CRIME AND PUNISHMENT
UP NEXT: PHOENIX ENSEMBLE THEATER, Oct. 2023
London Press Quotes -- 5 Stars!!
"A richly dark, elegant adaptation of Crime and Punishment." -- West End Wilma ★★★★★
"Crime and Punishment is an utterly affecting and enthrallingly entertaining piece of theatre." The Upcoming ★★★★★
"The evening grips from start to finish." -- Revewisgate ★★★★
"Held the audience spellbound throughout." --Lastminute Theatre Tickets ★★★★
"This is a thrilling production!" -- My Stage is the World ★★★★
"Arrows & Traps Crime and Punishment revitalises a classic which draws you in and keeps you on the edge of your seat." -- London Pub Theatres ★★★★
"Taut and atmospheric..." --Hatty Daze
"There can be no denying its punch! --British Theatre Guide
Videos
Awards:
• Winner! 2003 Joseph Jefferson Award, Chicago, IL, “Best New Adaptation”
• Top Pick! 2006 Orlando Shakespeare Festival’s Playfest
• Winner! 2007 Seattle Times “Fab Fringe” Footlight Award, “Best Adaptation”
• Winner! 2009 L.A. Backstage Garland Award, “Best Adaptation”
• Nomination! 2009 LA Drama Critics Circle Award, “Best Adaptation”
• Winner! voted one of the “Top Pittsburgh cultural events of 2009” by TribLive
• Winner! 2010 Westword Best of Denver Award, “Best New Adaptation”
National/International Press Quotes:
“Crime and Punishment,” in a feat that rivals the construction of the Hoover Dam, has been distilled into a taut 90-minute play by Marilyn Campbell and Curt Columbus. Just three actors tell the tale and may have you confessing to some murders yourself by the play’s end." -- The New York Times, Neill Genzlinger, 2007
“The blistering, ferocious intensity of Marilyn Campbell and Curt Columbus’ award-winning, 3 actor adaptation of Fyodor Dostoevsky’s “Crime and Punishment” plays with the dramatic force of a literary smack-down!” -- Monterey Herald, CA
"Unlike many of the fractured and sensatinalized images of violence we see everyday in our news, this play brought me so much closer to a dialogue about humanity and Justice." ----Planet Javkson Hole
“Crime and Punishment is rare, the way perfect diamonds are rare. Campbell and Columbus have done the impossible, rendering the ungainly novel in 95 minutes with such surgical skill that nothing important is omitted.” -- Kelly Kleinman, WBEZ-Chicago
“… a work of theater that never feels like a condensation of a seminal 500-page novel, but rather, has the swift, sharp impact of a blow from an ax.” --– Hedy Weiss, Chicago Sun-Times
“Using language that has nothing of the dusty 19th century about it, Campbell and Columbus have whittled this mammoth novel down to its core … When theater is pared down to the bone, nothing gets in the way of the words!” – Elizabeth Maupin, Orlando Sentinal
“When I first read this adaptation, I had that extraordinary sensation of experiencing the classic and the contemporary co-existing in one work. It is the work of playwrights like Campbell and Columbus that keeps American theatre artistically vital and connected to our world.” – Terrence J. Nolen, Producing Artistic Director, Arden Theater
“Audiences sometimes prefer their theater and literary adaptations in bite-size portions and the adaptors have shrink-wrapped the 700-page novel into a 90-minute, zero-percent-body-fat drama that is swift and devastating.” – The Washington Times
“The temperature of this 90-minute, lean-yet-muscular version of “Crime and Punishment,” is scorching!” --Seattle Times
“I have been attending shows at Actors Theater of Louisville for 25 years and have rarely missed a show (including Humana plays in the past 8). “Crime and Punishment” is easily one of the best things I’ve ever seen at ATL. Kudos to all involved for making this such a wonderful theatrical experience.” -- David Goodlett
“Being urged to see “Crime and Punishment” may feel like being urged to eat your vegetables: good for you, yet a chore. But this adaptation … remind(s) us how thrilling a classic can be. On opening night you could feel the audience holding its breath throughout the performance. Go: it will leave you breathless, too!” – AISLEsay review
“Crime and Punishment isn’t epic anymore; it’s essential. The play is direct and haunting, relevant and true …. And best of all, because it so fairly depicts the complex ideas discussed by Dostoevsky, it makes the audience want to rush out and buy a copy of this fantastic novel.” – Kϋl review by Aaron Riccio
“Marilyn Campbell and Curt Columbus’ brilliant script … distills Dostoevsky’s language into pure poetry…. Crime and Punishment is riveting and not easily forgotten.” – CurtainUp review by Paulanne Simmons
“It’s a startling feat of theatrics…. The thrilling dimension of this entertaining script is how the writers get inside his head, … experience the off-balance workings of his mind and enable us to feel his horror as he realizes the magnitude of his crime.” – CityBeat review by Rick Pender
Dear Friends,
I am so pleased to welcome you this evening to Trinity Rep's production of Dostoyevsky's Crime and Punishment. This piece has a special meaning for me, on so many levels. It was my first collaoration with the brilliant actor/writer Marilyn Campbell; It was my first time working on adapting Dostoyevsky for the stage; and it turned out to be my first widely-produced work as a writer. So widely produced, that our friends at The Gamm Theater staged this play almost eight years ago when I was interviewing to become artistic director at Trinity Rep. It may have been one of the reasons I got the job here. So you see, it is a special piece of theater to me. -- Curt Columbus, Artistic Director, Trinity Rep, Providence, RI, 2013
Production History 2003-2023
For more Information Contact: Dramatic Publishing.com
CRIME AND PUNISHMENT
adapted by Marilyn Campbell-Lowe & Curt Columbus
2023
Phoenix Ensemble Theatre, Phoenix, AZ
Latinovits Theatre
Budapest, Hungary
Performed in Hungarian
2022
ELER Theatre, Athens Greece, Olias Lazaridou, dir., (30 performances and City-wide tour). First translation. Greek publication pending.
“I am very happy that we managed under such trying circumstances to put on this noteworthy play. I think that if your translation is published in Greek, it will do very well. I would like to find out if you might consider giving us the rights to take this on and under what conditions.”
2020 – 2021 (COVID)
White Bear Theatre, London, England, Jan-Feb [CANCELLED]
(Cockpit Theatre)
Prague Shakespeare Company, Prague, CZ, [ON HOLD]
Copper Village Arts Center Open Theatre Project, Anaconda, Montana
2019
Penfold Theatre Company, Austin, TX, Feb.
Prague Shakespeare Company, Prague, Czech Republic, Dates TBA (performed in English & Czech
2018
NEO Theatre Experience, Miami, OK, March 8-11
University of Oxford, Corpus Christ Owlets, October
“The subject matter of this distillation of Crime and Punishment may be chilling, even harrowing. But its lesson
that humanity can triumph over delusions of power is a timeless and heartening one. Those lucky folk in
possession of a ticket for Corpus Christ Owlets' production can prepare themselves for a sophisticated
and enthralling treat.”
2017
Savage Rose Classical Theater Company, Louisville, KY, January
Brockley Jack Studio Theatre, London, UK, Feb. 7 - Feb. 28
“The final, unanswered, question of absolution is likely to follow the audience back out into the homely taproom,
and to echo in their thoughts long after they leave it. Crime and Punishment is an utterly affecting and enthrallingly
entertaining piece of theatre.”
Northwestern Theatre School, March
2016
The Theatre School of DePaul University, Chicago, IL, April 18-24
2015
Salem Theater, Salem, MA, Main Stage, Season 12, January 22 – February 14
San Antonio Playhouse, Texas, March 13 – April 5, Guest Speaker & Master Class w/Curt Columbus,
Funded by the Dramatist Guild of America
2014
Mary Aarchie Theater, Chicago, IL, Feb. 4 - March 16, Dir. Richard Cotovsky (Artistic Dir.)
Gore Bay Theatre, Gore Bay, Ontario, Canada, March 7 - 13
4th Street Theater, Chesterton, IN, June 6 - 22, Dir. Sandra Assarian & Linda Pauli
2013
Trinity Rep, Providence, RI, Dir. Brian Mertes, Jan. 17 - Feb. 24
“This production soars with passion and mutability. It constantly moves and shifts not only between locations, but characters with smoothness and vigor. It is intelligent and passionate. It sizzles and soars into gripping theater.” -- Richard Pacheco
Off Square Theater Co., Jackson, WY, Dir. John Hanlon, May 9 - May 18
“Unlike many of the fractured and sensationalized images of violence we see everyday in our news, this play brought me so much closer to a dialogue about humanity and justice.”--Planet Jackson Hole
Lewes Theater Club, East Sussex UK, Oct. 12 - 19
San Jose Repertory Theatre, San Jose, CA, Dir. Karen Piemme, Oct. 7 - Nov. 1 (San Jose Rep on Tour will tour to middle schools and high schools)
2012
9th Hour Theatre Company, Chesterville, Ontario, March 22-31
Ensemble Theatre Company, Santa Barbara, CA, Oct. 4-21
Marilyn Campbell and Curt Columbus's pared-down adaptation of the Dostoyevsky classic has seen many productions these past eight years for good reason! --The Santa Barbara Independent
Classic Stage Company (Staged Reading), New York, NY, Nov. 12
Starring, F. Murray Abraham, Michael Stulberg, directed by Anna Brenner
2011
No Strings Theatre Company and Black Box Theatre, Albuquerque, NM, Jan. 2 - Feb. 6
Boulder Ensemble Theater, Boulder, CO, Feb. 17 - Mar. 5
Winner! “Westword Best of Denver Award,” Best New Adaptation
Center Stage, Baltimore, MD, Apr. 13 - May 15, dir. Jason Loweth
American Players Theater, Spring Green, WI, June 21 - October 16, dir. Kenneth Albers
“Crime and Punishment is rare, the way perfect diamonds are rare. Campbell and Columbus have done the impossible, rendering the ungainly novel in 95 minutes with such surgical skill that nothing important is omitted.” -- Kelly Kleinman, WBEZ-Chicago
Chester Theater Company, Chester, MA, July 20 - July 31, 2011, dir. Sheila Siragusa
“The brilliant, suffocating heat outside could not disturb the penetrating concentration of a rapt audience … Clearly a wonder is this 90-minute adaptation!” -- Donna Bailey-Thompson, The Arts ETC
Actors Studio, Auckland, New Zealand, Mark Huston, director
2010
Actors Theater of Louisville, Louisville, KY, Directed by Sean Daniels, Jan. 5-31
“I have been attending shows at ATL for 25 years and have rarely missed a show (including Humana plays) in the past 8 years. “Crime and Punishment” is easily one of the best things I’ve ever seen at ATL. Kudos to all involved for making this such a wonderful theatrical experience.” -- David Goodlett (audience member, ATL Facebook page)
Antelope Valley Thespians, Lancaster, CA, Jan. 16 - 24
KOLT Run Creations, Sacramento, CA, Directed by Lisa Thew, Jan. 15 - Feb. 13
Winners-Drama! SARTA 2010 ELLY Awards:
Winner! Best Supporting Actor, Patrick Murphy
Winner! Best Supporting Actress, Kelley Ogden
Nominations: Best Lighting Design, Best Set Design,
Best Production, Best Director, Best Actor
The Repertory Theater of St. Louis, St. Louis, Missouri, Directed by Stuart Carden, March 10-28
Winner! 2010 Kevin Kline Awards:
Outstanding Lighting Design - Brian Sidney Bembridge
Outstanding Set Design - Gianni Downs
Winner! 2010 Judy Award: Most Ambitious Production
Pacific Repertory Theater, Circle Theatre, Carmel, CA, April 1 - May 2
“The blistering, ferocious intensity of Marilyn Campbell and Curt Columbus’ award-winning, 3 actor adaptation of Fyodor Dostoevsky’s “Crime and Punishment” plays with the dramatic force of a literary smack-down.” -- Monterey Herald, CA
All For One Productions, Fort Wayne, IN, April 23-25 & April 30, May 1-2
Hawaii Repertory Theater, Honolulu, HI, October 8-17
Stone Town Theatre Works, Bellingham, WA, Oct. 15-24
Kentucky Rep, Horse Cave, KY, Nov. 5-21, dir. Robert Brock, Artistic Dir.
2009
Berkeley Repertory, Berkeley, CA, Directed by Sharon Ott, Feb. 27 - March 29, Thrust Stage
Nominations (Bay Area Critics Circle Awards):
Best Ensemble; Best Supporting Actress (Delia MacDougall)
Cleveland Play House, Cleveland, OH, Directed by Anders Cato, Feb. 27 - March 22, Drury Theatre
Indiana Repertory Theatre, Indianapolis, IN, Directed by John Green (Butler University Theatre Chair), Feb. 10 - March 8, Upperstage
Intiman Theater, Seattle, WA, Directed by Shiela Daniels, March 27 - April 25
Jungle Theater, Minneapolis, MN, March 27 - May 3, Joel Sass directing
Heartspace Theatre, Adelaid Festival, Adelaid, Austraila
Pittsburgh Irish & Classical Theatre, Pittsburgh, PA, Sept. 10 - 26, Henry Heymann Theatre
Winner! Voted one of the “Top Pittsburgh cultural events of 2009” by TribLive
A Noise Within, Glendale, CA, Directed by Craig Belknap, Oct. 10 - Dec. 17
Winner! 2010 Garland Award, Michael A. Newcomer, Outstanding Performance
2008
Cincinnati Playhouse in the Park, Cincinnati, OH, Directed by Michael Evan Haney, Feb. 2 - March 2
Winners! 2008 Cincinnati Acclaim Awards
Winner! Best Actor, Nick Cordileone
Winner! Best Supporting Actor, John Campion
Milwaukee Chamber Theater, Milwaukee, Wisconsin, Directed by Patrick Holland, Feb. 14 - March 9
Actors Co-op, Crossley Theaters, Hollywood, CA, directed by Ken Sawyer, Feb. 29 - April 13
Winner! Ovation Award: Jeremy Pivnick (Lighting Design)
Winner! Garland Award, Backstage, Best New Adaptation
Nomination: LA Drama Critics Circle Award: Best New Adaptation
Nominations: LA Weekly, Best Actor, Best Supporting Actor, Production Design
2007
Orlando Shakespeare Festival, Orlando, FL, Directed by Artistic Director, Jim Helsinger, Feb. 7 - March 18
Round House Theatre, Silver Springs, MD, Directed by Artistic Director, Blake Robison, April 4 - April 29
“Round House Theatre realizes that audiences sometimes prefer their theater and literary adaptations in bite-size portions and the adaptors have shrink-wrapped the 700-page novel into a 90-minute, zero-percent-body-fat drama that is swift and devastating.”
Winner! Helen Hayes Award -- Outstanding Set Design, Robin Stapley
Northside Theatre Company, San Jose, CA, Directed by Richard T. Orlando, April 25 - May 14
Winner! Silicon Valley Theatre Award -- Outstanding Set Design, Richard T. Orlando
Theatre Underground (Capital Hills Arts Center), Seattle, WA, Directed by Sheila Daniels, June 1 - Oct. 14
“The temperature of this 90-minute, lean-yet-muscular version of “Crime and Punishment,” is scorching!” --Seattle Times
Winner! 2007 Seattle Times “Fab Fringe” Footlight Award
59E59 Street Theater, New York, NY, Directed by Michael Halberstam, Nov. 7 - Dec. 2
“Crime and Punishment,” in a feat that rivals the construction of the Hoover Dam, has been distilled into a taut 90-minute play and will banish any bad memories you might have of trying to struggle through Dostoyevsky’s book.” – Neil Genzlinger, New York Times
Record Breaker! “most seats ever sold!”
2006
Winner, “Top Pick” Orlando Shakespeare Festival’s Playfest
“Using language that has nothing of the dusty 19th century about it, Campbell and Columbus have whittled this mammoth novel down to its core … When theater is pared down to the bone, nothing gets in the way of the words!” – Elizabeth Maupin, Orlando Sentinal
Arden Theater, Philadelphia, PA, Directed by Aaron Posner, Oct.12 - Dec. 3, Arcadia Stage
“When I first read this adaptation, I had that extraordinary sensation of experiencing the classic and the contemporary co-existing in one work. It is the work of playwrights like Campbell and Columbus that keeps American theatre artistically vital and connected to our world.” – Terrence J. Nolen, Producing Artistic Director
2005
Gamm Theater, Pawtucket, R.I., Raskolnikov performed by Artistic Director Tony Estrella, directed by Peter Sampiari
“If a novel of nearly 600 pages can be boiled down and end up concentrated rather than trivialized, this is the one.” – Bill Rodriguez, The Providence Phoenix
2004
Published, TriQuarterly Magazine, Northwestern University Press (“The preeminent journal for literary fiction in America.")
Published, Dramatic Publishing, Woodstock, IL [www.dramaticpublishing.com]
Jean Cocteau Theater (Staged Reading), New York, NY
2003
Writers Theatre, Glencoe, IL, commissioned and directed by Artistic Director Michael Halberstam
“… a work of theater that never feels like a condensation of a seminal 500-page novel, but rather, has the swift, sharp impact of a blow from an ax.” – Hedy Weiss, Chicago Sun-Times
Winner, Joseph Jefferson Award, Chicago, IL, “Best New Adaptation”
AMATEUR PRODUCTIONS
DeMatha Catholic High School, Hyattsville, MD, 2013
Clear Creek ISD High School, League City, TX, 2012
Iona College, New Rochelle, NY, 2012
El Paso Texas High School, El Paso, Texas, 2011
Homewood High School, Homewood, Alabama, 2011
University of Chicago Theatre Department, 2011
Princeton University, Theatre Intime, Princeton, NJ, 2009
Liverpool University Drama Society, Liverpool, ME, 2008
Theater Works, Peoria, AZ, 2008
Postage Stamp Productions, Winnipeg MB, 2007
Austin High School, Austin, TX, 2006
Wallenpaupack Area S.D. High School, 2006
First Baptist Church, Portland, OR, 2005
EDUCATIONAL
Guest Speaker & Master Class w/Curt Columbus, San Antonio Playhouse, Texas, March 13 – April 5, 2015.
Panel Discussion: “Crime and Punishment: Three Perspectives,” Sept. 20, 2010, Pittsburgh, PA, panelists include, Matt Gray, Assistant Professor of Acting at Carnegie Mellon University, and director of Crime & Punishment; Vladimir Padunov, Associate Professor in the Department of Slavic Languages and Literatures at the University of Pittsburgh; and Dr. Robert Wettstein, Clinical Professor of Psychiatry at the University of Pittsburgh. Panelists will share thoughts on some of the questions raised in the play from their unique perspectives.
The 321: Theatrical Design Course in Sound 2010, Westminster College, New Wilmington, PA: Create a sound-scape for a character or moment in the world of Campbell & Columbus’ Crime and Punishment.
Open Workshop, March 2011, conducted by Artist in Residence Conall Morrison, Pavillion Theater, Dublin, Ireland. Dostoyevsky's masterwork re-imagined for three actors in a 90 minute script by Marilyn Campbell and Curt Columbus. Does it do justice to the original? Is it a completely new piece? Does it matter?