A two-part interactive afternoon will feature a screening of the experimental play AI: When a Robot Writes a Play, written in full by a computer, telling a story of a robot left to the mercy of various representatives of human society after its master dies. The screening will be followed by a workshop with instructors Daniel Hrbek, David Kostak, and Rudolf Rosa, offering participants the chance to collaborate with a robot on composing a script.
The session will be hands-on, participants are encouraged to bring their own laptop.
Can a robot write a play? How does its writing process look like? What kind of input can spur an AI’s creativity to construct a desired scene? How far has modern technology evolved in terms of robotic writing? The creators of the first-ever computer-written play will present the THEaiTRE project, which explores the creative possibilities of artificial intelligence in playwriting.
During the workshop, Rudolf Rosa will explain the origins of the project from a technical point of view and share his experiences in ‘training’ a computer to write theater lines. David Kostak will demonstrate how to work with a program that could become the writing tool of the future, describing the software’s possibilities and current limitations. Under his supervision, participants will have the opportunity to experiment with crafting a script with a robot.
Examining the creative potential of artificial intelligence, AI: When a Robot Writes a Play was conceived as a project in 2021 by the Svanda Theatre in Prague during the centenary of Karel Capek's R.U.R, the iconic play from which the term “robot” emerged. Within a few months of the project’s launch, the computer generated images from the ‘mind’ of a robot as it responded to the emotions of everyday existence. Exposed from this process are robotic perceptions of basic human issues including birth, aging, and dying as well as quests for love or purpose.
Free and open to the public. Online registration through Eventbrite is required. Masks are required inside the venue.
The 2022 Rehearsal for Truth Theater Festival is dedicated to the people of Ukraine fighting for their independence. 🇺🇦 Suggested donation ($10) will be used to support Ukrainian refugees. All collected funds will be donated to People in Need, a Czech non-governmental, non-profit organization with over 20 years of experience in helping people in emergencies all over the world.
Project partners: THEaiTRE, TACR (The project TL03000348 THEaiTRE: Artificial Intelligence as the Author of the Play is co-financed with state support of the Technology Agency of the Czech Republic within the ETA Program 3); Institute of Formal and Applied Linguistics at the Computer Science School, Faculty of Mathematics and Physics, Charles University, Czech Republic; CEE Hacks; Prg.ai; Theatre Faculty, the Academy of Performing Arts in Prague; the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Czech Republic, and Czech Centers.
INSTRUCTORS
RUDOLF ROSA, machine learning expert and project lead, is a researcher at MFF UK (Faculty of Mathematics and Physics, Charles University), and is an expert in multilingual language processing & robopsychologist. Rudolf has participated in many national and international research projects and supervises several theses in language generation.
DANIEL HRBEK has been managing director of Svanda Theatre in Prague since 1999 and a teacher of acting and directing at the Academy of Performing Arts in Prague (DAMU). Hrbek has directed 18 performances at Svanda Theatre. In 1994 he founded the highly regarded theatre company called CD 94 which he ran for 8 years as an artistic director performing in various European countries. Before he became performance director and managing director of Svanda Theatre, he was an actor in various Czech prestigious theatres for many years. His show The Good and the True was successfully put on Broadway stage in New York, but also in Washington, in Great Britain and in Belgium. He has experience with international co-production workshops for students (DAMU and Georgetown University in Washington DC; DAMU and The New School of Drama in New York City).
DAVID KOSTAK is a playwright and a dramaturge of Svanda Theatre. He graduated in Theory and criticism of theatre at Prague’s DAMU (Academy of Performing Arts in Prague). His own plays were performed in multiple European theatres and were well accepted. David also writes poems and translates theatre plays. He has experience with international co-production workshops for students (DAMU and Georgetown University in Washington D.C.; DAMU and The New School of Drama in New York City).
ABOUT THE 2022 REHEARSAL FOR TRUTH THEATER FESTIVAL
The 2022 Rehearsal for Truth Theater Festival: Under Pressure is organized by the Vaclav Havel Library Foundation and the Bohemian Benevolent and Literary Association in partnership with the Polish Cultural Institute New York, GOH Productions, Czech National Trust, Terezin Music Foundation, Trap Door Theatre, and Yara Arts Group.
The festival is supported, in part, by public funds from the New York City Department of Cultural Affairs in partnership with the City Council, New York State Council on the Arts with the support of the Office of the Governor and the New York State Legislature, Consulate General of the Czech Republic in New York, Ministry of Culture of the Czech Republic, Ministry of Human Capacities, Hungary, and Society for the History of Czechoslovak Jews.