In the episode "", Barclay's brain is mutated by an ancient race from the center of the Milky Way galaxy, the Cytherians, radically increasing his intellect. Under this influence, Barclay seizes control of the "Enterprise" and brings the ship into contact with the Cytherians. Barclay explains to Picard that they only desire an exchange of information with the Federation. After the exchange, the Cytherians return the "Enterprise" to Federation space, restoring Barclay to normal and leaving him with only the memory of his actions and an enhanced ability at chess. This episode also sees Barclay try his hand at acting, performing the title role in Dr. Crusher's production of "Cyrano de Bergerac". While his unaided performance was poor, his enhanced performance riveted the onlookers and greatly impressed Dr. Crusher.