Crime and Punishment comes to Jack Studio Theatre in Crofton Park. Director Jack Jacobs adapts the classic novel for the stage, bringing Dostoevsky to London for an eleven-day run.
Raskolnikov, an impoverished Russian student, spurred on by hunger, poverty, and the Great Man theory, decides the normal rules of society do not apply to him. Raskolnikov believes life for the majority is futile, and only the few are extraordinary and deserve special treatment. To this end, he takes an axe and murders an old pawnbroker neighbour, testing his theory that he was meant for bigger things. Thus sets the stage for one of the great works of literature, originally written in prose by Fyodor Dostoevsky.
Crime and Punishment is the debut play by new London-based theatre company Off By Heart. Founder and director Jack Jacobs also stars as Raskolnikov; Jacobs’ Raskolnikov is unlikeable. It is not clear whether this is an acting choice of Jacobs or not. Faye Bishop plays Sonya as well as several other minor characters. Sonya’s character is a louder, more dominant, more matriarchal figure than the Sonya of the book. Although Bishop plays her roles fine, having three actors playing the entire cast causes confusion more than once. If the audience is not well versed in the plot of Dostoevsky’s novel, Crime and Punishment is hard to follow.
Andrew Callaghan takes the role of magistrate Porfiry, the man tasked with investigating the pawnbroker’s murder. Callaghan, who also plays several characters including Sonya’s alcoholic father, is generally excellent, swapping personalities with ease. He carries the play from start to finish.
It is perhaps unfair to comment on the plot and writing if the play was adapted from one of literature’s greatest masterpieces. Obviously the writing was the best part. Jacobs, however, has at times rewritten the script, adding text that is not in the original. Similarly, the plot diverges from the novel in several key moments, particularly at the end, to the detriment of the production.
The sound effects are generally not compatible with Crime and Punishment. Loud recordings of horses accompanied by amplified bass sound more like a late Black Eyed Peas album than the inner turmoil of a poor Russian murderer.
Crime and Punishment has some strong elements, but overall it is a slightly rushed production that tries to force a 500-page novel into 90 minutes of theatre. Runs until 26 September 2026.
Listings and ticket information can be found here
