LIFELONG by Pepperdine Scotland to Premiere at Edinburgh Fringe
Playwright Lynda Radley reunites with Pepperdine Scotland for the AI-themed work at Greenside Venues.
Double Fringe First winners Pepperdine Scotland and playwright Lynda Radley have renewed their partnership to premiere an urgent new work addressing the power and potential abuse of technology.
Lifelong, running from 5-17 August at this year's Edinburgh Fringe, is set in a luxurious facility set apart from the outside world where scientific advances have been harnessed to give them previously impossibly long and youthful lives.
The daily regimen is dictated by AIs to ensure their wellbeing.
So, what happens when an outsider arrives to disrupt the routine, and what is the true cost of a long, sheltered life?
Time, it seems, is ticking after all and much is at stake.
Pepperdine Scotland is an initiative which brings together leading Scottish playwrights and students from the Department of Theatre at California's Pepperdine University to create and present theatre tackling hot button issues at the Edinburgh Fringe.
The previous collaboration between Pepperdine Scotland and Lynda, with The Interference, earned a Fringe First (the company's second) plus widespread critical acclaim.
Lynda said: "I am delighted to be collaborating with Pepperdine Scotland again, ten years after I first worked with them on The Interference; a deeply satisfying and meaningful experience. As ever the students are wonderfully engaged.
"When collaborating with Pepperdine the size of the cast and openness of the brief supports risk and ambition.
"I've chosen a subject and form for the play that is vastly different from The Interference.
"Lifelong is set in the future, but asks questions of now, something which this company of young people are more than ready to do.
"It will be a challenge to realise the strange world I've created, but I have no doubt in their creativity, enthusiasm and ability to bring Lifelong to life."
Hollace Starr, associate professor of theater at Pepperdine University, will be directing a Pepperdine Scotland production for the second time.
She said: "Rapid scientific advances and the yearning for eternal life may soon see new scientific breakthroughs combine with the power of AI to vastly extend human lifespans.
"But who will benefit - the many or the few and at what price?
"The wonderful thing about Pepperdine Scotland is the opportunity it gives our up-and-coming actors to work with powerfully creative and intellectually provocative playwrights to create compelling work addressing major issues facing contemporary society.
"Coming to the Edinburgh to be part of the world's greatest performing arts festival is always thrilling. So too is the chance to renew our collaboration with Lynda, whose play The Interference was a highpoint in the history of our company."
Further, this edition of the Pepperdine Scotland project is produced in association with Scottish theatre company Scissor Kick.
Since Scissor Kick's inception in 2021, they have produced 16 productions, nine research and development periods, presented 148 performances, shared their work with 21,192 audience members, and employed a total of 257 artists.
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