Crime and Punishment: A Rock Musical
The Scoop
2nd September 2016
2 Stars
Inhabiting The Scoop amphitheatre with theatrical tellings of classic literature, Phil Willmott returns to London’s free open air theatre season with his adaptation of Fyodor Dostoyevsky’s 1866 ‘Crime and Punishment’ and, together with tunes by 80’s pop-rocker Toyah Willcox, an abridged version of the tale is told in the form of a rock jukebox musical.
At the centre of the London Bridge City Summer Festival, the atmosphere is electric as smoke is pumped from Philip Eddolls’ set, mingling steampunk with the perfume of summer BBQ. However, it is to the prosecco sippers and burger munchers that I itch to return to, rather than to Willmott’s musical.
Undeniably, the cast have a tenacious energy which is the vehicle for telling the powerful and aggressive story of Rodion Raskolnikov, a poverty-stricken ex-student with crippling anxiety, who merely exists in 19th Century St Petersburg. Haunted by murderous thoughts, Raskolnikov kills old pawnbroker Alyona Ivanova and her sister, Lizaveta, hoping that, by bringing an end to their fraudulent business (to which he himself has fallen victim), and by stealing their riches, he can create a better life for the poor. Raskolnikov’s anguish intensifies and he becomes feverish with guilt until he is eventually convinced to atone for his sins and seek redemption.
Alec Porter is an engaging and committed Rodion Raskolnikov and offers a fine vocal. However, Willmott wanted to ‘explore the brooding alienated killer as the kind of charismatic bad boy we’re all drawn to in our formative years’ and, whilst I feel Porter brings a laddish quality to the character, thus achieving Willmott’s vision, I miss the paralysing trepidation and despair which catches my breath as I read the book. Angela Laverick portrays the sickly Katerina with an abundance of energy and bold conviction, and Rachel Delooze as Sonya and Zac Hamilton as Dmitri, carry the score with their impressive vocals, despite some of the song choices feeling forced and clumsy. For me, jukebox musicals can often make the story and characters feel contrived because a popular song is sometimes forced in the way of real development. Whilst numbers such as ‘Angels & Demons’ and ‘I Want to Be Free’ seem appropriate, others, for me, are not. Police inspector Porfiry Petrovich sings the famous ‘It’s a Mystery’ as he begins his investigation into the murder of the Ivanovas, and is joined on stage by the victims dressed in wig caps with red streamers falling over their faces who, in turn (and in a zombie-like manner) begin to dance around him. Whilst a comedic element is welcomed to dilute some of the gloom, it has more of an awkward undertone than comical.
Willmott hopes that his ‘Crime and Punishment’ adaptation will inspire people to read the book, and, as I sit, about to turn the page onto Raskolnikov’s murder plot, I can say he has been successful with that. However, I feel a much deeper connection with the characters formed through Dostoyevsky’s words than I have from the performance and, perhaps this is due to the fact that this version was compressed to only 90 minutes. Overall, I wanted my gut to be wrenched but, I fear it was only prodded. Despite this, it is applaudable what Phil Willmott provides each year. Not only does he offer free live performances to theatre virgins, to those who wouldn’t normally choose to spend their money on tickets and to those who now refuse to pay the extortionate rising ticket prices, but most importantly, for me, he tells us the stories which gather dust on our bookshelves; the ones we are all guilty of shoving to the back behind copies of Harry Potter and Bridget Jones. Overall, whether I enjoyed the musical doesn’t really matter because I was introduced to a classic that I should have appreciated by now – and a darn good one it is.
‘Crime and Punishment’ plays at The Scoop as part of the London Bridge City Summer Festival until 25 September 2016.
