The Premiere of R.U.R.

Right here, at this grand neoclassical theatre standing proudly along the Vltava River, a single word was born that would change how humanity talks about the future. On 25 January 1921, the National Theatre presented the official premiere of R.U.R., a play by Czech writer Karel Čapek that introduced the word ""robot"" to the entire world. R.U.R. stands for Rossum's Universal Robots, and the play tells the story of artificial workers created from synthetic organic matter who eventually rebel against their human creators. The word ""robot"" itself comes from the Czech term ""robota,"" meaning forced labor or drudgery. It was actually suggested to Karel by his brother Josef Čapek, who also designed the costumes for the production. What makes this premiere particularly interesting is that an amateur theatre group in the town of Hradec Králové had already performed the play on 2 January 1921. They were unaware that the National Theatre had postponed its premiere, making their performance the actual world premiere. Yet it was this official production at the ornate National Theatre that launched R.U.R. into international fame. The impact was staggering. By 1923, just two years later, the play had been translated into 30 languages. The building where you stand became the birthplace of one of the most influential concepts of the modern technological age.