Richard Harrington in House of Games [Manuel Harlan]

BILLY (Oscar Lloyd), a gambling addict, is mid-therapy with bestselling author and psychoanalyst Dr Margaret Ford (Lisa Dillon), an expert in compulsive behaviour, when he pulls a gun. He claims he owes a hefty sum to the House of Games, a shady Chicago poker lounge, and is worried he’s going to get killed.

Driven by concern for her client and writerly curiosity, Margaret decides to visit the gambling den herself. There, she confronts Mike (Richard Harrington), the smooth-talking leader of a gang of con artists, about Billy’s debt.

He responds by inviting her to watch a dodgy poker game with Bobby (Andrew Whipp), Joey (Robin Soans) and George (Sion Tudor Owen), seducing Margaret at the same time.

Alarm bells should ring, but instead, rather implausibly, Margaret falls for Mike’s dubious charms and becomes entangled in the gang’s next sting.

Richard Bean’s adaptation of David Mamet’s 1987 screenplay, House of Games, (first staged at the Almeida in 2010) retains the original dialogue but adds a new ending. While the theatrical version softens the tension of a noir thriller – Bean leans into humour – and the tone feels lighter than Mamet may have intended, this clever, twisty caper keeps us guessing until the end.

Jonathan Kent’s well-paced production unfolds on Ashley Martin-Davis’s impressive split-level set – the top deck is Margaret’s austere office, down below the dingy gambling den.

Bean’s version could have been darker and some of Margaret’s motivations are hard to believe, but strong performances compensate for the few plot turns that stretch credibility.

Until June 7
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