Douglas Smith and Emma Ramos Will Lead MACHINE LEARNING at Little Engine Theater
The Off-Broadway debut of Australian playwright Kate Vozella unfolds inside a companionship research program gone awry.
Little Engine Theater will present the world premiere of Machine Learning by Australian playwright Kate Vozella in her Off-Broadway debut. Directed by award-winning Irish director Colm Summers, Machine Learning stars Douglas Smith (HBO's “Big Little Lies” & “Big Love,” MCC Theater's Punk Rock) and Emma Ramos (NBC's “New Amsterdam,” Ivo van Hove's Scenes From a Marriage) in a strictly limited engagement that runs October 6 – 30, 2026, at Manhattan Neighborhood Network (509 West 38th St.) The opening is set for Tuesday, October 20.
In Machine Learning, two couples enter a research program at a remote facility, believing their interactions will help train humanoid companions in human intimacy. But as the experiment unfolds, they are forced to reckon with their patterns, secrets, and vulnerabilities. Machine Learning is a darkly funny and deeply human exploration of our search for connection in a time when we're increasingly led to believe that technology can fix it all.
Additional casting will be announced at a later date.
The creative team for Machine Learning includes Tyler Herald (set design), Karen Boyer (costume design), Christopher Wong (lighting design), Liam Bellman-Sharpe (sound design), Leia Squillace (production manager), and Mary Garrigan (stage manager).
Playwright Kate Vozella remarked, “I'm fascinated by the ways society looks toward technology to solve fundamentally human problems. I'm interested in attachment and in the ways we shape one another in relationships, often without realizing it—why we repeat certain patterns, why we stay, why we leave, and whether we can ever really change alone. Maybe change is an act as simple—and as difficult—as being truly vulnerable with another person.”
Director Colm Summers said, “With the rise of AI, we are at an inflection point. We're in a literacy crisis, a crisis of emotional intelligence, a critical thinking crisis, a political crisis, and soon a crisis of affection, empathy and romance. Kate's work gets right at the heart of all of that. She probes at what it means to be human in a post-human world. I'm so honored to be directing this world premiere production, after seven years of working with my friend and collaborator. As two International Artists working in the U.S., I'm so grateful our work has found a home at Little Engine Theater.”
Little Engine Theater's co-founders Lilly Englert, Theodora Miranne, and Elena Rusconi, all-born outside the U.S., remarked, “Machine Learning is our third production for Little Engine Theater, and our biggest and most ambitious yet. With each show, we've been refining what we want our company to be: a home for bold, relevant, international work that challenges audiences and pushes the boundaries of theater. For Machine Learning, we're transforming Manhattan Neighborhood Network into the home of the companionship program at the center of the play, allowing audiences to step directly into the world of the experiment. The physical space becomes part of the storytelling itself, creating an experience that feels raw and intimate. We're thrilled to be bringing Kate Vozella's bold, distinctive voice to life under Colm Summers' fearless direction.”
Performances of Machine Learning will be complemented by pre and post-show experiences and encounters that engage the senses and deepen connections to the production. Sixteen performances of Machine Learning will take place October 6 – 30, 2026, at Manhattan Neighborhood Network, located at 509 West 38th St. Critics are welcome as of Monday, October 12 for an opening on Tuesday, October 20. Performances take place on October 6, 7, 12–15, 20–24, 26–30 at 8pm. The anticipated running time is 90 minutes with no intermission.
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