This is a tech-drama, so it’s regulation for characters to stop and explain to the uninitiated what they’re talking about.
But while I don’t mind leaning forward to focus on knotty arguments, a combination of mangled accents, under-projection, and waffly dialogue meant much was ungraspable at the back of the stalls.
They are working on Logos, a form of Artificial General Intelligence – the kind the so-called Godfathers of AI say we should really worry about that can achieve human-level cognition.
An attempt has been made to override the kill switch on this model and Kaya Scodelario’s spiritual Lena, and Luke Treadaway’s nervy Russian atheist Sasha are being separately sweated by Nathalie Armin’s psych major Agent Darwish.
It turns out these tech-geeks are slaving away underground 60 hours a week under intense surveillance, with agents planted among them – and they have got too close to their project.
This is Cold War level paranoia, and someone is manipulating someone, but director Ellen McDougall fails to ignite much tension.
Beau Willimon is the creator of House of Cards and writes on Star Wars-inspired Andor but his scattergun script lacks plot or humour.
As we flash back and forth to Lena and Sasha’s illicit relationship, we learn that she fled a Mennonite community over an abusive underage affair, and he was a teen music prodigy who gave up because he couldn’t be the best.
The pair share philosophies about a higher power, religious faith, and whether AI can be trained to accept the illogical nature of belief systems.
The play pitches the idea that if a machine did take over perhaps it couldn’t be worse than the folk running this authoritarian America.
The ending is predictable yet lacks emotional punch. Skins star Scodelario makes the best of oddball Lena’s impassioned speeches but we’re never drawn into her inner world.
Indeed several good actors given only crumbs to work with.
Alec Newman wrings some humour from his otherwise impassive Fed, and Cliff Curtis’ improbable Jewish-Maori tech prof brings welcome humanity, but too often Willimon throws up big ideas that don’t stick, and the one hour forty running time hangs heavy.
East is South runs at Hampstead Theatre until March 15. www.hampsteadtheatre.com
