In The Pumphouse Players' second offering of its 35th theatrical season, Travis Young portrays Richard Roma, a top-selling real estate agent, who is up for a challenge in the midst of a sales slump at his Chicago office. Given incentive to sell undesirable properties to unaware buyers, Young's character is one of several in "Glengarry Glen Ross" that participate in a high-stakes, closeout competition where the most successful agent wins a car and two of the losers are fired.

"He does a monologue at the beginning of the show," Young said. "He starts off and you have no idea what he's talking about and he's just trying to sell a gentleman some land. He has this ability to read into people, to know exactly how to talk to whoever he's around and level with those people. He's able to get inside their heads.

"He's a likable person to the best degree but at the same time you don't want to forget what his main goal is and that is to make money off you. So he'll come off as your best friend and he'll turn around and stick you in the back."

Opening Friday at The Legion Theatre in Cartersville, the Tony award-winning comedy by David Mamet is going to be presented at 8 p.m. on Sept. 10, 11, 17, 18, 24 and 25 and Sept. 12 and 19 at 3 p.m. Along with Young, the seven-member cast includes David Lauby as Shelley Levene, Shane Phebus as James Lingk, Zip Rampy as John Williamson, Brad Rudy as George Aaronow, Kip Henderson as Dave Moss and John C. Walker as Baylen.

Directed by Carolyn Choe, a Metropolitan Atlanta Theatre Award nominee, "Glengarry Glen Ross" is being submitted by Pumphouse Players for MAT consideration this year. The MAT awards recognize plays and individual performances in community as well as non-union professional theater.

"The play is a wild ride through desperate economic times," Choe said. "Although it was first produced over 25 years ago, it couldn't feel any more contemporary. People being unsure about their job position, I think that is something that is more modern. In tougher times, people stayed in jobs longer and with this contest that they had, the winners get -- first place, Cadillac; second place, steak knives; and the other two get fired.

"And it's that desperation of sales that it's not a for sure thing and the people that they're going out to sell to don't have money, money on the mattress [and] all those kinds of things that they refer to. I just think in that sense people [today] can relate to, 'Oh my God, the desperation -- What happens if I lose my job?'"

Due to adult themes and language, patrons younger than 17 will not be admitted to the show without an adult attendant.

"David Mamet is very much known for his language, not necessarily bad language but his use of words," Choe said. "In this play, that's one thing that's really highlighted is the words that [can] have meaning and also be meaningless at the same time, [like] how to use the words talking and listening. When the other person's talking, it's just talk but when you're talking, you have something to say, that kind of thing."

Tickets for the opening night performance of "Glengarry Glen Ross" are $10. For the remaining shows, the tickets are $18 at the door for all patrons. If purchased in advance, tickets are $15 for adults and $12 for senior adults, students and Pumphouse Players' members. For more information, visit www.pumphouseplayers.com or call 770-387-2610.