The Broadway revival of David Mamet's Glengarry Glen Ross is drawing attention with a star-studded cast, including Kieran Culkin, Bob Odenkirk, and Bill Burr. The play, which showcases the ruthless world of real estate salesmen, has been selling out theaters. As performances sell out and Culkin rides the wave of an Oscar win, ticket resale prices are hitting the $1,000 mark—a 178% markup in some cases, as reported by Gothamist. Showgoers like Ken Slazyk, who dropped $372 for tickets last week, are witnessing a surge in value, but they're not giving up their spots. "Absolutely not," he asserted, despite the temptation.
It's not just the resale market driving up prices; the production is also using "dynamic pricing" models to boost costs. Prices dance to the tune of demand, propelling seats that once went for $179 into the $700 bracket on the official website, Gothamist reports. This all comes as no surprise to the play’s lead producer Jeffrey Richards, who remarked, "The price of eggs is more expensive, the price of A-list actors is more expensive. The price of materials and costs for sets and for costumes is more expensive."
Yet, as the current all-star male cast rakes in the box office dough, a groundbreaking change is reportedly in the works for the gritty play. Sources are buzzing with the prospect of an all-female take on "Glengarry Glen Ross" following the current, palpably-testosterone-fueled run. According to a statement obtained by NY Daily News, reps for the production shared, "Over the years there has been interest expressed to both playwright David Mamet and producer Jeffrey Richards about an all-female cast of Glengarry Glen Ross." Such a gender-swapped production had been floated before but never fully materialized.
Amid rising ticket prices and buzz around a milestone in Broadway casting, the production continues its run. The combination of star power and Mamet's critique of American capitalism keeps the Palace Theatre drawing crowds. Richards himself puts an air of credence on the work of the playwright, "But the unseen star is David Mamet who wrote this play," Richards told Gothamist. "It’s an American classic about American capitalism at its most provocative."
_(54076031977).jpg){kind=link}