ADVERTISEMENT
Monday, July 7, 2025
SUBSCRIBE
The Ballet Herald®
  • BALLET MAGAZINE
    • Ballet, Contemporary, and Modern Dance Performance Reviews
    • Interviews with Ballet Professionals
    • The Latest Ballet News
    • Feature Ballet Stories
    • Ballet Schools & Training
    • On This Day in Ballet History
    • Opinions
    • Ballet Meets the Mainstream
  • BALLET COMPANIES
    • Ballet Companies in Asia
      • Hong Kong Ballet
      • National Ballet of China
      • National Ballet of Japan
      • Singapore Ballet
    • Ballet Companies in Europe
      • Bavarian State Ballet
      • Birmingham Royal Ballet
      • Compañía Nacional de Danza
      • Dutch National Ballet
      • English National Ballet
      • Finnish National Ballet
      • Hamburg Ballet
      • Hungarian National Ballet
      • La Scala Theatre Ballet
      • Les Ballets de Monte-Carlo
      • London City Ballet
      • Mariinsky Ballet
      • Mikhailovsky Ballet
      • National Ballet of Ukraine
      • Northern Ballet
      • Norwegian National Ballet
      • Paris Opera Ballet
      • Polish National Ballet
      • Royal Ballet of Flanders
      • Royal Danish Ballet
      • Royal Swedish Ballet
      • Scottish Ballet
      • State Ballet of Georgia
      • The Royal Ballet
      • The Stuttgart Ballet
      • Varna International Ballet
      • Vienna State Ballet
    • Ballet Companies in North America
      • Alabama Ballet
      • Alberta Ballet
      • American Ballet Theatre
      • American Contemporary Ballet
      • American Repertory Ballet
      • Atlanta Ballet
      • Avant Chamber Ballet
      • BalletX
      • Ballet Arizona
      • Ballet Arkansas
      • Ballet Austin
      • Ballet Idaho
      • Ballet Memphis
      • Ballet North Texas
      • Ballet Tucson
      • Ballet West
      • BalletMet
      • Boston Ballet
      • Carolina Ballet
      • Charlotte Ballet
      • Cincinnati Ballet
      • City Ballet of San Diego
      • Cleveland Ballet
      • Colorado Ballet
      • Complexions Contemporary Ballet
      • Dance Theatre of Harlem
      • Eugene Ballet
      • Grand Rapids Ballet
      • Hollywood Ballet
      • Houston Ballet
      • Indianapolis Ballet
      • Joffrey Ballet
      • Kansas City Ballet
      • Les Ballets Trockadero de Monte Carlo
      • Les Grands Ballets
      • Los Angeles Ballet
      • Madison Ballet
      • Miami City Ballet
      • Milwaukee Ballet
      • Nashville Ballet
      • New Jersey Ballet
      • New York City Ballet
      • Oklahoma City Ballet
      • Oregon Ballet Theatre
      • Orlando Ballet
      • Pacific Northwest Ballet
      • Philadelphia Ballet
      • Pittsburgh Ballet Theatre
      • Richmond Ballet
      • Royal Winnipeg Ballet
      • Sacramento Ballet
      • Saint Louis Ballet
      • San Francisco Ballet
      • Sarasota Ballet
      • Smuin Contemporary Ballet
      • Texas Ballet Theater
      • The National Ballet of Canada
      • The Washington Ballet
      • Tulsa Ballet
    • Ballet Companies in Oceania
      • Queensland Ballet
      • Royal New Zealand Ballet
      • The Australian Ballet
  • BALLET PERFORMANCE CALENDAR
  • BALLET SHOWS IN…
    • Ballet Shows in Australia
    • Ballet Shows in Chicago
    • Ballet Shows in London
    • Ballet Shows in Los Angeles
    • Ballet Shows in New York City
    • Ballet Shows in Paris
    • Ballet Shows in Toronto
    • Ballet Shows in Washington, D.C.
  • FAMOUS BALLETS
    • A Midsummer Night’s Dream
    • Cinderella
    • Coppélia
    • Don Quixote
    • Giselle
    • La Bayadère
    • La Sylphide
    • Romeo and Juliet
    • Swan Lake
    • The Nutcracker
    • The Sleeping Beauty
  • MORE
    • Dance Jobs
    • 2025 Ballet Summer Intensive Programs
  • BALLET MAGAZINE
    • Ballet, Contemporary, and Modern Dance Performance Reviews
    • Interviews with Ballet Professionals
    • The Latest Ballet News
    • Feature Ballet Stories
    • Ballet Schools & Training
    • On This Day in Ballet History
    • Opinions
    • Ballet Meets the Mainstream
  • BALLET COMPANIES
    • Ballet Companies in Asia
      • Hong Kong Ballet
      • National Ballet of China
      • National Ballet of Japan
      • Singapore Ballet
    • Ballet Companies in Europe
      • Bavarian State Ballet
      • Birmingham Royal Ballet
      • Compañía Nacional de Danza
      • Dutch National Ballet
      • English National Ballet
      • Finnish National Ballet
      • Hamburg Ballet
      • Hungarian National Ballet
      • La Scala Theatre Ballet
      • Les Ballets de Monte-Carlo
      • London City Ballet
      • Mariinsky Ballet
      • Mikhailovsky Ballet
      • National Ballet of Ukraine
      • Northern Ballet
      • Norwegian National Ballet
      • Paris Opera Ballet
      • Polish National Ballet
      • Royal Ballet of Flanders
      • Royal Danish Ballet
      • Royal Swedish Ballet
      • Scottish Ballet
      • State Ballet of Georgia
      • The Royal Ballet
      • The Stuttgart Ballet
      • Varna International Ballet
      • Vienna State Ballet
    • Ballet Companies in North America
      • Alabama Ballet
      • Alberta Ballet
      • American Ballet Theatre
      • American Contemporary Ballet
      • American Repertory Ballet
      • Atlanta Ballet
      • Avant Chamber Ballet
      • BalletX
      • Ballet Arizona
      • Ballet Arkansas
      • Ballet Austin
      • Ballet Idaho
      • Ballet Memphis
      • Ballet North Texas
      • Ballet Tucson
      • Ballet West
      • BalletMet
      • Boston Ballet
      • Carolina Ballet
      • Charlotte Ballet
      • Cincinnati Ballet
      • City Ballet of San Diego
      • Cleveland Ballet
      • Colorado Ballet
      • Complexions Contemporary Ballet
      • Dance Theatre of Harlem
      • Eugene Ballet
      • Grand Rapids Ballet
      • Hollywood Ballet
      • Houston Ballet
      • Indianapolis Ballet
      • Joffrey Ballet
      • Kansas City Ballet
      • Les Ballets Trockadero de Monte Carlo
      • Les Grands Ballets
      • Los Angeles Ballet
      • Madison Ballet
      • Miami City Ballet
      • Milwaukee Ballet
      • Nashville Ballet
      • New Jersey Ballet
      • New York City Ballet
      • Oklahoma City Ballet
      • Oregon Ballet Theatre
      • Orlando Ballet
      • Pacific Northwest Ballet
      • Philadelphia Ballet
      • Pittsburgh Ballet Theatre
      • Richmond Ballet
      • Royal Winnipeg Ballet
      • Sacramento Ballet
      • Saint Louis Ballet
      • San Francisco Ballet
      • Sarasota Ballet
      • Smuin Contemporary Ballet
      • Texas Ballet Theater
      • The National Ballet of Canada
      • The Washington Ballet
      • Tulsa Ballet
    • Ballet Companies in Oceania
      • Queensland Ballet
      • Royal New Zealand Ballet
      • The Australian Ballet
  • BALLET PERFORMANCE CALENDAR
  • BALLET SHOWS IN…
    • Ballet Shows in Australia
    • Ballet Shows in Chicago
    • Ballet Shows in London
    • Ballet Shows in Los Angeles
    • Ballet Shows in New York City
    • Ballet Shows in Paris
    • Ballet Shows in Toronto
    • Ballet Shows in Washington, D.C.
  • FAMOUS BALLETS
    • A Midsummer Night’s Dream
    • Cinderella
    • Coppélia
    • Don Quixote
    • Giselle
    • La Bayadère
    • La Sylphide
    • Romeo and Juliet
    • Swan Lake
    • The Nutcracker
    • The Sleeping Beauty
  • MORE
    • Dance Jobs
    • 2025 Ballet Summer Intensive Programs
No Result
View All Result
The Ballet Herald®
Home Ballet Magazine Ballet, Contemporary, and Modern Dance Performance Reviews

American Ballet Theatre’s Crime and Punishment Review: Translating Dostoevsky’s Masterpiece to Movement

Kasey BroekemabyKasey Broekema
November 5, 2024 - Updated on November 16, 2024
in Ballet, Contemporary, and Modern Dance Performance Reviews
Reading Time: 4 mins read
A A
ABT's Crime and Punishment Review 2024

American Ballet Theatre's Crime and Punishment: Translating Dostoevsky’s Masterpiece to Movement

ABT’s Crime and Punishment Review 
October 30, 2024 | Metropolitan Opera House – New York, NY, USA

Confession: I haven’t read Crime and Punishment. In high school, our class took a dive into Dostoevsky’s Notes from Underground, sparing us from the 560 pages – depending on your edition – chronicling Rodion Raskolnikov’s dark journey of morality and consequence.

So, en route to the ballet, skimming summaries on SparkNotes in a subway with spotty service, I had one major question:

How on earth did Helen Pickett manage to compress this complex crime and psychological thriller into a 123-minute ballet?

ABT’s Crime and Punishment Review

American Ballet Theatre in Helen Pickett's Crime and Punishment. Photo by Kyle Froman.

For those of you unfamiliar with the story, Crime and Punishment centers on Raskolnikov, who murders two women running a pawnshop and soon finds himself trapped by guilt and paranoia. While the plot may seem straightforward, Dostoevsky’s mastery lies in Raskolnikov’s psychological turmoil and unreliable narration.

I wondered how Pickett could convey this intricate narrative through movement on stage without the depth of Dostoevsky’s prose. 

Although from the moment the curtain rose, I was in for an unexpected take on the classic Russian novel.

Soutra Gilmour’s set was deceptively simple, using three large wooden panels and a set of stairs, which seamlessly shifted with the dancers and created the oppressive, haunting presence of 1860s St. Petersburg. Film elements were projected to represent Raskolnikov’s inner horrors which was a surprising and modern choice to be incorporated into a ballet production.

Minimalist text appeared occasionally on the upstage cyc. The text wasn’t consistent, sometimes narrating, sometimes not, but I had a hunch it was invoking Dostoysevsky’s unreliable narrator with a brilliant minimalist twist.

Casting principal dancer Cassandra Trenary as Raskolnikov was an intriguing choice. She shares the role on alternate evenings with principal Herman Cornejo, male, and soloist Breanne Granlund, female, which creates a fresh, non-gendered take on a male-dominated role.

While gender is not a primary theme in Crime and Punishment, Trenary brought a raw, visceral quality to the stage, conveying Raskolnikov’s anguish and instability with striking nuance. This depth is not surprising given her strength, athleticism, and acting skills demonstrated in works like Tharp ballets and Trenary’s interpretation of Juliet. Yet, her portrayal of Raskolnikov felt both fresh and authentically modern.

Pickett’s choreographic language landed close enough to American Ballet Theatre’s classical strengths while still incorporating distinct, modern movements that felt naturally integrated.

Repetitive footwork interwoven with sharp arm gestures and phrases gave the corps de ballet the weight of 1860s St. Petersburg, brimming with rogue revolutionaries and political unease. The choreography was fast-paced and intense, whisking the heady plot along in flurried cascades of movement.

I observed that rather than using traditional pas de deux or solos to advance the plot, Pickett used these classical structures to signal a character’s psychological turmoil. Notedly, I saw this in play with a standout solo for Razumikhin (danced gloriously by Calvin Royal III) which flowed into a seamless pas de deux with Dunya (danced passionately by Christine Schevchenko).

I had a hunch the understated, classical movements provided a calm foil to Raskolnikov’s frantic, erratic phrases.

American Ballet Theatre's Christine Shevchenko and Calvin Royal III in Helen Pickett's Crime and Punishment. Photo by Kyle Froman.
American Ballet Theatre's Christine Shevchenko and Calvin Royal III in Helen Pickett's Crime and Punishment. Photo by Kyle Froman.

Raskolnikov did not appear to have a traditional grand-pas-de-deux-into-variation: another clever choice which, in addition to shattering classical ballet structures, emphasizes his loss of control, with life unfolding chaotically around him. This choreographic choice reflects Dostoevsky’s portrayal of Raskolnikov as a character trapped by his own psyche, mirroring the novel’s complex dynamic between internal struggle and external chaos.

Crime and Punishment was unchartered territory for American Ballet Theatre – not only for its contemporary approach and gender-neutral casting, but for taking on something as psychological as Dostoevsky’s novel.

The minimalist approach was clever and provided ample room for the dancers to explore their characters’ depths. However, a few elements such as the film, costuming, and a few transitions felt underdeveloped and could have blended more seamlessly with the multi-genre score by Isobel Waller-Bridge.

Nevertheless, I hope this partnership between American Ballet Theatre and Pickett continues to grow as this production revealed a rich potential for future collaborations.

Featured Photo of American Ballet Theatre’s Cassandra Trenary in Helen Picket’s Crime and Punishment. Photo by Kyle Froman.

Tags: American Ballet Theatre
Kasey Broekema

Kasey Broekema

Kasey Broekema is a reporter for The Sun US, as well as a freelance writer with work published from her fiction appearing in literary magazines, to getting the latest dance scoop, to neuroscience journals. She found her passion for dance twirling in a small studio in Kalamazoo, Michigan and her training included time with The School of Nashville Ballet, Vanderbilt University Dance Program, New Dialect, and Interlochen Center for the Arts. Broekema attended summer programs with Suzanne Farrell on Cedar Islands, with Brooke Desnoës and Violette Verdy at L’Académie de Danse de Paris, Joffrey Ballet NYC, Ellison Ballet, and American Ballet Theatre. She obtained her BA in English from Columbia University, Class of 2021. She is also a freelance dancer based in New York City and loves supporting small local companies. You can often find her scheming up story plots in dimly lit coffee shop corners, goggling in awe at her favorite dancers at Lincoln Center, and geeking out over Ancient Egyptian art at The Met Museum. Photo by John DeAmara

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Receive a roundup of ballet news & performances direct to your inbox.

The most interesting ballet news and stories of the week.

You may also be interested in...

Chamber Dance Project Red Angels Review 2025

Chamber Dance Project Red Angels Review: Chamber Dance Delights at Harman Hall

July 3, 2025
The Best Nutcracker Performances in 2025

The Best Nutcracker Performances in 2025

July 1, 2025 - Updated on July 7, 2025
La Scala Theatre Ballet Paquita Review 2025

La Scala Theatre Ballet Paquita Review: Radiating Joy and Technical Prowess

June 28, 2025
PNB Director’s Choice Review 2025

Pacific Northwest Ballet Director’s Choice Review: Pushing to the Extremes

June 17, 2025
Gonzalo Garcia Appointed Next Artistic Director at Miami City Ballet

Gonzalo Garcia Appointed Next Artistic Director at Miami City Ballet

June 16, 2025
The Ballet Herald®

SECTIONS

  • Dance Performance Reviews
  • Interviews with Ballet Professionals
  • Feature Ballet Stories
  • The Latest Ballet News
  • Ballet Schools & Training
  • Opinions

FAMOUS BALLETS

  • A Midsummer Night’s Dream
  • Cinderella
  • Coppélia
  • Don Quixote
  • Giselle
  • La Bayadère
  • La Sylphide
  • Romeo and Juliet
  • Swan Lake
  • The Nutcracker
  • The Sleeping Beauty

MORE

  • Ballet Performances
  • Ballet Companies
  • Ballet Summer Intensives
  • Dance Jobs

COMPANY

  • About
  • Contact
  • Support
  • Advertisement & Paid Content Opportunities

© 2025 The Ballet Herald™ by BalletNomad, LLC®

Receive a roundup of ballet news & performances direct to your inbox.

The most interesting ballet news and stories of the week.

No Result
View All Result
  • Home Page
  • Ballet Performance Calendar
  • Ballet Magazine
    • Ballet, Contemporary, and Modern Dance Performance Reviews
    • Interviews with Ballet Professionals
    • The Latest Ballet News
    • Feature Ballet Stories
    • Ballet Schools & Training
    • On This Day in Ballet History
    • Opinions
    • Ballet Meets the Mainstream
  • Ballet Shows In…
    • Ballet Shows in Australia
    • Ballet Shows in Chicago
    • Ballet Shows in London
    • Ballet Shows in Los Angeles
    • Ballet Shows in New York City
    • Ballet Shows in Paris
    • Ballet Shows in Toronto
    • Ballet Shows in Washington, D.C.
  • Famous Ballets
    • A Midsummer Night’s Dream
    • Cinderella
    • Coppélia
    • Don Quixote
    • Giselle
    • La Bayadère
    • La Sylphide
    • Romeo and Juliet
    • Swan Lake
    • The Nutcracker
    • The Sleeping Beauty
  • List of Ballet Companies
  • 2025 Ballet Summer Intensives
  • Dance Jobs
  • ⊙ About
  • ⊙ Contact
  • ⊙ Advertisement & Paid Content Opportunities
  • ⊙ Privacy Policy
  • ☕ Buy us a coffee!

© 2025 The Ballet Herald™ by BalletNomad, LLC®

Receive a roundup of ballet news & performances direct to your inbox.

The most interesting ballet news and stories of the week.

No Result
View All Result
  • Home Page
  • Ballet Performance Calendar
  • Ballet Magazine
    • Ballet, Contemporary, and Modern Dance Performance Reviews
    • Interviews with Ballet Professionals
    • The Latest Ballet News
    • Feature Ballet Stories
    • Ballet Schools & Training
    • On This Day in Ballet History
    • Opinions
    • Ballet Meets the Mainstream
  • Ballet Shows In…
    • Ballet Shows in Australia
    • Ballet Shows in Chicago
    • Ballet Shows in London
    • Ballet Shows in Los Angeles
    • Ballet Shows in New York City
    • Ballet Shows in Paris
    • Ballet Shows in Toronto
    • Ballet Shows in Washington, D.C.
  • Famous Ballets
    • A Midsummer Night’s Dream
    • Cinderella
    • Coppélia
    • Don Quixote
    • Giselle
    • La Bayadère
    • La Sylphide
    • Romeo and Juliet
    • Swan Lake
    • The Nutcracker
    • The Sleeping Beauty
  • List of Ballet Companies
  • 2025 Ballet Summer Intensives
  • Dance Jobs
  • ⊙ About
  • ⊙ Contact
  • ⊙ Advertisement & Paid Content Opportunities
  • ⊙ Privacy Policy
  • ☕ Buy us a coffee!

© 2025 The Ballet Herald™ by BalletNomad, LLC®