Bristol Profile: 'AI Project'
New Bristol Riverside Theatre show is profiled this week.Can robots ever feel pain? can they ever love or experience sadness? or can one only succeed in simulating the behavior of hurt but not the feeling? these things are not possible today but may they be possible in the future?Three-time Barrymore Award winner Karen Getz’s AI (Artificial Intelligence) Project play production moved “off campus” to secure the most realistic warehouse setting ever. Owner Fred Baumgarten benevolently donated the usage of his spacious Grundy Commons Industrial Complex for their weeks of practice and the final productions of Karen’s comic-actors ballet about the developing world of humanoid robots, presented from June 28-30.Bristol Riverside Theatre Managing Director Amy Kaissar said, “thank you to Fred for making this piece possible.”the ambiance was perfect “because the folks at Grundy Commons are incredibly generous and kind and wonderful. And the space is amazing!” per Karen Getz, the genius behind the conception, choreography and direction.the project was funded by the Pew Center for Arts & Heritage through the Philadelphia Theater Initiative and an Interdisciplinary Professional Development Grant.Performers were James Sugg, Dito Van Reigersberg, Heather Murphy, Makoto Hirano and Dave Jadico who also designed the puppets. the Original Music and Sound Design was provided by theater artist/guitarist Christopher Colucci.the developing world of rejected humanoid robots and cast-off robot parts was viewed by the rapt audience as they followed the story of one human and his four seemingly emotionally intelligent machines. through such provocative realism developed by fusing accomplished artistic perspective and human scientific mechanics, one truly gets the sense that the clever imitation robots have awakened and are looking to befriend you.What exactly is a comic-actors ballet, you may ask? According to the book of Karen, whose first comic-actors ballet was “Suburban love Songs,” it's a ballet where the ballet dancers are replaced by really funny actors. she was correct! the story was funny but with no words, replaced in entirety by physical language. the robots’ movements were truly very different. she apparently specializes in creating dances for non-dancers as her inspired robots mirrored the behavior of people. she is well known in the improv community (acting, singing, talking and reacting; of making and creating, in the moment – amazing amount of creativity) as both a producer and performer. this is a method that allows for creativity beyond the normal, allowing for confidence and real emotion to become unblocked.Karen was a featured dancer in the 1987 box office hit “Dirty Dancing,” starring the late Patrick Swayze.Karen always does her homework and earns her incredible grade while stimulating a vibrant cultural community.Her AI Project earned an A-plus at Grundy.According to the press releases, she invested her time at Hanson Robotics in Dallas observing AI robots under construction, at the Carnegie Mellon University Robotics Institute exploring the history of the field and recent advances, and at the MIT Museum working with their collection.how was all this Artificial Intelligence received?Bernice Edele, a BRT volunteer gushed, “I thought it was wonderful. very interesting and different and I’m happy that I saw it. it was good. I really, really enjoyed it.”Energetic Charlotte Swift Landreth-Melville had just returned from one of her many trips, this time to Tbilisi, Georgia.“the performers were really good, especially the girl when she was starting up to be a robot doing all those manuevers and the guy in the desk with all the pipes and all. it was a little rustic ambiance, but was good for this!”South Philadelphia resident, Sarah Chandler is a production and stage manager and she came to see her friend, Makoto Hirano perform.“I love the clock tower and we were very excited to come into this space for this particular piece and it so fits this feeling of industrial workshop.”Artistic Director Dave Jadico is a full time actor/musician who works with an improv company called “ComedySportz Philadelphia” and a theatre company called “1812 Productions.” He was the movement artist and performed as a “flying puppet.” He won a Barrymore Award for Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Musical in “the Fantasticks.”Dave shared, “Karen was inspired by Humanistics Robotics.”Co-founders of Humanistic Robotics inc., Samuel Jesse Reeves and Joshua Koch Koplin, have based their company's research and development activities in 5,300 square feet of space in the Grundy Commons.Six-foot-two Dito Van Reigersberg is the founder of Pig Iron Theatre Company (They’re interested in body and space and how the body in space makes different meanings). He “played a torso, a robot inside a table.” He loves acting, singing and dancing. With the song in his heart and a tap in his fingers, he showed that he really knew how to move with the music!Professional dancer Heather Murphy, Max and Isadora’s mom, comes from Philadelphia and has been performing creative dances in Philly since 1996. she created “Baby Loves Disco,” an alternative to the pre-packaged world of entertainment for young kids.how did she get involved in AI?“Karen Getz is very well-known for her dance and choreography and has made such successful pieces and I have admired her work. James [Sugg] was on the cover of American Theatre magazine and when I got the invitation to do this role, it was a no-brainer.”it looked like it took a lot of time to get every movement so well synchronized.“It’s easy to do a lot, it’s hard to do a little. What intriques me most, is understanding the fundamental difference between humans and robots.”Performer and choreographer Chelsea M. Gregory, an Atlanta-born, Brooklyn-based artist and educator who works through the media of theater, spoken word poetry and dance is on a residency with the Bristol Riverside Theatre.Her writing is published in anthologies including “We Got Issues – a Young Woman's Guide to a Bold, courageous and Empowered Life.”“I thought it was fabulous, incredibly imaginative, well choreographed, well directed and well performed. Beautiful inspiration of the idea of robots; beyond just the idea of it, the actual characters and relationships between robots and humans.”Gifted actor/teacher and Artistic Director Jennifer Childs founded the improv comedy “1812 Productions” in collaboration with Peter Pryor and she is a friend of Karen Getz.in 1999, “1812” started its Education Outreach program at South Philadelphia High School and at the Widener School for Children with disabilities.“I think there’s a show in there. I was so fascinated. I could have watched just the individual movements of each of the robots. I feel like it’s a beginning of a really great idea.”the choreography of Karen Getz and her talented company unquestionably succeeded in taking hold of and touching the audience, creating a special kind of silence and focus in the normally bustling Grundy Commons Industrial Complex.Karen declared, “I love this place. It’s perfect. Fred has been amazingly generous.”the BRT Youth Summer Camp ArtRageous 2010 is now in session.next on the BRT Main Stage is “Dr. Jekyll and mr. Hyde”, Sept. 28 thru Oct. 17, 2010.*Recommend a “Spotlight”: e-mail vjmrun@yahoo.com.
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