This adaptation of The Gambler by Chiten Theatre is an interesting idea but unfortunately is an exhausting experience for its audience.
Dostoevsky’s short novel is all about a cast of characters sucked in by the thrill and appeal of gambling and the pursuit of inheritance. Whether it is the central character Alexei (Takahide Akimoto) betting to win his love Polina or the grandmother winning and losing money at the roulette table, everyone seems to succumb to it. This adaptation pairs an absurdist, physical style with large chunks of Dostoyevsky’s complicated text (translated into Japanese).
It’s a bold proposition, but sadly it’s one that gets quite lost amid the sheer intensity of the production, which leaves the audience inundated. From the very first, the actors’ energy is through the roof. Voices are raised and we move at a rapid speed. Dialogue is also largely directed at the audience, so throughout the play we receive a constant barrage of energy. On top of this, there is a near constant, complex underscoring by a live, experimental rock trio, kukangendai. If this wasn’t enough, the cast also repeatedly hammer hard balls in their hands onto the table, and key betting scenes (there are many) receive further underscoring. Bunsho Nishikawa’s sound design does not give us a break either.
Any one of these elements in their own right might have been an interesting proposition and are all highly crafted. Taken together, they become hard to keep track of, and the subtleties and nuances of the text are the first thing to go. We are never really given a moment to slow down, and let anything sink in, and it feels like director Motoi Miura might have done more to vary the pacing and experience for the audience.
This energy is certainly not all in vain, and some of the physical work from the cast is quite remarkable. All of them employ a series of repeated gestures that distill the nature of their characters, not dissimilarly to how Akira Kurosawa directed many of his actors for the screen. These are interesting vignettes, and useful anchor points amid the chaos. Another physical highlight comes when The Grandmother (Satoko Abe) wins a vast amount of money at the roulette table. Abe sinks almost impossibly far back into her chair and remains there motionless, seemingly dead, for some time.
Other elements are interesting but don’t really find their mark. Itaru Sugiyama’s set is a vast roulette table with a high table at its centre, which Alexei (the main narrator in the novel) spins around in various moments. It’s an interesting design but again becomes another element in an already overcrowded production.
Coming to the Coronet is always a pleasure because of their bold, international programming, but on this occasion, it feels like much has been lost in translation. The cast and creatives deserve credit for the considerable effort that clearly went into the production, but the end result is overwhelming, rather than engrossing.
Playing until 15th February 2026, https://www.thecoronettheatre.com/
Reviewer: Ralph Jeffreys
Reviewed: 5th February 2026
North West End UK Rating: