Artificial Intelligence (AI) is beginning to shake up nearly every creative industry, and live theatre is no exception. From generative world building to revamping the way the audiences engage with the work, this revolutionary new technology is pushing the boundaries of what is possible.

In this episode, A.R.T./New York’s z. Quinn Reynolds interviews actor, creator and director Tjaša Ferme and multi-disciplinary designer Will Lowry about their individual experiences using AI in their work, how AI is reshaping live theater, as well their hopes (and fears) for the future of AI. 

 

"Can AI make art? The answer is, I don't know. 
That is my stance because it feels so personal and subjective and there are so many different nuances for how that can be interpreted." -Will Lowry

 

Episode Transcript

Website Link

 

GUEST BIOS:

Tjaša Ferme (she/her) is an award-winning actor, creator and NYSCA-awarded director who has received a Slovenian National Film Award and Stane Sever classical stage award. The Founding Artistic Director of Transforma Theatre, she created The Female Role Model Project, blending interactive theatre with neuroscience, premiering Off-Broadway at 3-Legged Dog and produced at Edinburgh Fringe (NYITA nomination for Outstanding Innovative Design and Fast Company’s honorary mention for World Changing Ideas Awards). In 2021 Ferme founded the sold-out Science in Theatre Festival covered by Forbes and American Theatre Magazine. Tjasa is the creator of the short film Ophelia’s Flip (Cannes Film Festival, 2012), farce stage hit Cocktales - Confessions of a Nymphomaniac (Abingdon Theatre, Miami Art Basel), and interactive solo shows, Wild Child in the City and My Marlene (HERE). She recently created and directed Bioadapted, hailed by the New York Times as "maverick creativity" and "sleekly designed, thoughtfully assembled.

 

Will Lowry (he/him) is a multidisciplinary designer, an Associate Professor of Theatre at Lehigh University (PA), and a Creative Partner with Flux Theatre Ensemble (NYC). He received his MFA in Design from UNC Greensboro and a BA in Theatre Arts/Computer Science from Furman University. He has created scenic, costume, media, and lighting designs for theatres along the East Coast and beyond, including Dupont Underground (DC), Lantern Theater Company (Phila.), The Warehouse Theatre (SC), Mill Mountain Theatre (VA), Playhouse on Park (CT), California Theatre Center (CA), and the Sydney Opera House (AUS). In NYC, he designed over twenty off-off Broadway productions, and he contributed to multiple Broadway productions as a studio assistant. He has experimented with incorporation of AI into his design process for over two years. He presented on the intersection of AI and Theatre at SETC in 2023 and 2024, and he co-taught a first-year seminar at Lehigh that centered around AI-driven theatre-making.

 

INTERVIEWER BIO:

Quinn Reynolds (they/she) is a writer/musician/director living and working in Brooklyn, New York. Quinn spent their formative years making indie kung-fu movies with their family inspired by the classic tale “Journey to the West.” Since then, they've moved on to making stories for stage, screen, and beyond. They have an obsession with blending their love of Sci-fi, Fantasy, Music and Horror into hyper-charged hysterical shows. Their past projects include: Purchase Late Night (2016-2020), The Super Hero Night Series (2017-2022), Marooned (2022), Blood Countess(Original Music, 2023), and GRIND(2023). Quinn also produces and performs music under their artist name: Mamsir. Their latest self produced EP “That’s going on the fridge” is streaming on all platforms. Outside of their artistic career, Quinn is the Manager of Studio Operations at A.R.T./New York.

You can find our host bios on our website!

 

Additional Links:

Tjaša Ferme

Will Lowry 

Transforma Theatre

Flux Theatre 

Our Options Have Changed 

Bioadapted 

Chat GPT4

11ElevenLabs

Replika

Midjourney

 

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