Something Rotten! and the Growing AI Problem in Theatre
Written by Emmie and Rosie for Theatre and Tonic.
There doesn’t seem to be a week when we are not witnessing the visibility of AI in the theatre space these days. Whether it's through promotional material for a show which doesn’t have the budget to hire a specific creative for design or last year’s claims that Edinburgh Fringe reviews were generated by AI, it is becoming something which isn’t discussed as much as you’d think. Now, the recent UK production of Something Rotten! in Manchester has come under fire for presenting potential AI-generated material in their show. A musical which centres itself with the themes of plagiarism and morality, its use of this element feels like it kicks every other fantastic thing about the show in the face.
A huge fan of the show itself, our writer Rosie said that “It’s especially upsetting to see AI used when shows such as the UK debut of “Something Rotten!” have clearly spent a lot to make the show look absolutely fantastic, from sets, to costumes, to small props used for less than a minute, there were clearly no expenses spared for the most part with the production. With all that money being thrown into a show to make it look as good as it does, to then fall at the final hurdle and use AI feels like a punch in the face.”
Rosie referred to several moments in the show where audiences “are faced with uses of AI: Renaissance “portraits” of the entire cast for their “A Chorus Line” moment in the show’s stand-out number, the recreation of the famous “Chandos” Shakespeare portrait in modern poses for his party scene, and a portrait painted during the act two opener. Especially noticeable (and particularly heinous, but also not in the fashion of the show) was the final curtain, which drops as the finale number begins and displays an AI image of a turkey and shack in America at the time the pilgrims arrived.”
“With the signature AI look and colouring, it was instantly clear that AI had been used to lazily create one of the final, lasting images in the audience’s minds and leave us with a sour taste..”
However, it seems that the theatre community does not think this is the only show which has been using AI in its productions. In comments under an Instagram post published by a content creator, review.the.situations, where they talk about the Something Rotten production specifically, people were sure that the recent UK premiere of The Greatest Showman, which is tipped to make a West End premiere in 2027, also had some elements of AI. There were also comments referring to Thespians, a new musical by Mischief Comedy, as well as last year’s premiere of 13 Going on 30 The Musical, which was also staged in Manchester at the Opera House.
We all know that creating and producing art takes time, especially when bringing together all of the fibres to create a show. Humans created the sets and costumes, humans choreographed the dances, humans performed live in front of hundreds of people every single night, so why can we not hire another human or two to create the art used within the show? There is so much to rant and rave about in every other aspect of Manchester’s production of “Something Rotten!”, but until there is transparency in place regarding the use of AI and how unwelcome it should be in spaces like theatre, in good conscience, we cannot. In the programme, there are no declarations of using AI, and we didn’t receive any comment when we reached out to the team behind the show.
We see the visibility of AI in local productions when they utilise ChatGPT’s functions to help them create more aesthetically pleasing promotional material, rather than finding an affordable creative who can do this job for them. There have been new content creators in this space who have created their “brand” image by using AI. It's lazy, looks crap to be completely honest, and most people will not engage with it.
We must keep calling out the use of AI in productions such as this, especially in an industry which values living connection in live performance, show “business” aside. This must extend not only to the performers themselves but also to those who create the show behind the scenes, because their artistry is just as important as the performers’.
