Comic Potential: In Brief
Comic Potential
Play Number: 52World Premiere: 4 June 1998
Venue: Stephen Joseph Theatre, Scarborough
Premiere Staging: In-the-round
Published: Samuel French
Other Media: Television (Poland)
Cast: 5m / 5f
Run Time: 2hr 25m
Synopsis: In the near future, an android develops emotions and an aspiring writer falls in love with her. But where he sees potential, others see only a malfunction - leading to the question, what makes us human?
- Comic Potential is Alan Ayckbourn's 52nd play.
- The world premiere - directed by Alan Ayckbourn - was held at the Stephen Joseph Theatre, Scarborough, on 4 June 1998.
- The London premiere - directed by Alan Ayckbourn - was held at the Lyric Theatre on 13 October 1999.
- The New York premiere - directed by John Tillinger - was held at the Manhattan Theatre Club on 16 November 2000.
- The play developed from the idea that humans appear to be the only creatures with a sense of humour and who fall in love for reasons other than procreation. Objectively, both ideas are illogical but do they define our humanity and shape us? What would happen if a robot developed the ability to laugh and love? Would it be construed as a malfunction?
- The play premiered in the 10x10 season at the Stephen Joseph Theatre - intended to highlight new work and the advantages of a repertory system. It consisted of 10 world or British premieres in rep performed by a company off 10 actors.
- Janie Dee's role as Jacie Triplethree saw her become only the second actress after Judi Dench to win the Olivier, Evening Standard and Critic’s Circle Awards for Best Actress. She also won Obie and Theatre World awards for the Manhattan Theatre Club's production of the play.
- Janie Dee is the only actress to have played the same role in an Ayckbourn play in its world, West End and New York premieres.
- Comic Potential is the second Ayckbourn play to deal with issues of creativity and creating art; the first of these plays was Henceforward….
- Comic Potential is one of Alan Ayckbourn's future-set science-fiction plays, which also include Henceforward…, Communicating Doors and Constant Companions among others.
- Alan Ayckbourn has frequently mentioned that his science-fiction plays are loosely inspired by the 'broken' future worlds portrayed in Ridley Scott's films such as Alien and Blade Runner.
- Alan Ayckbourn frequently writes a family play which is thematically linked to one of his adult plays. In the case of Comic Potential, its family counter-part is My Sister Sadie which also questions what it is which makes us human via an android character.
- Comic Potential was adapted for television in 2003 in Poland under the title Sila komiczna.