Captured! By Robots

It’s one of the oldest stories: Human creates robot backing band; human and robot band create infectious metal-tinged rock and roll; robots capture human, making him their slave and delighting in humiliating him onstage. Well, maybe the tale is obscure, but Captured By
Robots is just as much a comedy performance as a rock show. There’s a lot of wit in Jay Vance’s schlocky, B-movie premise, and the stage show makes ample use of it. It’s that camp that keeps the antics of the band’s captive human, “JBOT,” from simply singing karaoke in front of a bunch of puppets. Happily, the music itself would be entertaining without it; and that combination of comedy and rock and roll makes for a potent live show. Expect a chorus of robots throwing divalike tantrums, plus a cymbal-playing ape — Ape Which Hath No Name, by the way — hopped up on cocaine.