Group Performance: Unit 3: Androids, Cyborgs and Other Machines Acting Up

The performing group started out by giving each student a sticker with a barcode on it and a serial number, and each person had to sign a release before receiving their barcode.  The release form was on some letterhead for a fictional company, Bearbotz, Inc.  

Then the performing group showed a video that addressed the class directly, it was as if a machine were teaching the class certain content.  The premise was that all education had been standardized in the world to the point that all students were being taught the same content by one machine simultaneously.  

The students were divided into three groups, supposedly according to gender though it didn't work out that way.

Then the video (the computer's instruction) was "interrupted" by two other members of the performing group who claimed that the students were being brainwashed by the teaching computer and that they (the two) were coming to liberate the class.  Then the two liberators busted into the class and told everyone they had to leave right away.  About 1/3-1/2 of the students got up and left.  One of the two liberators "escaped" with the students who got up and left, but the other liberator was held back by two students, who were actually undercover "guards."  Then, none of the other students were allowed to leave the room.

Then a Q&A followed.

Naomi: I didn't sign the release.

Evan: I did.  I conform to everything.  

Wafa: It was interesting.  It was very confusing.  It still is.  It did make me think about machines acting up.

Evan: I liked how it was put together.

Naomi:  Yeah, it was really well put together.

Wafa: We were confused, but that was the fun part about it.  We didn't know what to expect.  It was funny to see people leaving and get stuck out there.

Naomi: When I saw the presentation, I instantly thought Terminator.  I, Robot.  

Evan: A.I.

Naomi: It's such a common fear in pop culture b/c it's really easy to pick up on, this whole Singularity concept.  Even in pop culture, if you talk about the Singularity outside of pop culture, it's a joke.  

Gail: The video for this performance was astounding, it was so well-edited and I loved that the video was not supposed to be a recording.  It was supposed to be live and alive!  And then the conceit of the "interruption" of the live instruction was so awesome, with Josh and Annabelle running into the room as a huge divider between the students - it was so fascinating to see whether people stayed or left.  That was a lot of what we talked about afterwards.