Scott Shepherd

The Halting Problem, written and performed by Louis Cancelmi

This is the monologue of an artificial person. These are its thoughts and feelings. When it looks at you, it sees itself. But what do you see when you look at it? What kind of a thing is it? And what kind of a thing are you? "Remember, my child: there's nothing natural in nature. When nature seems natural to you, that will be the end. Something else will start. Good-bye sky, good-bye sea. What a beautiful sky!"

Louis Cancelmi has appeared on and off Broadway in productions for Lincoln Center, the Public Theater, Shakespeare in the Park, Signature Theater, Playwrights Horizons, Soho Rep, and many others. On screen he's known for memorable turns in Martin Scorsese's recent epics The Irishman and Killers of the Flower Moon, as well as for various TV and independent film roles. His writing and translations have been featured in Conjunctions, Redivider, The New England Review, and The Cincinnati Review, which published an abridged version of The Halting Problem in 2024. This play was developed in part with assistance from The Orchard Project.

Scott Shepherd has performed with both The Wooster Group and Elevator Repair Service since the late 20th century. He was the narrator of Gatz, the eight-hour every-word staging of The Great Gatsby recently revived at the Public Theater. He will soon be back at the Public with ERS’s Ulysses, which he co-directed. He played the cult leader David on The Last of Us. Look for him in Sterlin Harjo's new series The Lowdown and alongside Matthew McConaughey in The Rivals of Amziah King, both coming soon. Other screen credits include Killers of the Flower Moon, First Cow, El Camino, The Young Pope, and Bridge of Spies.