Stage against the machine

You’re wrecked – strung out – at the end of your tether – when suddenly, a loved one presents you with a seductive, digital escape from all your troubles. Worth a try, right?

Running at the Cork Arts Theatre from 12-21 November, ‘Girl in the Machine’ is the third and final of the Leeside theatre’s Re:Directing programme 2026.

Re:Directing is a trio of contemporary plays produced in-house and directed by Cork theatre directors.

Starring Isolde Fenton as Polly and Stefan Brennan-Healy as Owen, ‘Girl in the Machine’ follows a happily married couple whose life is “sorted”. But when Owen presents overworked corporate lawyer Polly with a newly released headset call Black Box to help her relax, Polly slides into a potently seductive, potentially deadly, virtual world.

While Polly grapples with her addiction, outside, civil protests grow as the population rebels against the new technology and its increasing hold on human life. As the future of man and machine become intertwined, Polly and Owen are forced to confront what it means to be human and to question whether they share the same understanding of reality and freedom.

Described as “thought provoking and chilling”, ‘Girl in the Machine’ explores the potential pitfalls of careering headlong into a digitally enhanced future.

The play’s director, Éadaoin Fox, describes the forward-gazing scope of ‘Girl in the Machine’ as a “as a conduit of resistance when confronted with the promise of a convenient and ‘blissful’ reality offered by AI”.

She said: “This prescient text acts as a conduit of resistance when confronted with the promise of a convenient and ‘blissful’ reality offered by AI. I look forward to exploring the psychology of the play’s characters in detail, as their relationship to an artificial intelligence feels especially familiar today.”

Cork Arts Theatre CEO Fin Flynn described the excitement felt by him and his colleagues as they prepare to close out the Re:Directing programme 2026.

Fin said: “We are excited to be staging the third and final part of the 2026 Re:Directing programme, ‘Girl in the Machine’ in November.

The aim was to create high-calibre productions in Cork working with many of the talented theatre artists in the city, while at the same time giving audiences a chance to see less familiar works, and we are very grateful for the Arts Council grant which enabled us to achieve this.”

‘Girl in the Machine’ comes to Cork Arts Theatre from 12-21 November.

For more information and booking, visit corkartstheatre.com.