Tag Archives: Hugh Whitemore

Apr 08

Free Will Is an Illusion: “Breaking the Code”

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Matthew Beagan, Eddie Shields; Photo credit: Nile Scott Studios.

Presented by Central Square Theater
Directed by Scott Edmiston
Based on the book Alan Turing, The Enigma by Andrew Hodges
Play by Hugh Whitemore
With a new epilogue by Neil Bartlett
Featuring: Matthew Beagan, Josephine Moshiri Elwood, Paula Plum, Dom Carter, David Bryan Jackson, Eddie Shields

April 2 – 26, 2026
Central Square Theater
450 Massachusetts Avenue
Cambridge, MA 02139

CAMBRIDGE, Mass. — Central Square Theater presents Breaking the Code by Hugh Whitemore, now through April 26. It attempts to shed light on Alan Turing, the gay neurodivergent man, while also highlighting his technological advances. History hasn’t been kind to Turing. Director Scott Edmiston’s production seeks to reverse the cruelty. 

To create some historical perspective, NASA’s Artemis II astronauts are returning to Earth after completing a week-long lunar flyby. These brilliant scientists (Christina Koch, Victor Glover, Reid Wiseman, Jeremy Hansen) trained all of their adult lives to complete this mission. They represent the best of the best minds in the U.S. We will rightly commend them as heroes with a pat on the back and a press conference. Their choice of romantic partner plays no part in their work.  Continue reading →

Apr 14

BREAKING THE CODE: Turing Passes The Test

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Dafydd ap Rees (Mick Ross) and Allyn Burrows (Alan Turing) in Hugh Whitemore's BREAKING THE CODE through May 8. Presented by Catalyst Collaborative@MIT. Performances at Central Square Theater at 450 Massachusetts Avenue, Cambridge. Tickets and Information: http://CentralSquareTheater.org or 866-811-4111. Photo by A.R. Sinclair Photography.


Breaking the Code by Hugh Whitemore, Underground Railway Theater and Catalyst Collaborative @ MIT, Central Square Theater, 4/7/11-5/8/11.  http://www.centralsquaretheater.org/season/10-11/code.html.

Reviewed by Becca Kidwell

Intelligence is a prized commodity that governments and businesses appropriate for their own needs, but don’t always appreciate the ones who provide it.  Alan Turing was loved by Great Britain for his decoding work during World War II and was derided for his failure to conform to social norms after the war.  Breaking the Code masterfully explores the isolating nature of “polite” society.

Underground Railroad Company and Catalyst Collaborative@MIT bring the audience into the world of Alan Turing’s mind and memory.  Performed in the round, the audience literally steps into Janie Howland’s set of inverse geometric spirals as they take their seats.  Strings across the walls and ceiling connect formulas and ideas.  Following the idea of the spirals, director Adam Zahler has Turing (played by Allyn Burrows) follow these patterns as Turing moves through the various moments of his life.  The set and the action become an extension of Alan Turing’s personality. Continue reading →