Robota, the first full-scale production to come to the Schwarzman Centre for the Humanities, is a production directed by Roy Alexander Weise MBE and produced by Headlong Theatre Company. The play is a modern take on the 1920s classic Rossum’s Universal Robots, written by Karel Čapek. Čapek coined the term ‘robot’ with his play and helped pioneer over a century of sci-fi writing. Writer Ella Road has re-imagined R.U.R. for 2026. For a play that passed its centennial a quarter of a century ago, the production still feels relevant.
Helen (Ronkẹ Adékọluẹ́jọ́) sets out to give the human-like robots rights. These slave-like humanoid automatons, which populate the universe where Robota is set, begin to dream of freedom, of a world of sentience and free will. Chaos ensues. Arguments start, Brave New World-esque experiments are undertaken. This provocative re-imagining blends sci-fi, philosophy, morality, and the age-old debate of what makes us human.
Adékọluẹ́jọ́ has a good stage presence generally. Umi Myers, who plays Helen’s robotic counterpart, is fantastic. Irfan Shamji is a convincing Ali, even if the love story between Ali and Helen feels a little shoehorned.
Set and costume designer Loren Elstein, as well as the rest of the team, do an impressive job of curating the space. Everything is on wheels; the scene changes are professional, innovative and work well. Weise described it as ‘a visual feast’, which is apt. Even elements of the stage that are not strictly needed, such as the hanging tree or the water feature, look fantastic.
Perhaps this is not the fault of Weise, Road or even Čapek, given that it is a century-old storyline, but Robota feels predictable. Blade Runner, The Matrix, I, Robot and any other sci-fi film, book or play that’s been written in the last hundred years has plugged many of the storylines to death. With the AI age upon us it makes sense to recreate this classic piece of writing, but the production doesn’t find a truly unique angle. It could have been shorter, as the first act involved a lot of exposition that is probably not needed, especially as none of the concepts are new, or particularly interesting, to the audience.
The script feels over-explanatory. Not just the exposition, but the dialogue. All of the characters immediately explain how they are feeling, leaving little character development or depth to be explored.
There are elements of the play that feel up to date and work well, for instance the unpleasant sexual and at times violent relationships between the female humanoids and the male characters, which feels like a look into the near future of our reality, where AI girlfriends and online misogyny are becoming increasingly prevalent..
Robota is a spectacle with much promise, but could be improved. Runs until 6 July 2026.
