AI is making its way into some unexpected places with Bright Side Productions‘ Coded Comedy, where a ChatGPT- inspired chatbot named Chatalie, programmed by Coded Comedy’s musician Jackson Harper Griggs, helps co-write a new improvised musical comedy each night.
On the final night of their FRINGE WORLD run, Lainey O’Sullivan played host alongside Maree Cole, Caleb Macauley, and Tate Bennett. She asked the audience for some initial prompts which she then fed (via voice or typing) into a laptop where Chatalie came up with a basic narrative theme and title of show. The Chatalie interface was shown on a large screen house right so that the audience could see in real time what Chatalie came up with. The cast took turns asking Chatalie to invent plot points, characters, and song lyrics throughout the production of “Zoo School” (or something to that effect), where zoo animals ran amok in a school for both animals and children.
As is to be expected with new technologies/programs, some misinterpretations of the cast’s prompts cropped up, but those quickly became fodder for comedy. In a sense, these slight pauses for clarification or elaboration probably took the same amount of time as they would if they’d come from a human audience member the way they do in analogue improv settings. In contrast, the cast wouldn’t have to deal with the kind of audience member who thinks they’re part of the cast, so that’s a plus.
O’Sullivan was especially adept at taking Chatalie’s suggestions and running with them; her ability to improvise a coherent and plausible musical ballad complete with clever puns and a catchy chorus was quite impressive. Cole was excellent at making offers to her fellow cast members, and gave plenty of goofy physical comedy alongside Bennett as they shifted from human to animal form and back again. Macauley seemed to struggle with making offers, but was good with a pithy quip and retort. Griggs leaned heavily into the ballads on this particular night, but responded to O’Sullivan’s protest, “If I have to sing one more ballad…!!!” by picking up the pace with her.
This is the company’s first year-ish of operation, their second foray into FRINGE WORLD, and they’re going on to a run at Adelaide Fringe. While there may be room for a few structural/procedural tweaks and some opportunity for honing the cast’s improv prowess and cohesion, they’re onto something interesting and innovative that is sure to keep gaining momentum and a big following too.
CICELY BINFORD
Coded Comedy by Bright Side Productions was presented at The Red Room from 23 Jan – 2 Feb 2025 as part of FRINGE WORLD.
