Czechast with Ben Donenberg

Karel Čapek wrote science-fiction play R. U. R. more than a century ago. With the rise of AI his masterpiece gains new relevance.

Ben Donenberg is a theater producer, founder, and artistic director of the Shakespeare Center of Los Angeles. He shares a bit about his heritage, saying:

“My grandparents on my father’s side came to America from the border between Poland and Germany before WWI. And on my mother’s side, they came from the area near the border with Russia.”

Karel Čapek|Photo: Z. R. Nešpor, Sociologický ústav AV ČR

You might be wondering what a Californian theater producer is doing in Prague and why he is the guest on Czechast. The reason is his love for one of the greatest Czech writers and playwrights, Karel Čapek. Ben recalls:

“When I was in high school and seventeen years old, I was ‘doing theater,’ and I took a class in science-fiction writing. The very first thing we read was Karel Čapek’s R.U.R.”

Ben became fascinated not just with Čapek’s style and the coinage of the word ‘robot,’ but also with the idea that the artificial beings were not just mechanical but also biological creations. More than a century after Čapek’s play premiered, a new and very intensive impetus arose to bring it to the attention of people worldwide: the spread of AI into many areas of our everyday life and the perceived or real threat to creative arts and trades. Ben explains:

Švanda Theater in Prague|Photo: Kristýna Maková, Radio Prague International

“When the writers’ strike happened in Hollywood, everyone was up in arms and upset about the possibility of AI writing scripts for films and television. It struck me that it is time to do Karel Čapek’s play again.”

So, Ben got in touch with the Czech Consul General in LA, Jaroslav Olša, and now he is preparing to bring Čapek’s masterpiece to theater audiences in the US in cooperation with the Švanda Theater in Prague. In this episode of Czechast, you will hear more about this unique project, which is particularly relevant at a time when artificial intelligence seems poised to change the lives of mankind.