Uncanny Valley at Los Angeles Theatre Center

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2. Uncanny Valley

Chasing immortality by downloading your thoughts and memories into an everlasting human-shaped computer may sound like science fiction, but current research in robotics and artificial intelligence actually makes this possible. The challenge is to get past the “uncanny valley”— the discomfort people experience when seeing electronic recreations of human beings that are not quite believable.

Claire, (played by Rosina Reynolds) is a neuroscientist who has devoted her entire life to crafting a non-biological being. Her latest attempt is named Julian. As he is “born” over the course of the play—going from just a head to a fully-functional body—Claire teaches Julian what it is to be human. But as anyone who has ever raised a child knows, “We have no idea how this new being we have created will turn out.” So when Claire finally comes face to face with her creation, she is shocked to discover who is staring back at her.

This world premiere has the audacity to propose modern science as the creator of human life on Earth and redefines what it means to be human in the 21st century. Stuffed with fascinating food for thought, this taut, smart drama is the kind of play that makes The REP The REP.