LOVE+

LOVE+ is a quirky, fun ride down the robo-love rabbit hole. When a human (Maeve O’Mahony) purchases a robot (Caoimhe Coburn Gray) to tend to her every need, what happens when that need extends to love? Snappy and refined, this slick production from director Claire O’Reilly delivers a thought-provoking love story with a twist.

Devised by O’Reilly, O'Mahony, Dylan Coburn Gray and Breffni Holahan, the writing is incisive and wonderfully captures what a robot home attendant could be like. The structure is tight and well restrained, especially when it deviates to briefly explore other robot-human interactions. These tangents are a fun frolic and provide further room to toy with sex, love and artificial intelligence.

LOVE+ may delve into themes that we have seen in pop culture before but it does so in a new way, asking what is love and what do we want from it? Will loving robots always feel a bit creepy and exploitative or is it just a cultural norm we haven’t caught up to yet?

Caoimhe Coburn Gray is the source of much of the play’s humour through her poised and dispassionate portrayal of the robot. The relatable O’Mahony is awkward and confused as the human, although leaves us wanting a bit more from her delivery. Overall the piece derives its strength from the playful navigation of highly sophisticated robots in a human world. Unfortunately when the performance verges on the sentimental, the dialogue becomes circular and obvious when there was an opportunity to push the ethical/philosophical boundaries further.

We are on the cusp of the age of artificial intelligence and this piece asks us to consider whether we have accounted for the way this shift may change our relationships. It's also a fresh, cheeky take on falling in love.