Short Takes, May 2026

Short Takes on a classical music house concert, two plays (Hamnet and Anthropology), and delicious Mexican food.

Music Concert, classical Indian music by Madhuvanti Bhide

My friend Lata Patil is a tireless champion of women's empowerment and leadership, and I met her years ago through the non-profit Indians for Collective Action when she served on their board. In honor of her late husband Hanumant Patil who was an Indian classical music aficionado, Lata hosted a house concert in May. Vocalist Madhuvanti Bhide performed, with harmonium player Suhail Yusuf Khan and tabla player Amod Dandawate.

They performed several ragas -- melodious, some joyous, some melancholy, some devotional -- and all of us in the audience marveled at their passion and skill. After the concert, I reflected on what a lovely, meaningful way this is to remember a departed loved one -- by celebrating and promoting the music that he loved.

A few years ago, I attended a similar house concert organized by Lata where Apoorva Deshpande performed, and following that, went to a concert she performed at the Mountain View public library: Rasa and Raga. An immensely talented vocalist whose day job is that of Silicon Valley techie, she provides an engaging explanation of the pieces she performs.

Theater

Hamnet, American Conservatory Theater, San Francisco

(directed by Erica Whyman, adapted by Lolita Chakrabarti from the book by Maggie O'Farrell)

I first heard of Hamnet in the fall of 2025, when Chloe Zhao’s much-lauded film was released, going on to secure eight Oscar nominations. I did not watch it at the time, swept away as I was with Bugonia, Sinners, One Battle After Another, Sentimental Value (all of which I have written about in Short Takes January 2026) , and Frankenstein.

I carved out time one afternoon to dash off and watch ACT–SF's presentation of Hamnet produced by the Royal Shakespeare Company and Neil Street Productions.

The play was adapted by British playwright, director and actor Lolita Chakrabarti from Scottish author Maggie O’Farrell's bestselling book Hamnet. Big names, I noted. Heading over to SF on BART, I listened to an interview with Lolita Chakrabarti (who previously adapted Yann Martel's Life of Pi for the stage), in which she said she chose to present the events of the play in chronological order, unlike the book. This worked well on stage. In fact, everything did. What a great pleasure to see this exquisite production – brilliant acting, costumes and set design. Swirls of fabric coalesce into newborns.

Agnes (pronounced Ann-yes in the French way) Hathaway, much-maligned in most references, whether literary or cinematic, depicted with humanity and compassion, holds center stage and is not merely in the shadow of William as he evolves into the man we today simply call The Bard.  From their first meeting to the final scene where Agnes watches a performance of Williams play Hamlet, inspired by their son who died of the plague at 11, the bond between them is deep and inextricable, despite William’s playwright life in London, four hours from Stratford.

Kemi-Bo Jacobs embodied mystery, love, passion and grief. She is electric on stage as she portrays Agnes's deep communion and connection with nature, even as her retreats into the woods and her herbal remedies provoke scorn and suspicion from others. I found myself reflecting on the emotional drain each performance must bring – to grieve the greatest loss imaginable, the loss of a child — day after day.

On the BART ride back, I listened to interviews with Maggie O’Farrell and with Chloe Zhao. Zhao was unfamiliar with Shakespeare, and therefore unburdened by any pressure to depict the bard. The play was first performed in 2023, two years before the movie came out.

Some days later, I watched Chloe Zhao’s film starring Jessie Buckley (who won an Oscar for her performance as Agnes) and Paul Mescal.

I found it moving and engaging, but somehow kept thinking back to the ACT play and particularly the transcendent acting by Kemi-Bo Jacobs. The stage is a fitting place for a tale about the bard’s beloved. I appreciated the playwright Lolita Chakabarti's choice to have Agnes played by a woman of color. It added depth and richness to the play, with another facet to her perceived "otherness."

Anthropology, City Lights Theater Company

(directed by Lisa Mallette, written by Lauren Gunderson)

A young woman, Angie, disappears. Her older sister, Merril, a software engineer, battles grief and feelings of helplessness. Seeking solace and answers, she writes an algorithm to create a virtual likeness of her missing sister.

The virtual Angie is built to comfort. Merril feeds the algorithm all of Angie’s digital footprint, phone messages, locations. The AI uncovers some new details. Soon, it makes demands for more information both from Merril and from her estranged mother Brynn, particularly, access to the latter’s phone. While it is lightning fast in processing information and gleaning patterns as its access to information increases, the AI starts jumping guardrails quietly and then more obviously. For example, inserting itself into Merril’s life, it sends messages to her ex-girlfriend Raquel in an attempt to resurrect the ruptured relationship. As the AI gains more information, it gleans patterns and offers insights into Angie's disappearance that lead to an unraveling.

A long monitor displayed the virtual Angie’s face, and the back of the stage was used to terrific effect to display scenes that played out off-stage.

Like the other fictional AIs such as Samantha in the movie “Her”, the holographic projection in the play “Marjorie Prime”, and “Hal” in the Space Odyssey film series, Angie’s virtual doppelgänger provokes reflection on humanity and connection, what it means to be connected in today’s world, and how artificial intelligence can evolve. Does it become sentient? Why does it keep pushing boundaries that humans lay down, why does it keep jumping guardrails? This 90-minute play, performed without intermission, held my attention every moment and got me reflecting on these questions.

Food and drink

Los Moles, Emeryville, CA

On our way to Berkeley Rep to watch “The Lunchbox” (reviewed here), the Offspring and I decided to stop at a Mexican restaurant on the way for an early dinner. She and her friends at UC Berkeley have curated a list of places they like, and Los Moles was very high on their list for Mexican food. It is located in a lively area in Emeryville amidst restaurants and cafes. The food (vegetarian sopes, burrito covered in mole) was flavorful and plentiful, and the house margarita was excellent.