Review: THE ADDING MACHINE from The Feast

The machines are coming for our livelihoods, Dear Readers.  That was the fear a century ago with the 1923 play “The Adding Machine” by Elmer Rice.  And that sentiment still holds true today with many terrified of the advancements of Artificial Intelligence or AI.  And that’s what this new production “The Adding Machine: A Cyborg Morality Play” from The Feast (formerly The Williams Project) capitalizes on, creating a thoughtful and timely bent on a classic.

In this version from The Feast, we still focus on Mr. Zero, a man stuck in his routines.  He’s held the same job for 25 years as an accountant for a large company.  He’s married to the same woman for ages in a lifeless and loveless marriage and does little in his life outside the things he did the night before until the day of his work anniversary, and instead of getting a promotion he is fired as the company is bringing in a new adding machine to do his job.  And so, Mr. Zero snaps and kills his boss, an action that necessitates him to defend his life … and death.  But here, they’ve added another writing credit to the show, that of Generative AI Systems.  Some of the piece is still Rice’s words from over a hundred years ago and some have been replaced with AI generated text, sometimes generated on the spot in front of the audience. 
It's this AI assistance that makes the story of losing ourselves to automation even more frightening.  Honestly, apart from when they outright told us that a scene was AI generated, I cannot tell you for certain which ones were AI and which were Rice.  And that’s the most terrifying thought of it all when you think how many professions could become obsolete.  My own, for example. 

But the words aside, the creatives at The Feast, show they can still give us an engaging and thought-provoking evening.  Director and adapter Ryan Guzzo Purcell presents a fascinating world where only a few times was the pace of the show, bogged down by the insertion of the technology.  For the most part his rendition of the piece was an enthralling view of the world with scintillating performances. 

With a truly ensemble cast of five actors, Julie Briskman, Emilie Maureen Hanson, Holiday, Alexander Kilian, and MJ Sieber, there is no lead as each of them at different points of the play took on the role of Mr. Zero.  And each of them managed their own spin on this doomed character while still keeping the core of who he is alive (or dead).  Special kudos to veteran Seattle actors Briskman and Sieber for tackling two insanely long monologues of the piece, especially Sieber who’s almost 10-minute rant had the added element of being projected behind him as he spoke, so we knew if he missed anything.  And then there were Hanson, Holiday, and Kilian who took on the conversations at a party that were being generated on the spot, and yet they sounded completely natural and real.  And I must mention Jeff Larson who provided all the projections as well as the AI Design that made this piece what it was.  A huge feat.

This piece, like all from The Feast, was a thinker that stayed with you.  But isn’t that the best kind of theatre?  And so, with my three-letter rating system, I give “The Adding Machine: A Cyborg Morality Play” from The Feast an “odd little romp” of a YAY.  And I have to thank them for yet another well done show but also for the reminder of how lucky I am that I still get to do this kind of writing … for now.

“The Adding Machine: A Cyborg Morality Play” from The Feast performs at The Lee Center for the Arts through October 6th.  For tickets or information visit them online at www.the-feast.org.

To post a comment, you must register and login.