Waiheke Theatre Company bring their latest production to Artworks Theatre later this month. Comic Potential by Alan Ayckbourn is produced and directed by Waiheke artist Linda Savage and explores the dilemma of what separates humans from Artificial Intelligence – and if the ‘illogical’ ability to love and to laugh are perhaps what distinguish the one from the other.
First performed in 1998, the play’s subject appears to be more relevant in today’s world than ever, says Linda.
“One of Ayckbourn’s recurring themes in many of his plays is sci-fi. His earliest being Henceforward [1988], which I remember well as I used a monologue from that play as a young actress auditioning in London in the late 1980s.
“Ayckbourn’s ability to ask his audience to consider such important questions whilst simultaneously making them laugh out loud is extraordinary.”
The play is set in the future in a television studio, where robot ‘actoids’ take the place of human actors.
• Silvia Massa
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