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‘Data’ Opens at the Lortel as Critics Hail a Timely AI Drama

Critics cite a taut production channeling current anxieties over AI-driven immigration policy.

Overview

  • The production began its run on January 25 at the Lucille Lortel Theatre and is scheduled through March 29.
  • Karan Brar leads the cast as Maneesh, with Brandon Flynn, Sophia Lillis, and Justin H. Min, under Tyne Rafaeli’s direction.
  • Maneesh’s vaunted predictive algorithm, first applied to baseball careers, becomes the leverage point at Athena Technologies for a secret, politically sensitive assignment.
  • Reviews emphasize the play’s ethical stakes and a whistleblowing dilemma at the story’s core, with recurring ping-pong sequences sharpening the tension without revealing outcomes.
  • Design elements—set, lighting, and sound—draw praise, the work is labeled an “Intellectual Horror Drama,” and coverage notes a discrepancy over the playwright’s first name.