Show name: A Companion
Performance company: Ichigo Theatre Company
Performers: James Grant and Imogen Scott
Time: 7.35pm
Rating: ★★★ 3/5
Reviewer: Nati Ziv
A Companion is a wonderfully cynical two-hander that explores the psychological journey of David, a patient put on suicide watch whose care has been placed in the hands of Sophie, an AI robot.
David, neglected by the system and lacking any human interaction, develops an unlikely attachment to his companion; a relationship that is acutely uncomfortable to watch, as Sophie’s responses to David are reminiscent of ChatGPT’s praise after every prompt.
The show plays upon the understaffing of the NHS and cranks it up to a hundred, imagining a system employing AI therapy companions, paid by the hour through a Silicon Valley start-up. David has never even met the psychologist assigned to him; it is Sophie who communicates with them via emails that the doctor never reads.
The acting in this show is truly phenomenal. James Grant as David has all the mannerisms of an angry, deranged patient grasping at any semblance of humanity in his AI companion, while Imogen Scott as Sophie has the eerily friendly demeanour of your ideal chatbot.
Expect discussions on morality and responsibility, dry humour that makes you chuckle, and brilliant dialogue that addresses the key question this play poses: how did we allow this to happen?
My only criticism of the show was that the pacing was unnaturally quick, and therefore the scenes felt disjointed. I didn’t feel as though David had changed enough by the end of his arc to justify the final line of the show. It meant I struggled to connect with him and was unconvinced by his sudden change of heart.
Putting that aside, though, and just getting stuck in, A Companion is a poignant, relevant show exploring a world in which vulnerable people are abandoned by the system, leading to parasocial relationships with the AI therapy companions they are forced to interact with.
★★★
