house in the first half, and the cellar and Stephen's office in the second. This is well complemented by James Percival's lighting design, which softly brings the lights up and down when juxtaposing scenes that happen at the same time and creates an eerie atmosphere in the tense poker game later on.

The content of this production however is a problem. It is odd that a "black comedy" fronted by Oxford Revue performer Cameron Cook (director and actor playing Mugsy) should prove such a humourless affair. The opening night performance did get some laughs. However, so many potentially funny moments are stumbled over and timed wrong that even when some funny lines are hit correctly ("never say die even when you're dead" being amongst these) they aren't quite funny enough because of what's gone before.

The evening isn't without merit. Alexander Stutt, who I remember from a great production of Miss Julie at The BT several months ago, is on good, naturalistic form as Stephen playing him as a father figure to all exept his own son. Cameron Cook is mildly amusing as Mugsy albeit in a rather desperate clown-like fashion. The acting from the rest of the cast however is below the standard that I have seen in student shows before this. 

Overall, even looking at the show as a budget Lock Stock and Two Smoking Barrels it does just have an air of posh boys playing East End lads. It is baggy, too long, and ill-disciplined. Student theatre is great experimental ground for making mistakes; I hope this company learn from theirs.