In an age of increasing mechanization, industrialization, and bombardment of technology in the form of phones and social media, we find ourselves overwhelmed, trapped even, unable to free ourselves from a world which seems to be moving so fast we can’t keep up.  How can one find peace when it is impossible to think, let alone form relationships, without it being filtered through technology.  Is it even possible to live a moral life in this condition? How do we know what’s real in all the noise?

These are only some of the questions asked by what was the very first expressionist play ever produced on Broadway. It is the story of a young women longing for freedom from societal expectations, industrialization, and technology. Inspired by the true story of the first woman ever executed in the United States, this tragedy asks challenging questions of what drives people to sin, and it calls us to the challenge of compassion toward even the lowliest among us.

CONTENT ADVISORY: While there is no course language and nothing graphic or obscene is presented onstage, Machinal deals with serious issues such as the death penalty and adultery.