Rossum's Universal Robots - Part 2 - a podcast by BBC Radio 4

Music and Lyrics by Susannah Pearse
Book by Robert HudsonKarel Čapek's ultra-prescient, retro-futurist 1921 comedy is reimagined with a massive dose of character-driven and song-centred heart.

In Capek's world, robots did all the work and their human overseers cared only about enriching themselves and little about the costs to the planet. But now a new breed of robots has been grown and everything has changed.These new robots, with built-in emotion and free will, reasoned that the planet was being destroyed by intelligent life so they intervened by saving the world. The final part of their plan was to destroy themselves thus nullifying the damage they might cause to the planet. However, when push comes to shove, they can't bring themselves to do it. Instead, they must come to terms with what it means to be robot.

Alpha . . . . . Anneika RoseRadius . . . . . Paul Hilton
Helen 2 . . . . . Clare FosterBrown Owl . . . . . Neil McCaul
Alquist . . . . . Matthew DurkanBenoit . . . . . Chris Jack

Arrangements and Musical Direction: Harry SeverProduction co-ordinator: Luke MacGregor
Sound: Peter RingroseDirector: Sasha Yevtushenko

Further episodes of Drama of the Week

Further podcasts by BBC Radio 4

Website of BBC Radio 4