Review: The Gambler, Coronet Theatre

Fyodor Dostoevsky wrote The Gambler as a short story in 1866. Set in a German casino, it tells the story of a young tutor, Alexei, and his relationship with the Russian family he works for. The author’s completion of it was motivated by a bet, an act which itself embodies the tale’s themes of gambling to survive. 

Kyoto company Chiten Theatre‘s adaptation uses a ‘collage’ method to reimagine the story and enact the creative world of the playwright. The original text is fragmented and stripped down to short passages as it is performed in looping segments, with live music augmenting the sound of the spoken words. Alongside this disruption, the performance is in Japanese with English surtitles screened at points around the stage. The whole is challenging, particularly in translation for a UK audience.

There are certainly some interesting theatrical ideas here, used to portray Dostoevsky’s key themes, including probability, desire and desperation. Itaru Sugiyama’s bold set design sees a floor painted as a huge roulette wheel, where we encounter multiple international characters seated at a long, revolving table. The aristocrats are pushed around by Alexei, who is increasingly visibly exhausted. It’s a dynamic – if a somewhat literal – depiction of class struggle and of the relentless strain of Alexei’s self-propelled demise into gambling addiction.

The novel’s characters have become rather two-dimensional figures who rarely move far from the table and stare powerfully into the audience, as if inviting complicity. They occasionally skip around, changing seats or moving to offset microphones to deliver asides, but it’s largely a static, repetitive visual offering. It’s also a noisy one, as they repeatedly and loudly knock the table with snooker balls while shouting, marking the betting. There’s some excitement with a playful performance from the grandmother, determined to risk all her wealth and showering the stage with coins, but this is isolated entertainment.

For an English-speaking audience, there is immediately a sense of alienation as the physical performance is separated from the dialogue by the surtitles. It’s tricky to watch and read simultaneously, but that’s made more difficult when the text doesn’t distinguish distinctly between characters, has typos and occasionally slips back and forth between slides (which may be a deliberate choice, I’m unsure). The translation process becomes slippery, especially set against a story told in abrupt fragments. Eventually, the surtitles become more of a distraction than an integral part of the narrative. 

The performance is underscored by kukangendai’s visceral rock score, which is effective in creating atmosphere and energy. Sections where it blends with a classical music track suggest fused moments in time and an uncertain temporal overlapping that gives depth to the depiction and links beautifully to the original form of the story. Ultimately, though, the music becomes overly familiar and routine, and as such doesn’t escalate the drama significantly.

Uncertainty came further into focus towards the end of this performance when, on two occasions, the audience started applauding, believing it was finished, only for the show to continue. Perhaps this too was intentional, but rather than feeling edgy or impressive, it just felt uncomfortable. What The Gambler largely seems to lack from Dostoevsky’s creative palette, however, is a nuanced portrayal of flawed human emotion, with the focus on clever technical interpretation being prioritised over the lives at the centre of the story. There’s undoubtedly a great deal of potential in the meticulous elements of this production, including cultural fusion, dramatic invention and dynamic performance. It’s perhaps just missing that heart.

Producer: Yuna Tajima 
Text: Fyodor Dostoevsky
Translation: Ikuo Kameyama
Direction: Motoi Miura
Music: kukangendai
Set design: Itaru Sugiyama
Costume design: Colette Huchard
Lighting design: Yasuhiro Fujiwara
Sound design: Bunsho Nishikawa
Stage manager: Atsushi Ogi

The Gambler runs at The Coronet Theatre until Saturday 14 February