We hope that you will find this information and work-pack useful. It is intended primarily for teachers and students.
Image: Sarah Amy Fishlock
The booklet is divided into several sections: Section 1. This provides the background information on the Novel and the Author
…………………………………………………………………………………………………………. Section 2. This gives deeper insight into how the piece has been interpreted by the creative team
…………………………………………………………………………………………………………. Section 3. Here you will gain an insight into the realisation of the vision and how this works in practice in the rehearsal room
………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….
Section 4. This is a practical section that allows students to respond to the production in a creative way. …………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………
This provides the background information on the Novel and the Author
Image: Tommy Ga-Ken Wan
“Nothing in this world is harder than speaking the truth, nothing easier than flattery.�
THE PLOT AND THE INTERPRETATION
Crime and Punishment is a new stage adaptation by Chris Hannan of Fyodor Dostoyevksy’s iconic Russian novel.
Image: Tommy Ga-Ken Wan
Directed by Dominic Hill, this will be contemporary, epic storytelling told with raw energy and bold conviction. Shining new light on its relevance to today’s world of corruption and crime, this production is an accessible way for audiences to explore the classic text. Fans of the book will recognise the characters and story on stage - it is an adaptation not a completely rewritten new version. However, the staging will be far from ‘traditional’ and it is the way in which the story is told that brings contemporary style to the production. Not precious or pretty, Dominic will create a raw, intimate and vibrant atmosphere. Dostoyevsky’s novel has influenced across the centuries - ‘a novel that shaped the word’. The narrative follows the human condition and explores murder, redemption and the human psyche. We get inside the mind of a starving, destitute student, Raskolnikov, who commits a brutal double murder. Raskolnikov is surrounded by the harsh injustices of the world: poverty and prostitution, unscrupulous pawnbrokers chasing debts and a sister about to marry a man she doesn’t love only to keep her family alive. His guilt about the murder is unbearable, yet he finds solace and a chance of redemption through Sonya, a downtrodden prostitute. Raskolnikov enters a dangerous cat and mouse game with the investigating magistrate and a psychological thriller unfolds. In the play we explore how far humanity might go when driven by disillusionment and whether any crime can be justified by a higher purpose. Raskolnikov is a complex character, he is sickened by the poverty around him and those making money from the poorest (ie the pawnbrokers). He ‘bows down’ to prostitutes who are just trying to survive like him. Yet he is equally disillusioned with socialist politics and ‘the students’ who profess to want to ‘change the world’. He refuses help from friends and family, at times almost wanting to be caught and at others in a panic and fever about being discovered. The audience is on a knife edge waiting for him to confess or ‘give the game away’. Ultimately, this is a psychological murder thriller and whether you have already read the book or not, the tension and intrigue of the story alongside the colourful and detailed characters will hook you in from start to finish. Take a look at the trailer:
http://www.youtube.com/watchv=SdM8QzknKhM
Image: Tommy Ga-Ken Wan
Some things you may or may not know about Fyodor...
Fyodor is Russian for Theodore! His Dad a physician, was wealthy. He had 4 horses! Ok that might not seem that wealthy but how about the fact that he had 7 servants? Or that in 1831, when Fyo was 10, he bought land that included two towns! Ok so he was really wealthy!!! Like a good dad, Mikhail, did not indulge his son and begging letters for increases to his allowance were a regular occurrence. http://blog.mindlogr.com/famousdiarist-fyodor-dostoyevsky/
In one letter Fyodor threatened that he would starve if he did not receive more money. He was prone to exaggerate, didn’t and went on to graduate from the Russian Engineering Academy in 1843. This clearly provided a sound foundation for his future career, in the Army! It took one year for Fyodor to realise that the Army was not quite what he had hoped for and he left. Luckily for him his Father had died, he sensibly sold all his father’s assets and began the life of a writer. The death of his Father is a mystery! One story has it that the serfs in one of the towns that he owned decided to show their appreciation by drowning him in a barrel of vodka ! Other more mundane stories suggest he was just beaten to death. With hindsight no one sought to ask where Fyodor was on the night of the murder! http://www.deathdyinggriefandmourning.com/Death-DyingGrief-Mourning/56-Yodor-Dostoevsky-Crime-and-Punishmentdeath-of-Friend,Pawnbroker-Marmeladov-Alena-IvanovnaLizaveta.htm
Fyodor recovered from his grief and went on to write his first novel, Poor People in 1846 He then joined the Petrashevsky circle, a political group that was campaigning for the emancipation of the serfs. This sort of thing did not go down too well with the Czar and Fyodor and his friends were convicted of conspiracy. He was found guilty and narrowly avoided execution. Legend has it he was looking down the barrel of the gun when his sentence was commuted to exile in Siberia. Dostoyevsky spent 5 years in a labour camp and a further 5 in Siberia. He also married while in Siberia in 1857. In 1859, Dostoyevsky returned to his true vocation, the Army! http://www.newyorker.com achive/1997/02/24/1997_02_24_114_TNY_CARDS_ 000378325
http:// www.newyorker.comarchive/1997/02/24/1997_02_24_114_TNY_C ARDS_000378325
This allowed him to leave Siberia and he travelled Europe having numerous affairs, with celebrities and actresses. Fyodor loved spending, and he was good at it. So much so that he fell in to debt again and was banished from many countires. It was around now in 1866 that he was writing ‘Crime and Punishment’ and at the same time working on ‘The Gambler’, a very well researched novel! His industry was more about debt than the creative urge! In 1871 he returned to Russia, and died of Epilepsy shortly after completing ‘The Brothers Karamazov’
If you are a budding writer and are at this very moment poised over your laptop with the intention of emulating Fyodor and producing one of the greatest novels of all time, a novel that changes people’s lives then it might be useful to consider his lifestyle. After all you cannot write about the pain and suffering of tormented souls without some understanding of what is involved in the process! Luckily for Dostoyevsky, as we have seen in the potted history, he had this experience in spades! The diagram below neatly sums up his life and the elements that informed his writing. Now we are not advocating you go straight out there and emulate him but it is worth thinking about what it takes to be a great writer? Notice the time spent writing?
http://www.cracked.com/funny-5443-fyodor-dostoyevsky/
While many academics have spent hours thinking about Crime and Punishment and the major themes in the work, thankfully Fyodor presented his own explanation, more out of necessity, as he was desperate for money and needed his work publishing. Dostoyevsky was in 1865, as in most years, desperate for money and he wrote a letter to M. N. Katkov, the editor of The Russian Messenger, attempting to persuade him to accept his novel and to publish it in serial form in his journal. As the Journal had conservative tendencies Dostoyevsky went to great length to show how suited the work was to Katkov’s readership. ‘The idea of the novel cannot, as far as I can see, contradict the tenor of your journal; in fact, the very opposite is true. The novel is a psycho- logical account of a crime. A young man of middle-class origin who is living in dire need is expelled from the university. From superficial and weak thinking, having been influenced by certain "unfinished" ideas in the air, he decides to get himself out of a difficult situation quickly by killing an old woman, a usurer and widow of a government servant. The old woman is crazy, deaf, sick, greedy, and evil. She charges scandalous rates of interest, devours the well-being of others, and, having reduced her younger sister to the state of a servant, oppresses her with work. She is good for nothing. "Why does she live?" "Is she useful to anyone at all?" These and other questions carry the young man's mind astray. He decides to kill and rob her so as to make his mother, who is living in the provinces, happy; to save his sister from the libidinous importunities of the head of the estate where she is serving as a lady's companion; and then to finish his studies, go abroad and be for the rest of his life honest, firm, and unflinching in fulfilling his humanitarian duty toward mankind. This would, according to him, "make up for the crime," if one can call this act a crime, which is committed against an old, deaf, crazy, evil, sick woman, who does not know why she is living and who would perhaps die in a month anyway. Despite the fact that such crimes are usually done with great difficulty because criminals always leave rather obvious clues and leave much to chance, which almost always betrays them, he is able to commit his crime, completely by chance, quickly and successfully. After this, a month passes before events come to a definite climax. There is not, nor can there be, any suspicion of him. After the act the psycho- logical process of the crime unfolds. Questions which he cannot resolve well up in the murderer; feelings he had not foreseen or suspected torment his heart. God's truth and earthly law take their toll, and he feels forced at last to give himself up. He is forced even if it means dying in prison, so that he may once again be part of the people. The feeling of separation and isolation from mankind, nature, and the law of truth take their toll. The criminal decides to accept suffering so as to redeem his deed. But it is difficult for me to explain in full my thinking’.
As we have pointed out many writers and academics have written on the purpose of the novel. So we thought we could provide an overview of these ideas, nice and simple and hopefully you might feel the need to delve deeper if the matter grabs you. There are several approaches to the text; It is a social document intended to draw our attention to the evils of the time It is a Psychological study, in particular of the mind and character of Raskolnikov and of the beliefs and morals of the society of that time. It is an attack on the progressive movements in Russia at the time and a warning to youth and students to be wary of following these idealistic groups. It is the means for Dostoyevsky to consider the nature of Man and how man interacts with others in society. All the above possibilities relate to the political and philosophical context of the times. So it is worthwhile to consider those views that were a great influence on him. Dostoyevsky was influenced by several strands of political thought. A highly influential movement was that of the French utopian Socialists, and in particular the ideas of Charles Fourier, whose work was popular in Russia in the 1940’s. His beliefs were an extension of Christianity in which all men and women were equal and the aim was for a peaceful new world based on the redistribution of wealth. This movement had considerable influence and was highly influential in instigating a wave of revolutions across Europe. That the revolutions had little success resulted in the development of a more atheistic perspective and the rise to importance of Nihilism in Russia in the 1860’s Nihilism pointed to the failure of Utopian Socialism and that reason and persuasion would not bring about a change in society. Instead developing English Utilitarianism, the greatest good for the greatest number of people and Darwinism they justified the idea that there were weak and strong in society and that the strong had the right to succeed. Pisarev, a leading Nihilist and a great influence on the young Dostoevsky considered that the population was divided into the ‘masses’ and a small cohort of superior men who had the right to seize power and who were not bound by moral constraint. Dostoyevsky wrote an article on the difference between the utopian socialists and the Nihilists entitled schism ( Raskol in Russian). Many have made the connection between this article and the creation of Raskolnikov, a student whose rationale and justification for murder centres on Nihilist ideas. Apart from the Nihilist response to the Utopian Socialists there was also a highly influential body of thought promoted by the German Left Hegelians. This group developed the ideas of the German Philosopher Hegel and this philosophical perspective centred on the promotion of Reason and the denunciation of God and religion. These ideas had considerable impact and were held initially by Marx, prior to the development of revolutionary socialism and communism. Dostoyevsky was also influenced by the Left Hegelians and in his youth he attended various meetings organised by prominent followers of this view. It was this association that lead to Dostoevsky’s imprisonment and eventual exile to Siberia. It is probably unsurprising that Dostoyevsky became disillusioned with the promotion of liberal democracy and atheism and turned more to a Christian moral foundation. In this he was following the thought of Kierkegaard, the ‘father of existentialism’ who suggested that there had been an over-emphasis on logic and reason and that experience was of greater significance. In response to the denouncement of religion and God Kierkegaard argued that religion required a ‘leap of faith’ and Dostoyevsky came to the same conclusion.
Crime and Punishment reflects on Dostoyevsky’s own personal development, from an atheistic Left progressive view presented in the early Raskalnikov to his later rejection and acceptance of the existentialist view shown in the growing realisation of Raskalnikov that the Nihilist ‘half formed ideas’ would inevitably lead to self destruction. Raskolnikov attempts to transcend humanity based upon his theory of extraordinary individuals and by arguing that these gods or supermen among ordinary citizens were capable of righteously committing negative acts. Armed with his self righteousness, Raskolnikov murders a pawn broker, leading him down a self-destructive path that lasts mere days before its conclusion. Like Dostoyevsky Raskolnikov will later find redemption in suffering and Christianity in exile.
Dostoevsky created a character who killed for an idea—a theoretician murderer—unlike many murderers who are driven by uncontrolled passions. He presented in Raskolnikov, a character who could justify murder, either because it was for the benefit of the common good or from a nihilist view that a superior being had the right to take action for the benefit of the majority. The Literary critic and Essayist Cynthia Ozick recognized Raskolnikov's intellectual motive for murder in the nationwide terrorist campaign of Ted Kaczynski which took place from 1978 to 1995. This man known as the ‘Unabomber’, so called because of his University and airline bombings carried out a nationwide campaign planting and sending by mail many homemade bombs. These bombs were aimed at specific targets such as Universities and airlines and they killed 3 people and injured over 20 people. The ‘Unabomber’ produced a manifesto ‘The Industrial Society and it’s Future’, which sought to draw attention to how The industrial revolution and technology had been disastrous for mankind. He then embarked on his individual campaign in which he justified his extreme actions by stating they were necessary to attract attention to the erosion of human freedom as a result of the use of modern technology. Only Revolution could save humanity from this oppression. Kaczynski was eventually arrested after the publication of his manifesto. His brother recognised his writing style and informed the FBI. He is currently serving Life without the possibility of Parole. In his earlier years Kaczynski had been an aspiring academic and had been a lecturer at Harvard University. Ozick says of both Kaczynski and his fictional antecedent: "The philosopher is one with the murderer." Ozick suggests that ' ''In the Unabomber America has at last brought forth its own Raskolnikov”
More recently we have witnessed the horrific acts of Anders Behring Breivik, the Norwegian self-admitted perpetrator of the July 22, 2011 bombing and massacre in Norway. He too provided a theoretical and philosophical justification for his actions and he published a manifesto in which large chunks of text were copied and pasted from the manifesto of Kaczynski.
This gives deeper insight into how the piece has been interpreted by the creative team.
Image: Sarah Amy Fishlock
“The darker the night, the brighter the stars, The deeper the grief, the closer is God!.�
Below you will find a short description of each character, followed by some comments from the actors playing them. We asked them three simple questions to get a flavour of their experience.
Raskolnikov - played by ADAM BEST Roskolnikov is the protagonist of the piece. He is a student, has very little money, and lives in a tiny rented room. He rarely eats. He would be described as proud and highly intelligent. The drama of the novel centres on his inner conflict, first over whether to murder a pawnbroker and later over whether to confess. He slowly becomes more and more mentally unstable as the play progresses.
KEY WORDS: Protagonist, Proud, Intelligent, Handsome, Complex, Loyal. Who is your character and how would you describe them? Roskolnikov is the character in Crime & Punishment who commits the murder. He is the protagonist. How he deals with his guilt and how he is redeemed is quite central to the play. How are they finding working on this production of Crime and Punishment? It’s a collaborative process. We’re all figuring it out together, as a company and that’s really ace. It’s a tough part that I’m doing and I am enjoying the challenge and that I get to grow a beard. What advice would you give anyone who would like to become an actor? Be sure. It’s a really difficult job. It’s vocational. Do it if you believe nothing else will make you happy. And, most importantly, don’t forget that it’s only a job. They sound like contradicting pieces of advice but they really aren’t. Look after yourself.
Nastasya - played by MABEL CLEMENTS Nastasya is a servant in the house where Roskolnikov rents his room. She is kind, caring, warm and dutiful. Natasya helps care for Roskolnikov when he falls ill and becomes distressed after the murders. KEY WORDS: Servant, Kind, Carer, Gossip, Dutiful.
Who is your character and how would you describe them? Natasya is the maid of the household, she looks after Roskolnikov when he starts to become incapable, she is a bit of a gossip and yearns to better herself through the company of Rosklolnikov and Razunkkin. How are they finding working on this production of Crime and Punishment? The cast are great to explore the idea of an ensemble with and there is a fantastic improvised musical element to the production I also really enjoy the idea of multirole playing and the freedom this gives you to explore a variety of characterisations and differing physicality’s. What advice would you give anyone who would like to become an actor? Focus on improving your skills and widening your knowledge of theatre, by seeing as much live theatre as you can. Reading as many plays/scripts as you can and watching the content of a production with a critical eye. Try to widen your knowledge by listening and learning whenever possible.
Porfiry - played by GEORGE COSTIGAN Porfiry is examining magistrate and is in charge of investigating the murders. He doesn’t actually appear a great deal in the play, but his presence is felt all of the time. He is Roskolnikov’s main antagonist. He is certain that Roskolnikov is responsible for the crimes (despite having little evidence) and plays mind games with him in order to engineer a confession. KEY WORDS: Magistrate, Antagonist, Smart, Manipulative. Who is your character and how would you describe them? I’m playing Porfiry Petrovich, who is the examining magistrate (top cop in modern money). So, obviously he is concerned to catch the murderer. His methods however, are a kind of madness. How are they finding working on this production of Crime and Punishment? Great script, great cast, great director, great story - what else do you want? Oh and the hope Everton are at home the Sundays we’re in Liverpool!! What advice would you give anyone who would like to become an actor? Rod Steiger said ‘if you want to be an actor, good luck. If you need to be an actor- come on!’ Do plays, go to college, and learn to watch people, get into the habit of Making Things Happen.
Dunya - played by AMIERA DARWISH Dunya is Raskolnikov’s sister. She is a moral and sympathetic person, and almost marries a man she does not love (Luzhin) for the good of her family. She is beautiful, loyal and intelligent.
KEY WORDS: Sister of Raskolnikov, Good, Beautiful, Intelligent, Generous.
Who is your character and how would you describe them? Dunya is Roskolnikovs sister, she had travelled 600 miles with their mother Pukheria Alexandrina to be with her brother, She is shocked by what she finds when she arrives in Petersburg and spends the majority of the play trying to get to the bottom of it. How are they finding working on this production of Crime and Punishment? The rehearsal period is incredibly fluid. In addition to working with the fantastic cast, I get huge enjoyment experimenting with instruments and pushing and pulling at the ‘traditional’ boundaries of theatre. What advice would you give anyone who would like to become an actor? Do your best to arm yourself with as varied a skill set as you can. There are lots of different routes into acting, find and develop yours and don’t give up.
Sonya - played by JESSICA HARDWICK Sonya is a prostitute and sells her body as this is the only choice she has in order to support herself and her family. She has a timid nature, and embarrasses easily. Despite the fact that she is indeed a prostitute, Sonya could be described as innocent, loyal and self-sacrificial. She also shares the same feelings of shame and alienation as Roskolnikov and becomes the first person to whom he confesses his crime. She then supports him even though she was friends with one of the victims.
KEY WORDS: Prostitute, Shy, Loyal, Intelligent, Love interest of Raskolnikov. Who is your character and how would you describe them? My character is Sonya she is a young eighteen your old girl who had to go into prostitution at a young age to provide for her family. She is extremely religious; God is a huge part of her life. She is the best friend of Lizorta one of the women killed by Roskolnikov. She becomes very close to Roskolnikov as he is kind to her and gives her respect that she doesn’t have from other men. She ends up following him to Siberia and does not abandon him in his time of need. How are they finding working on this production of Crime and Punishment? This is the first professional production I have been in since leaving drama school. I’ve really enjoyed working with the cast and learning from other actors that have so much experience in this industry. I’ve also loved working with the text and getting to know and understand my character and the world of the play. What advice would you give anyone who would like to become an actor? I’d say try to go to the theatre as much as possible, read lots of plays and try to get as involved as possible in local drama groups and companies. Also applying to drama school can be a great way to get training in acting and learn more about the profession and the craft.
Ilya – played by JOHN PAUL HURLEY A police official and Fomich's assistant. Ilya is hot headed and rather ignorant and prone to sudden bouts of temper. So much so that he has the nick name “Gun powder”. Roskolnikov confesses to him towards the end of the play.
KEY WORDS: Policeman, Bad Tempered, Oblivious.
Who is your character and how would you describe them? I play Ilya who is Pirtory Petrovichs side kick in the police. We examine Rodya in a somewhat unconventional way. My character is described in the book as a ‘fire cracker’. He has a temper and is not afraid to use it. How are they finding working on this production of Crime and Punishment? It’s always nice and unusual to be in a big cast. It’s a real ensemble piece of work and everybody supports every movement of the performance. What advice would you give anyone who would like to become an actor? Think twice about it and think again and if you still want to go for it then go for it with all your might. You have to love it though and be prepared for the rough times. In truth you don’t need advice if you need to do this job.
Luzhin - played by JACK LORD Luzhin is a well-off lawyer who is engaged to Raskolnikov's sister Dunya in the beginning of the novel. He is self-absorbed and narrow minded. His reasons for wanting to marry Dunya are rather awful, as he states more or less that he chose her since she will be completely indebted to him financially. KEY WORDS: Lawyer, Immoral, Selfish. Who is your character and how would you describe them? Luzhin - he is the fiancé of Roskolnikov’s sister Dunya, his main function is to reflect Roskolnikov's political ideas back to him so he can see them for the pretentious nonsense they are. How are they finding working on this production of Crime and Punishment? Really enjoying rehearsals in Glasgow (reminds me of Liverpool actually) It’s a great city. Plus the cast are a fantastic bunch and despite the seriousness of the piece most days involve good hearty belly laughs. What advice would you give anyone who would like to become an actor? Not to go to any stage school but to have a varied fantastic life.
Razumikhin – played by OBIOMA UGOALA Raskolnikov’s friend. The name Razumikhin actually means “reason”. He used to be a student and the two met whilst at university. He is a gentle giant, with a positive attitude, no matter how tricky or challenging the situation becomes. He is intended to represent something of a reconciliation of the inescapable thematic conflict between faith and reason. Razumikhin is a genuinely good and likeable person. He falls in love with Raskolnikov’s sister, Dunya, and marries her.
KEY WORDS: Raskolnikov’s friend, Gentle, Intelligent, Positive. Who is your character and how would you describe them? Razumikhin is Radion's best friend, and carer and is madly in love with Dunya. If Radion is the problem character of the play Razumikhin is the example of how one should act. He is kind hearted, moderate and the reasonable antithesis to Radion's more unreasonable unsociable personality. How are they finding working on this production of Crime and Punishment? Working on a production for this length of time means you get to try and find things during the run. It’s also a great text and creative team and not every day, modern drama. Who wouldn’t want to immerse themselves in Russia for 3 months? What advice would you give anyone who would like to become an actor? There is no one thing that makes a ‘great actor’. Only one love for what you are doing and a respect for the people you’re working with. If you want to do it, believe you can and keep focussed and determined. See as much work as you can and challenge yourself with what you read, listen and watch both with screen and stage.
Lebezayatnikov – played by CHRIS DONALD
He lives in the same apartment house where the Marmeladov family lives. He considers himself a liberal.
KEY WORDS: Lives with Luzhin, Young, Liberal, Intellectual, Immature.
Who is your character and how would you describe them? I play Lebezayatnikov. He is a progressive thinker, an intellectual who is desperately in love with Sonya, who although she is a prostitute, seems to ignore his affections. He resent Raskolnikov because he is envious that he has Sonya’s attention. How are they finding working on this production of Crime and Punishment? I have been a huge fan of Russian literature/plays since I went to drama school. Chekov and Gorky are two of my favourite writers so it is a privilege to be working on a Dostoyevsky masterpiece. The cast are incredibly inspiring and I have loved just being in rehearsals, watching. Along with a fantastic director leading the charge. What advice would you give anyone who would like to become an actor? I would advise that if it is something you really want to do, then go to drama school. Learn the trade, don’t listen to anyone who tells you to ‘get a real job’. Work hard, develop as thick a skin as you possibly can. Take risks, be brave. If I listened to the sceptics, then I wouldn’t be in this production now. Truth is, there is no fixed way to prepare for the most inconsistent job I know of. All you can do is keep the faith.
Alyona/Darya/Pulkeria/Katarina – played by CATE HAMER KEY WORDS: Pawn broker, Murder Victim, Nasty, Selfish, Immoral.
Who is your character and how would you describe them? - I play four characters. Alony a- pawn broker, 60s, sharp, hostile eyes, small sharp nose, tiny, dried up, vile to her half-sister, chosen by Rodya to murder a “louse”, mean. Darya F- a madam in a prostitute house trying to elicit Sonya to join her. Pulkeria - Rodya's mother, a widow, religious, bourgeois, now very poor. Worships and depends on Rodya- anxious, bewildered- she doesn’t understand what is wrong with her son. Knows it is dreadful. Katarina- Wife/widow of Marmeladov who is befriended by Rodya, in seeing Kats distress, hopelessness, illness (she has TB) Rodya is momentarily relieved of his self-destruction. He helps the family financially and of course meets Sonya. How are they finding working on this production of Crime and Punishment? I love this approach, using all the actors all the time, inventing sound, movement, daring to be brave and throw everything at the script because its broad- on a large scale, the adaptation is concise so you can fill it with the background of the book. The cast are passionate, funny, entertaining- supportive- some highly experiences some early on in their careers. What advice would you give anyone who would like to become an actor? Study, practice, travel, read, make your own work, and don’t depend on others to employ you, never put life on hold for acting.
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Dominic has a wealth of experience in directing. Before arriving at Glasgow Citizens, he worked as Director and Artistic Director in a variety of contexts. Dominic was Artistic Director at the Traverse Theatre, Edinburgh for 3 years before joining the Citizens. Prior to the Traverse, he was Co-Artistic Director (with James Brining) at Dundee Rep Theatre, a post he held for 5 years from 2003. Before joining Dundee Rep, Dominic worked as a Freelance Director, Associate Director at Orange Tree Theatre, Richmond, Assistant Director at the RSC and Assistant Director at Perth Theatre. He has received many accolades for his critically-acclaimed productions including numerous CATS Awards (Critics Awards for Theatre in Scotland) for amongst others, The Dark Things (Best Production 2009/10); Peer Gynt (Best Director & Best Production 2007/08); and Scenes from an Execution (Best Director 2003/04). Below he talks a little more about his career, and directing Crime and Punishment.
Tell us more about your journey to becoming a director I wanted to be an actor when I was younger but decided I wasn’t very good. I started directing at university and I’m lucky enough to have been able to do it ever since. I started professionally at a small theatre in London – the Orange Tree – where I was assistant director. From there I went to Perth Theatre as assistant and gradually got more and more opportunities. In 2002 I moved to Dundee Rep and have been in Scotland ever since.
What is Crime and Punishment about and why did you want to direct it? I think it is about society, humanity and compassion. It is about the sanctity of life and the fact that murder cannot be justified on any grounds. It’s a great story about a subject that is just as relevant today as when it was first written. And that’s why I wanted to direct it.
In what ways is it relevant today? How does it speak to young people? [See above.] The themes are equally relevant today. It speaks to young people because it’s about young people. People who are trying to find their way through the world. Raskolnikov is only 23, but his ideas are twisted, and narrow. He doesn’t engage with the rest of society, he has no empathy or understanding. The play tells us that these are crucial things for everyone.
What are the challenges of directing this piece and how are you overcoming them? It is tricky to direct something with lots of locations and characters. Hopefully we are overcoming this by being as theatrical as possible. By being honest. By saying, overtly, here are a bunch of folk putting on a play – one moment they are playing one part, the next moment another.
What top tips would you give to any keen young directors? What skills are needed? Read lots of plays. See lots of theatre. You work out what skills you need by doing the job. But for me the simplest questions are the most useful – such as… What is a character trying to do/achieve? How is s/he trying to achieve it….?
Image: Sarah Amy Fishlock
Can you talk about a scene in the play which has been particularly interesting to direct? The murder scene has been lots of fun! We’ve used lots of sound and movement to try and make it exciting for an audience and to try and get inside Raskolnikov’s head and understand his fear and excitement.
Here you will gain an insight into the realisation of the vision and how this works in practice in the rehearsal room
Image: Sarah Amy Fishlock
“Taking a new step, uttering a new word, is what people fear most.�
The Stage Management team on a production has the responsibility of making sure everything runs smoothly.
Stage management teams usually consist of 3 members – Stage Manager (SM), Deputy Stage Manager (DSM) and Assistant Stage Manager (ASM). On larger productions, you may have more than one Assistant Stage Manager. The SM manages the budget, rehearsals, actors, technicians, props and costume fittings, as well as liaising with front of house staff and the director.
The DSM stays in rehearsals, makes notes of all decisions, and makes sure key messages get passed on. They also call all cues from the show during runs.
Typical tasks for the ASM involve stage sweeping, sitting in on rehearsals, propping, covering the book, being responsible for cues during shows, making sure the full company is present, assisting crew and actors and paperwork - the role of the ASM varies and can totally depend on the type of show you are working on.
‌ What are your main responsibilities? My main responsibilities lie within the rehearsal room. I ensure the cast and director have everything they need for smooth running rehearsals. This then transfers to the stage for a smooth running day.
What do you do in a typical day? I arrive around 30 minutes before rehearsals to set up the room. During the day I keep track of all the cast’s moves against the script (which we call the book). I make and distribute notes of things needed for the show (so the Stage Manager and Assistant Stage Manager can get them). I make sure everyone gets their allocated tea and lunch breaks. At the end of the day, I type and distribute notes and complete everyone’s time sheets. In what ways is your job interesting? I meet so many interesting and creative people. Whilst my job does have a routine, what fills the day is constantly changing and I am constantly learning.
What have you enjoyed about working on Crime & Punishment? The cast are an incredible group of people and an absolute joy to work with. Working with the team at Glasgow Citizens has been a great experience. I’ve also really enjoyed watching Nikola (composer) and the cast go through the process of creating the music and sound. It’s so fascinating, and a different process that I’m not used to. Image: Sarah Amy Fishlock
What tips would you give to anyone thinking of going into Stage Management? Help out with as many amateur productions as you can. Watch a variety of scales of performance, from small fringe venues to big commercial works. Stage Management requires a broad range of skills – organisation is vital, creativity, painting…DIY! It sounds daft but these are the skills I use most often. Contact local theatres, ask if you can shadow a performance backstage, ask if you can volunteer. Get involved! Apply to university courses to further your training. I did a degree in Stage Management. But you can do college courses such as HNC and HND. Above all be sure it’s what you want to do. The hours are long and anti-social, the pay is low but for me the rewards outweigh all of this.
The design for Crime and Punishment has received much attention in the press: “In Dominic Hill's production – stark in presentation, rich in detail – this is a journey shared by the whole community. The 10-strong cast lurk on stage, emulating the teeming streets of an impoverished St Petersburg... ...It's a society beset by a brutal want of cash, a theme underscored by Colin Richmond's set of mismatched chairs, bare walls and spring less couches. His poor-theatre aesthetic reminds you that the drinking, prostitution, tuberculosis, hunger, perhaps the murders themselves, all have their roots in poverty.” The Guardian “In designer Colin Richmond's superb, Brechtian design, the performance space is stripped back to its black walls, and the necessary props, furniture and instruments are arranged around the naked stage. The 10-strong cast function both as a motley assembly of city dwellers and an implacable choir. St Petersburg, for all its splendour, is barren and chaotic.” Daily Telegraph
The thought process behind the design We’ve gone for a very rough and striped back aesthetic on this design. We had first thought to completely design the show, not so much as in large scene changes, but at least set it in a Russian room like a gym hall or a public space and really go to town on the detail but the more we worked on it, the more we realized, it’s not about the scenery or the grand gestures, this is a play about a man’s conscience and actually the openness and public playing space were the only things we wanted to really cling onto. So we decided on no set and very raw materials such as the bare wood. We painted the walls of the theatre white and dirtied them. It was more exposing and there were fewer places to hide this way. The selected elements of furniture are items from various stores that represent the make –do furniture of a rehearsal room. There are some elements of period thrown in there but interspersed amongst it are little bits of modernity. It felt more freeing to do it this way and more inviting to the audience, rather than keeping them at a distance with something presentational as a design set wholly in period. It also highlights the poverty of these people. The rag bag world of Russia at that time. The complete desperation of Raskolnikov. The colours are muted, keeping it simple and subdued letting the potential for lighting ring out. We have various doors on wheels for change of perspective in the interior scenes, and a large butchers curtain which provides a bit of a epic moment quite early on, playing again with focus and perspective and especially Raskolnikovs point of view. The design is about him, about piecing a world around him, his conscious, and his demise.
Thoughts on costume We were edging towards a rehearsal room feel, a cross between what is the actors own and what they put on in rehearsals to feel the character, such as a skirt, a coat, a hat, old shoes etc. we initially selected three rails of clothes we would be happy to see on stage and let the actors chose, from then we had fittings to add and take away and work through each actors track and then it changed even more from then in the last week of rehearsal and into tech too when we see the whole picture come together. It was about being able to squint at a character and think they are in period costume but actually there’s a t-shirt and a pair of skinny jeans with a frock coat thrown over the top etc. It was about keeping it fresh and perhaps very undesigned looking, but in actuality it’s pretty well thought through and actually more work than setting it in period. You’re in some way creating a world of your own. The character of Sonya was a nice one. We found various pieces we liked and put them in Jessica’s ( Sonya's) section of the rail. An old tiered denim and lace skirt and a corset, and she paired it all with a lace top under the corset. We then found an old scabby pair of gold sequined shoes which worked for her prostitute. The idea was a mix between a period prostitute and a modern day eastern European one. The mix of fabrics, and shapes worked well in terms of what we were trying to achieve. Adam, who plays Raskolnikov, pulled an old coat out early in rehearsals and stuck to it, his costume completely
evolved from the rehearsal room and he wore it most days there. Wardrobe gave it a wash eventually! It was a nice process, but tricky, and one I’ve tried before, and as I say it involves more effort and more brain power to develop it fully. Also, we have 10 actors playing many characters in close succession, so the changes had to be swift and visually considerable to read.
What excited you about designing for this production? I had worked on The Three Musketeers with Dominic (Director) and Chris Hannan ( Writer) a few years back and it was the most mental experience. We also had Nikola (Composer) and Chris Davey (Lighting designer) on that one too. So the prospect of working with them all again really excited me. I’ve worked with Dominic many times now and we we get each others style. I trust his vision implicitly and we have a close working relationship. He’s a real grafter and his instincts for a piece are spot on. Chris Hannan’s writing is so beautiful, his imagery is heart breaking, and how he truncates these massive novels into beautiful epic pieces of theatre astonishes me. It’s also a co pro between three theatres I’ve worked at quite a bit now, and three theatres whose teams and work I totally respect. It’s like working with one big extended theatre family. Designing epic theatre is something I love as well, it’s not about scenery, it’s about getting to the heart of a character or a theme and running with that, not about the depth of the architrave or the paint finish on the fire place. There’s obviously a time and a place for those shows and I absolutely love them too but there’s also something so freeing about throwing all that convention aside and just getting to the gist of the script, giving it the bare bones to tell the story in the most powerful and impactful way you can .
This is a practical section that allows students to respond to the production in a creative way.
Image: Tommy Ga-Ken Wan
“Man has it all in his hands, and it all slips through his fingers from sheer cowardice.�
This section of work hopefully provides you with activities in which you can engage with others to explore the work of Dostoyevsky, to consider the process of creating and realizing the production and to involve students practically in the work. The work provided is for those who wish to engage directly with the novel and the devices employed, with drama techniques and strategies for rehearsal, and for consideration of a production element, set design.
Split personality in ‘Crime and Punishment’ The Novel and the Play allow us to consider how Dostoyevsky presents complex characters that demonstrate different and often contradictory values. In Raskolnikov’s case we have already mentioned earlier that the character represents Dostoyevsky’s personal journey but in fact the character demonstrates the conflicting impulses from the beginning of the novel Early on Raskolnikov protects the defenceless girl on the bench who's attracted the attention of a lecherous onlooker. "I saw myself how he was watching her and following her, only I hindered him, and now he's waiting until I go away. How can we keep him from her? How can we get her home?"
In trying to help her he gives money to a policeman who pockets the cash! His thoughts immediately change and he is scornful of his original concern. Why did I go meddling in all that! Who am I to help anyone? Do I have any right to help? Let them all gobble each other alive—what is it to me?"
Students can discuss as a class :
1)
whether such behaviour is realistic?
2)
Can they think of real life examples of such behaviour?
3)
Can they provide an explanation for why this contradictory behaviour takes place?
Students can then get in to groups and consider what other characters in the novel exhibit conflicting values.
Character possibilities: •
Porfiry Petrovich (rational/spiritual)
•
Dunya (highly principled/capable of compromise)
•
Katerina Ivanovna (self-pitying/self-sacrificing)
•
Sonya (saint/sinner; spiritually secure/personally insecure)
The groups can come back together and take turns reporting on their character, offering a sampling of quotes and interpretations that illuminate the divided personality they investigated. They should note areas of agreement and disagreement within their group, and invite the class to comment on the ideas presented. Consider why Dostoyevsky clearly uses this device in his novel. It is important to consider how this exercise has informed your and the students opinion on the Novel.
Consider the following questions Inspector Porfiry Petrovich's plays a cat-and-mouse game with his prime suspect, Rodion Romanovich Raskolnikov. Does this seem like an effective way of detecting the criminal? If you were the investigator, how would you deal with the murder suspect?
Image: Tommy Ga-Ken Wan
Suffering plays a significant part in the lives of Dostoevsky's characters. Consider in particular Katerina Ivanovna and Sonya and what they feel they gain by enduring their pain?
In rehearsal it is important to establish the relationships between characters and how we convey this to the audience. Consideration of status and working through the possibilities provide opportunities to deepen our understanding of the text and have some fun in doing so!
Convention has it that we think of Status as one’s place in society, usually determined by your job. Here we are more concerned with status in terms of the power or domination that one character exerts over others. So people thought of to be in conventional low status roles can play high status in terms of domination. A homeless person might be seen as low status in society but there can be opportunities when the tables are turned and this character has power over others. Rehearsals allow us to play with this status, interrogate the script and allow us to consider the intentions of the scene. The following exercises can be used when rehearsing a play but are equally useful for establishing characters and their relationships in devised work.
Students should initially discuss status with regard to the conventional framing of occupation. They could then individually or in small groups produce a high to low list of Jobs. The list usually introduces a number of interesting discussion points e.g. just because someone is a high earner does that give them high status e.g a footballer – does he act in the same way as other high status individuals? e.g a High Court Judge or a member of Royalty.
The students could then consider their lists in practical terms. Using the space each student would select a character and then walk across the space and place themselves on the floor. At this point we are only interested in non- verbal communication. Each student should watch and carefully observe each student and how they present their character. The students should then line up according to where they see their status in relation to the others in the group. Once they have done this they can reveal their character and check out whether the line up reflects the status correctly. Discussion can take place on how successful they were.
A similar exercise can be carried out by using a pack of cards. It is probably better at first to allocate cards to students, this ensures a range of status in the characters presented. They must not reveal their card, they then repeat the exercises above, assigning status according to the value of the card. Once the students are confident with this exercise it can be developed to the point where the full pack of cards can be used and students can learn to differentiate much more closely related cards e.g. 4,5,6.
SOME POINTERS TO TECHNIQUES FOR SHOWING STATUS Eye contact is important when playing status. The high status person holds direct and steady contact while the low status person frequently looks away, giving him a shifty-eyed appearance. When introducing this concept to a group, ask the players to pick a partner and practice maintaining eye contact, playing alternately high and low. Often there will be a clear preference for one or the other and a great difficulty in playing the less familiar status.
Reading body language is another way of determining status. To play low status, take up as little space as possible, make little gestures like pulling at your hair, rubbing your face, fixing yourself up and also make little, ineffectual noises. High status players take up maximum space and are relatively inactive.
Duologues: Provide situations in which two players are set up in a scene where they have very different situations according to occupational status e.g. business man and cleaner. Play out the scene according to the conventional status then ask the students to find a scenario in which the status has changed. Rehearse and watch the outcome. Discussion will allow for consideration of which scene was more effective in terms of story line and entertainment. Duologues development Two students play a scene and assign status to the characters. During the performance they gradually transfer status. Master and Servants To develop this for ensemble work you can choose one student to become Master and the others will be servants. The aim of the master is to keep the servants occupied with as many different jobs as possible. All tasks should be done immediately and simultaneously. The master keeps a continuous stream of instructions pouring out at the servants. Allow other students to be the master. The exercise can be discussed and the students asked about how they felt about their role, how easy was it to maintain, which was the more difficult to play, Master or servant.
We are indebted to Chris Hannan for the use of these extracts The context
Image: Sarah Amy Fishlock
This extract towards the end of the play Act 2 Scene 4, is where Raskolnikov has decided that he must admit his guilt and he chooses to tell Sonya, daughter of Marmeladov , someone he had met in a bar. Through the play he starts to realize that he is falling in love with her.
Have a look at this scene in terms of status. Try it with alternating the status. How does this impact on the nature of the scene. Which do you find more convincing? Does changing the status actually help in clarifying the nature of the scene ?
RASKOLNIKOV. I came here to confide in you. SONYA. What did you want to say? He wants to talk about the murder. He thinks about it; decides against. RASKOLNIKOV. I think I’m going out of my mind. Am I? SONYA. No. RASKOLNIKOV. Why am I asking you? You’re destroying yourself. And the worst of it is: the crime you’re committing: you’re destroying yourself for nothing. Isn’t that terrifying? You’re living in this moral squalor which you loathe and you know you’re not helping anyone, you’re not saving any one from anything! Of course you can’t admit that to yourself or you’d jump in the canal. SONYA (calmly). If I jumped in the canal, what would become of Katerina Ivanovna and the children? RASKOLNIKOV. So you think about it? SONYA. I think about the canal, yes. RASKOLNIKOV. I think about it every morning I wake up. SONYA. What stops you? RASKOLNIKOV. Nothing. It will happen one day. SONYA. I have this. She brings out her New Testament. RASKOLNIKOV. What’s that? SONYA. The gospel. RASKOLNIKOV. You take that to work? SONYA. What would I be without God? RASKOLNIKOV. Look what you are with God. Look what God’s done for you. SONYA. He does everything. RASKOLNIKOV. So you’re a religious maniac?
Image: Sarah Amy Fishlock
An earlier scene that lends itself to the creation of differing status in terms of physicality is the crowd scene in Act 1. It is important to establish the characters and their status from the outset that they enter the stage. The scene also requires doubling, in the sense that the priest and the doctor are members of the crowd. It is appropriate here to use short sections of your choice from the extract printed and consider the relationship of each member of the ensemble with each other and their relationship to Ivanovna. Try the scene with a variety of approaches to status. Also consider how the actors who play the doctor and the priest convey their character and the change from being a member of the crowd.
Scene Fifteen. Princess Chin Chin. The house where Marmeladov lives. Katerina Ivanovna has just finished singing. The arrival of a crowd bearing a man on a makeshift stretcher, made of a door. Semyon Marmeladov is being brought home by Raskolnikov and some bystanders who have interrupted their evening to come here – perhaps they were on their way to the theatre, or to visit a prostitute, top-hatted young men who are slumming it tonight. RASKOLNIKOV. Pardon me, madam. We are looking for KATERINA IVANOVNA. What's the meaning of walking in here like this, do you know who I am! I am Katerina Ivanovna Marmeladov; my father held a very senior rank in the civil service. RASKOLNIKOV. Katerina Ivanovna, I believe this is your husband. Semyon Zakharovich. KATERINA IVANOVNA. I'm not surprised. He’s always being carried home. Raskolnikov lifts the injured man onto a sofa. RASKOLNIKOV. I’m afraid he’s been run over by a carriage. KATERINA IVANOVNA. Everyone else has to bear the burden, never him. Raskolnikov has taken his coat off. After putting Marmeladov on the sofa, Raskolnikov’s white shirt is covered with blood. RASKOLNIKOV. Katerina Ivanovna, he’s going to die. KATERINA IVANOVNA (enraged). You think it’s a tragedy? You want me to make a scene? He's brought us nothing but misery. I'm wearing this slip because I'm washing my only dress. He robs his wife and four children so he can drink himself into oblivion. RASKOLNIKOV. Someone run for a doctor. One of the actors/bystanders turns into a doctor. A small precise man. He examines the patient thoroughly. KATERINA IVANOVNA. Unless you’re married to a drunkard you have no idea. You no doubt imagine the worst thing is the poverty. The worst thing is that he sometimes appears to be the same as anyone else. That’s the cruel part. That’s why
reason with him as if he’s a Coughing fit. human being, that’s why you believe him. He cries with remorse, he promises to stop drinking on his hands and knees. “I’m sorry I’m sorry I’m sorry.” You think he has feelings for you. Then he goes off and you don’t see him for five days, leaves the house a civil servant comes back a tramp. I don’t trust my eyes any more. DOCTOR. I’m amazed he’s conscious. His chest is gashed, crushed, fractured. Yellowish-black bruise right over his heart where the horse kicked him. RASKOLNIKOV. Somehow or other he got caught up in the wheel. It went over his chest three or four times before the cab-driver stopped. Is there nothing you can do? DOCTOR. I could bleed him. It would serve no purpose but we could do it for show. KATERINA IVANOVNA. Do it for show. That would be in keeping. The man's an actor. Everything he does is false. Go on, give him a death-bed scene. Where’s the priest? One of the actors/bystanders turns into a priest and brings the sacraments. RASKOLNIKOV. Bring me some water. Katerina Ivanovna goes to get an earthenware basin. She has to make her way through the bystanders. KATERINA IVANOVNA. A man’s dying and they’re smoking. No no, keep your hats on, hold hands with your sweetheart, smoke as much as you Coughing fit. much as you want. You all look like you'd rather be somewhere else. You're striking the wrong chord. On you go, I don't need you.
All the scenery, furniture and props the audience sees at a production of a play make up the set design. The set designer's job is to design these physical surroundings in which the action will take place. The overall look of the set also gives the audience information about the director's concept of the production. The set should: •
suggest the style and tone of the whole production
•
create mood and atmosphere
•
give clues as to the specific time and place of the action
•
offer creative possibilities for the movement and grouping of the actors
We are going to consider Raskolnikov’s room. First it would be useful for the students to work with something more familiar: 1)
students are invited to design their own room. They can consider the following:
• dimensions and shape •the furnishings - furniture, curtains, fabrics, materials •the colours and textures - the items, possessions that make it your room
Draw a rough diagram indicating how it would all be set out as a plan or visualisation. Does the room represent ‘you’ - would someone looking at it be able to get a clear picture of who you are?
Next stage Consider taking the design and preparing a set design of your room for a stage. Students can produce a plan of the stage and a model. You can make the design element more realistic by providing an appropriate brief by a Director and the style/Genre of the play. You can ask the students to consider how the design would be impacted by different stage configurations and provide alternative plans. Having established the role and method of working the students can turn their attention to the play.
Having established the role and method of working the students can turn their attention to the play.
Read the description of Raskolnikov’s room provided in the novel by Dostoyevsky [He] gazed round his little room with loathing. It was a tiny little cubby-hole of a place, no more than six paces long, and so low that anybody of even a little more than average height felt uncomfortable in it, fearful that at any moment he might bump his head against the ceiling. The yellowish dusty wall-paper peeling off the walls gave it a wretchedly shabby appearance, and the furniture was in keeping; there were three rickety chairs and a stained deal table in a corner, holding a few books and papers so covered with dust that it was plain that they had not been touched for a long time; and lastly there was a large and clumsy sofa, taking up almost the whole of one wall and half the width of the room, and with a print cover now old and worn into holes. This served Raskolnikov as a bed. He often slept on it just as he was, without undressing, without sheets, covered with his old worn-out student's overcoat, his head resting on a little cushion with his whole stock of linen, clean and dirty, bundled together under it for a bolster. Before this sofa stood a small table.
Students can respond as individuals or as a group and produce a plan and model of their interpretation of the set. They could be provided with a brief and reference to the style of the play.
The work can easily be developed by having the students consider how they might incorporate the other scenes that take place within the play. While much of it centres on this room it also has moments in a park, the pawnbrokers shop, a cemetery, a police station‌.. how can the director and the designer convey and cope with this?
Links: Our Partners: The Citizens Theatre, Glasgow http://www.citz.co.uk/ The Lyceum, Edingburgh http://www.lyceum.org.uk Photos: Most of the photos are the work of Sarah Amy Fishlock and Tommy Ga-Ken Wan. Thanks to them, their photos can be seen at: Rehearsal photos http://www.flickr.com/photos/citizenstheatre/sets/72157635133937153/ - Sarah Amy Fishlock
Publicity photos with Adam Best as Raskolnikov and George Costigan as Porfiry Petrovich: http://www.flickr.com/ photos/citizenstheatre/sets/72157635135937369/ - Tommy Ga-Ken Wan.
Video trailer: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SdM8QzknKhM
There have also been a couple of press articles that might be interesting interviews to feature, particularly the one with Chris Hannan which was more in depth:
Herald interview with Chris Hannan: http://www.heraldscotland.com/arts-ents/stage/crime-and-punishment-or-thecrime-thriller-and-whodunnit-which-meets-karl-marx-and-j.1377782180
Sunday Herald interview with Adam Best: http://www.heraldscotland.com/arts-ents/stage/the-novelapproach.21943822 Chris Hannan also wrote a useful intro to the playtext that Citizens theatre turned into a blog entry: http:// citizenstheatre.blogspot.co.uk/2013/08/writer-chris-hannan-on-dostoyevsky.html
Credits: The pack was written by Emma Whitley and Allan Williams – Education Department, Liverpool Everyman and Playhouse. The pack was compiled and published by Andrew King, Communications Team, Liverpool Everyman and Playhouse Thanks to - Alison Mackinnon – Head of Marketing and Communications, Citizens Theatre, Glasgow for briefing material and friendly assistance in assembling the information. Thanks also to the playwright, Chris Hannan, for allowing the publication of extracts from the script.
If you found this pack useful or have any questions relating to the content please email Allan Williams a.williams@everymanplayhouse.com