AI and Race: A New Stage for Old Conflicts
Play Explores Future Where Identity Becomes Fluid
A provocative new play, “Black Bone,” currently running in Chicago, raises unsettling questions about how artificial intelligence could reshape discussions of race and identity in America, potentially complicating—and even commodifying—lived experience.
Dystopian Game Show Framing
The production, from Definition Theatre, utilizes a futuristic game show format and AI-generated media to explore these themes. While the play, written by Tina Fakhrid-Deen, is ambitious, a critic notes it attempts to cover too much ground, resulting in a lengthy runtime.
The play’s core focuses on the challenges faced by Black academics within predominantly white institutions, and how that dynamic might shift with the introduction of “professor bots” and other AI technologies. Fakhrid-Deen’s work draws parallels to George C. Wolfe’s satirical classic, “The Colored Museum,” in its use of heightened reality.
The Performance of Race
“Black Bone” envisions a future where America’s current political divisions are exacerbated, not by debates over reparations themselves, but by the consequences of those initiatives in a world where racial identity can be artificially constructed. This echoes growing concerns about deepfakes and the potential for AI to be used to misrepresent individuals and groups. According to a recent Pew Research Center study, 68% of Americans are concerned about the potential for AI to be used to create false information ( Pew Research Center, 2023).
“It’s certainly a dystopian vision of the future but a credible one. If Fakhrid-Deen just commits to the truth of what she wants to say in those scenes and loses the rest, she could have a 90-minute drama filled with fresh thinking about how our ever-contested present morphs into an inevitably similar future.”
—Chris Jones, Critic
A Timeless Debate
The most compelling scenes take place in a faculty lounge, where actors like Martasia Jones, Marlene Slaughter, and Matthew Lolar-Johnson powerfully portray the ongoing debate between working within existing systems and attempting to dismantle them. The production, directed by Carla Stillwell, is described as vibrant and engaging.
Ultimately, “Black Bone” suggests that the fundamental questions surrounding race and identity will persist, even as the tools and technologies used to navigate them evolve. The play encourages audiences to consider how easily race might be “performed” for personal gain in an AI-driven world, and what that might mean for authentic lived experience.
Show Details:
- When: Through June 29
- Where: Definition Theatre, 1160 E. 55th St.
- Running time: 2 hours
- Tickets: $15-$35 (plus fees) at definitiontheatre.org
