Controversy over the use of artificial intelligence has come to the Lucille Ball Little Theatre.

On Sunday, Aubrey Russell, Little Theatre board president, made a lengthy Facebook post after questions were raised about the use of artificial intelligence in the theatre’s advertising materials.

“First and foremost, we want to acknowledge the concern,” Russell said. “We know that AI can ever replicate human art, human performance, or the lived experience of theatre. We also know there are very real concerns across the creative community about AI being used to replace artists, designers, writers, performers and other creative professionals. We share many of those same concerns. At the same time we believe there is a place for AI within the artistic community when it is used ethically, strategically and transparently.”

Russell said the theatre has used AI to help market productions, typically as part of the backgrounds and visual environment of early promotional materials. Use includes extending the edges of a photo to fit required dimensions, creating a more complete background when a set isn’t finished in time for promotional materials, to develop visuals that match the tone of a show or help the theater create usable materials when rights holders don’t provide those materials. Marketing often begins long before a production is ready to be photographed, Russell said, and theater officials are trying to use new tools to engage with potential audiences online.

The use of artificial intelligence in the arts made headlines recently when the Oscars announced new policies governing how films nominated for the Oscars can use AI. As part of its annual review of Oscar eligibility rules, the academy is tackling one of the global filmmaking community’s biggest concerns: generative artificial intelligence. The new rules state that “the tools neither help nor harm the chances of achieving a nomination” and that the academy and each branch “will judge the achievement, taking into account the degree to which a human was at the heart of the creative authorship when choosing which movie to award.” They’re also reserving the right to request more information from the filmmaking team about the nature of the use of AI and “human authorship.”

Russell was clear to say in the Little Theatre’s statement that the theatre has no intention to use AI to alter, change, fabricate or replace any of its actors.

“Our actors are at the heart of what we do,” Russell said. “Their presence, expressions, movement, talent and humanity cannot be replicated by data, code or any tool, no matter how advanced. We want to state this clearly. AI is not the full creative product. It is one tool used within a larger human-led design process. Whenever possible, we prioritize the use of actual production photos once the set, costumes, lighting and staging are ready.” We believe that is the best way to present our productions and to highlight the enormous amount of work our casts, crews, designers, builders, costumers, directors and volunteers put into every show. That is always the goal.”

The Little Theatre’s use of artificial intelligence is being driven, in part, to balance the needs of online promotion that rewards consistency, frequency and polished visuals that often aren’t possible while a production is in the midst of a rehearsal process with the requirements imposed by using licensed work that govern how a show can be represented, including logos, approved artwork, colors, backgrounds and image sizes. Social media posts can take between 2 to 4 hours to edit and prepare, not including planning, writing, staging photos, reviewing designs or making adjustments. The theatre isn’t in a financial position to hire people to do such work, Russell said, while noting the advertising approach is working as the theatre has seen year-over-year gains in attendance for the first time in more than a decade..

“This is a human driven win,” Russell said. “It is the result of volunteers using a variety of tools available to them, including AI, to tell stronger stories, support our productions and bring audiences into the theatre. The results matter, but they do not remove our responsibility to use these tools carefully. We will continue using AI only in limited, thoughtful and ethical ways that support the theatre, respect our artists and make responsible use of our volunteers’ time and budget. We will also continue reviewing our approach to make sure those boundaries remain clear and that these tools stay in service of the human work, not in place of it.”