The review – The rage of Karamazov’s mind
The theatrical adaptation of Dostoevsky’s novel The Brothers Karamazov piqued a pure spectator’s curiosity in me while reading the programme. I was interested in how the production team copes with the structure of the original, which has several extensive storylines that intertwine and influence each other. At the same time, I was curious about the “strength” of the main topic, which, according to the annotation, was to be the absence of authority and the impossibility of self-control. This issue resonates strongly in me at the moment, especially at this difficult time, when we are overwhelmed by government regulations and after reading the ever-emerging conspiracy theories, we are often unsure of our sound judgment, fighting self-denial and losing certainty about which people and institutions to really trust.
A significant contrast with which the creators got my attention from the beginning was the alternation of action and cutting. Expressiveness in the actor’s speech at a maximum point was always cut off (out of the blue) almost by a film-style cut, thus creating a form of theatrical montage, certainly interesting for the viewer. This whole structure was further strengthened by the ensemble’s acting potential. And even though each of the characters was quite specific in personality and I couldn’t fully identify with any of them, my interest in them still grew during the performance and lasted until the end.
What I appreciated very positively as a spectator was the length of stage time and the tempo rhythm of the production. Most Russian works drag on the stage nihilistically, making the themes banal for the viewer. The Karamazovs set a sharp but precise pace at which the spectator did not get lost and the continuous action on the stage did not make one sleep, but on the contrary kept one in constant tension.
What did not leave me indifferent, however, was the stage design component and the overall solution of the space, which still give me contradictory feelings. Was it supposed to be a theatre set warehouse that was currently empty? Or a desolate industrial space? My question is: Why? How does this correspond to the overall structure and idea of the production? In contrast to the rages of all the characters performing, I would expect a rather pure minimalist scene or space in which the theme of a morally decaying family is visually reflected. However, despite this discrepancy, I rate the performance positively and I can unscrupulously say that it is one of the best adaptations of a Russian work that I have seen in theatre in recent years.
Kristýna Blahynka (JAMU)