The Last Tango in Halifax star plays a woman who gets an AI companion in Jordan Harrison's dextrous play
Marjorie Prime, Menier Chocolate Factory, review: Anne Reid skewers the cruelty of mother-daughter bonds
The Last Tango in Halifax star plays a woman who gets an AI companion in Jordan Harrison’s dextrous playYou will spot the plot twists coming a mile away in Jordan Harrison’s play about artificial intelligence. A clichéd family tragedy looms in the memories of Marjorie, the elderly woman at the centre of his story.
Yet despite this slew of reasons to reject it, there’s a cerebral dexterity and humane lightness that can’t help but make this play a success. Stick with it and you’ll understand why it won Harrison a Pulitzer nomination in 2015. Slowly,Harrison gives us a credible vision of the 2060s. An upper-middle class American family face the same challenges as their 2023 counterparts, with a slight upgrade in technology.
But technology has given Tess one new option: a holographic companion for Marjorie whose chat promises to keep her memories sharp and her attention diverted from Tess’s domestic failings. Like all such robots, Marjorie’s carer is designed to resemble a deceased loved one – Tess’ dead father Walter. Powered by AI, he absorbs and refines himself according to the family’s memories of Walter. At least, the memories they choose to share with him.
Two factors give this production lift off, despite its clunky building blocks. Firstly, former Globe director Dromgoole has assembled a top-tier cast. Nancy Carroll gives a blistering performance as Tess – if she was still feeling the effects of the laryngitis which forced her to cancel three previews, there was no sign of it in this energetic and committed performance. Anne Reid is a placidly infuriating Marjorie, blithely unaware of her daughter’s efforts.
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