Construction of Unique Polycyclic 3, 4‐Fused Indoles via Rhodium(III)‐Catalyzed Domino Annulations**.

A novel and efficient domino annulation for the construction of unrevealed polycyclic 3, 4‐fused indoles involving rhodium(III)‐catalyzed alkyne insertion followed by aza‐Michael addition is presented. A variety of N‐(pivaloyloxy)arylamides and N‐(pivaloyloxy)‐1H‐indole‐1‐carboxamides were utilized in this annulation with 4‐alkynyl‐3‐alkenyl indoles. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]