Crime and Punishment, A Comedy
Commissioned by The Old Globe, Dostoevsky’s turn-of-the-century masterpiece is re-imagined as a 90-minute romp of a morality tale, performed by five ridiculously talented actors who play over 50 zany characters, riffing on the famous novel—and all of Russian literature.
This highly theatrical physically dexterous comic show brings a whacked out sensibility to 1860s Russia. The classic story follows Raskolnikov, an impoverished student who becomes a murderer in order to save his family.
Based on the book you didn’t actually read in high school, this is literature retold like you’ve never seen it before.
Reviews
“A Wickedly Funny Reimagining”
Wickedly funny and playful, Gordon Greenberg and Steve Rosen have delivered a unique brain child - an adaptation of Dostoevsky's famous 1866 novel, set as a 90-minute comedy in a landscape of Russian literature, in which five malleable actors play over 50 characters as they embody a tale that loosely follows a young man's trajectory through morality.
Executed seamlessly, we are taken on a journey that feels slightly out of control and yet is tightly woven.
A masterclass of what that magic can look like when it is orchestrated singularly.
On The Craft
“Fast, fluid and fun!”
With many of additional jokes and references to Russian historical figures and literary characters, you don’t need to know the book or history to get the joke.
Directed by Greenberg this adaption is fast, fluid, and fun. Which admittedly, are not words ever associated with this Dostoevsy classic in the past. He utilizes the entire theatre and his actor's physicality as characters appear and disappear from multiple entrances, running to catch and ride a trolley, and more.
Broadway World
“Old Globe’s fast-paced ‘Crime and Punishment’ finds unexpected humor in Russian tragedy, but retains just enough messaging to avoid being all madcap.”
Greenberg and Rosen depart significantly from the long and winding narrative of Dostoevsky’s novel. This Raskolnikov does attempt to reconcile his violence: His poor father is wrongly imprisoned in Siberia, his debt-besieged mother at home is in poor health, his sister Dunya (Brett) faces the prospect of having to marry a wealthy but repugnant man. Only money hard-earned as a fledgling lawyer can save them all.
In this comic deconstruction, it’s a shot (or two, or more) of absinthe at a tavern run by the blunt and beautiful Sonya that fuels Raskolnikov’s murderous moment at the university. Take that, vodka!
None of this requires keen knowledge of the novel, nor do deviations from it matter. Greenberg and Rosen don’t completely abandon the weighty moral questions of “Crime and Punishment,” but those are secondary to the actors’ practically deadpan deliveries (no mugging, thankfully), the nods to Russian lit (there’s even a Dr. Zhivago cameo) and the physical locomotion on stage.
The San Deigo Union Tribune
“A refreshing and clever approach”
A satirical take on the famous novel, as well as Russian literature as a whole, the adaptation managed to capture the essence of Dostoevsky's work while infusing it with a modern comedic twist along with a playful balance between reverence and irreverence.
A unique theater experience, the show features a small but versatile cast of five talented actors who skillfully bring to life over 50 characters. From start to finish, their energy and comedic timing provided non-stop entertainment. Audiences around me could not stop laughing.
From Another Zero
“A gem of a satire. There isn’t a more entertaining 90 minutes on display on any stage in southern California.”
Co-authors Steve Rosen and Gordon Greenberg have packed author Fyodor Dostoevsky’s 1866 classic with clever wordplay, quips, and sight gags, while giving due attention to the original’s exploration of morality, guilt, and psychological and physical violence.
But the script isn’t just a gaudy verbal display of jokes. Rosen and Greenberg have salted their play with highly dramatic interludes that deal with Dostoevsky’s major themes. The play’s title may be subtitled as a comedy, but the ensemble often grabs the viewer’s attention with heated exchanges among characters gripped by fierce passions. The swings between humor and intensity kept the audience continuously involved.
Stage and Cinema
“A snappy 90-minute comedy and still encouraging audiences to engage with the source’s major themes”
The themes are moral relativity, guilt, and social inequity.
The play focuses on Rodya Raskolnikov, who has just finished a course of study to earn a law degree. He is motivated to get a license and begin practice because his father is being held in Siberia and he wants to help free him. Unfortunately, Rodya is blocked from getting his license because he owes an overdue fine on a library book that he checked out, and the fine exceeds the small amount of money he has to his name. In addition, his landlady is going to kick him out of his apartment unless he can catch up on his rent payments.
Sounds like a realistic enough dilemma to me.
San Diego Story