A Play for Over-Texted Americans
Meltwater adds, “This isn’t just about large numbers; it’s a reflection of a deeply ingrained ‘always-online’ culture, amplified by the renowned warmth and highly social nature of Filipinos.”
Whether an “always-online culture” is a badge of pride or a mark of notoriety depends entirely on the audience.
The No Phone Fantasy
Alexandra Hellquist and Julia Manis (Photo by Jeff Lorch)
Imagine the trail of digital crumbs you’d leave behind if you disappeared into an off-the-grid, Wi-Fi-free cabin in the shadow of Humboldt County’s towering redwoods. Think of the millions of keystrokes, emails, bills, applications, and messages you’ve produced. Then picture the biggest trove of all—your cellphone—with its endless texts, location-tagged photos, and selfies from every angle. Now imagine this mountain of data rolled into one giant lint ball, perfect for artificial intelligence (AI) to sift through and reshape.
AI, crawling through your words, photos, videos, and digital habits, has enough material to build a virtual version of you. And that avatar might even keep your life running. While Real You communes with Bigfoot near the Oregon border, Virtual You could continue sending inside jokes to friends you rarely see, mimic your voice as it invents weekend exploits, show up on Zoom, pay your bills, and evolve as you age—because growth is expected. City life might not even register your absence. You might even gain more Likes.
This idea of digitally resurrecting a loved one drives the play Anthropology, written by Lauren Gunderson and running through November 9, 2025, at Rogue Machine Theatre on Melrose Boulevard in Los Angeles. Fil-Am actor Alexandra Hellquist launches the clever premise as Merril, the older sister in a dysfunctional family. Using her tech skills, she tries to find closure a year after her sister’s disappearance—before things take a more investigative turn. Anything more would spoil the surprises in this timely story.
I’m not usually the type to be swept away by a stage production, but at a Sunday matinee I found myself leaning forward, trying to catch every word and gesture. (Being five inches closer doesn’t help much.) Hellquist holds her own against towering screens, LEDs, and high-concept staging—no small feat.
“People are already recreating their loved ones through algorithms,” Hellquist notes. She’s certain that “there could be an AI version of me based on my phone, computer, online search history, FaceTime calls, merchandise purchases, and returns.”
If similarities bring people together, then the characters she has played on stage and screen would get along well. “I’m almost always cast as someone who has experienced abuse or some deep injustice,” she says—traits Merril shares.
“I’m trusting myself to be enough, to try not to feel, to contain my feelings instead of being like a raw wound.” She’s describing a character who contrasts sharply with her more measured demeanor offstage.
Her view of AI is hardly unusual: “As artists, AI could be a beautiful tool to expand the possibilities and liberate us.
City of Dreams
Kaylee Kaneshiro (top) and Alexandra Hellquist (photo by Jeff Lorch)
More than a year has passed since Positively Filipino featured Hellquist in Unbroken Blossoms at East West Players. Since then, she’s become an American citizen—though she jokes she wouldn’t complain if ICE sent her to either of the countries on her two passports: the Philippines or Sweden. When I interviewed her, she had just returned from a No Kings rally in Hollywood.
“It’s a very scary time for creative people when the industry is existentially threatened by so many forces,” she says.
Though she’s a rare Fil-Am actor who appears more in dramas than musicals, she hopes to use her singing and dancing in the TV pilot Liberty Girls. “It’s a historical drama with moments of comedy. There are beautiful singing and dancing set pieces.” After a flash of excitement, she adds, “I’m not attached to Liberty Girls. Yet.”
She thinks it’s too early to dispense advice to young Fil-Am actors arriving in New York. “I need words of encouragement myself.” Pressed for guidance, she offers: “If doors aren’t open, then build your own stories. Your stories are important. Your collaborators are already around you.”
A Safety Net Called Tango
Hellquist is currently enjoying a wave of rave reviews, but she has a backup plan for the day when exposing her soul onstage becomes exhausting. “I would dance tango,” she says.
She’s already found a dance instructor and partner. “Bobby Marquez is a professional tango dancer, and he’s Filipino. When we dance Argentinian tango, sometimes he leads and sometimes the girl leads,” she says, describing a more egalitarian approach than the dance’s cultural stereotype.
“It’s a very scary time for creative people when the industry is existentially threatened by so many forces,” she says.
But she’s not ready to give up on Hollywood. During our Zoom call, she stared deadpan into the camera and pleaded, “I’ve been here (in LA) ten years. Someone, discover me and put me in something. Please give me a career!” By casting her in Anthropology, director John Perrin Flynn may have placed her in the express lane to stardom.
If it’s after November 9 when you read this, email info@roguemachinetheatre.com to find out whether Anthropology has been extended. And while you’re on Melrose, LA’s own Louvre of Filipino eateries, Kuya Lord, awaits.
Anthony Maddela lives in Los Angeles with his family of four. If you’re friends with Bruno Mars, Olivia Rodrigo, H.E.R., or Manny Jacinto, he’d love to interview them.
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