NYT: Old Enough to Play ‘The Gin Game’

https://www.nytimes.com/2026/07/24/theater/debra-winger-arliss-howard-gin-game.html?unlocked_article_code=1.0FA.0Xtn.cDziE1trE836&smid=nytcore-android-share

MezzA101 said: "‘The Gin Game’ Review: Debra Winger and Arliss Howard’s Bad Hand

https://www.wsj.com/articles/the-gin-game-review-debra-winger-and-arliss-howards-bad-hand-59068784?st=pngKHi"

It's a paywall. For what it's worth (more than the $20 ticket), it's not a bad production even if it's been cut to 90 minutes with no interval. The issue for me wasn't if they were old enough. It's that they're film actors and it showed. I was sitting on one of the bar stools in the back seven rows away and there's lots of moments where they couldn't be heard. They're movements were small, the focus tight, like they were shooting a film. It's only after Weller loses his temper do they break out of their shells. But even then, I never got the sense that he really needs Fosnia to fill the days in his life more than just a gin competitor. They do manage to pull it together at the end for the final game, but it's still somewhat unsatisfying. No one would put it on par with Hume / Jessica or James / Cicely. It's okay IMHO, but nothing as special as it should be.