Ash Knight, Artistic Executive Director of Pleiades Theatre, today announced the world premiere of Karma by Aksam Alyousef, on stage at Theatre Passe Muraille from May 1 to 17. The show will be directed by Ash Knight, starring Basel Daoud, Andrew Iles, Zaynna Khalife, Tony Nash and Christina Tannous. Tickets are on sale now at www.pleiadestheatre.org.

The bonds of family, the trauma of civil war, the notion of forgiveness and how our circumstances shape us.

Set in 2012, Karma follows Adeeb, a young man born in Canada who believes that he lived a previous life in Syria. His Syrian mother, Karma, worries for his mental health, and forces him to dismiss the notion. Now an adult, Adeeb travels to Syria, forcing himself and his mother to confront their past and current lives.

Said playwright Aksam Alyousef: “There is a quiet possibility that life is not a single flame but a returning light. That we might inherit the burdens we helped create. That every judgment plants a future in which we stand on the other side of our own certainty. If this is so, then cruelty is only a debt deferred. Compassion becomes the only form of freedom. To see this play receive its world premiere with Pleiades is deeply meaningful to me. Their commitment to bold, thoughtful storytelling creates the right space for these questions to live on stage, not as abstract ideas, but as human encounters shared with an audience in real time.”

Added director Ash Knight: “This is the second collaboration between Aksam and Pleiades, the first where we have been fully involved in the development of the work. Aksam brings years of experience as a theatre practitioner around the world, and with his talents now in Canada, we are stronger for it. With Karma, Aksam brings to life a complex story, with poetic language. The piece is a challenge for artists and audiences alike, one that will leave everyone who experiences it moved and aware. The play explores themes of forgiveness and trauma, and Aksam does this without ever preaching or handing us the answers. He asks the questions, and hopefully, we find the answers together.”

Karma will feature scenic and projection design by Lucas Arab, costume design by Arianna Lilith Moodie, sound design by Gurpreet Chana, stage management by Jennifer Stobart, and production management by Carlos Varala, with costume volunteer Jasmine Bough.

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KARMA

May 1 to 17, 2026 at Theatre Passe Muraille, 16 Ryerson Ave, Toronto, ON M5T 2P3

Wed. to Sat. 7:30 p.m. | Sat. and Sun. 2 p.m.

Opening night is Friday, May 1 at 7:30 p.m.

Running time: 100 minutes, no intermission.

Content note: Mature language & content. Age recommendation: 14+.

Tickets start at $15, with a tiered pay-what-you-can structure.

For more information, visit www.pleiadestheatre.org or the Theatre Passe Muraille box office.

Pleiades Theatre:

Sharing First and Second Generation Canadian Stories | www.pleiadestheatre.org

Pleiades aims to redefine what it means to be Canadian by sharing stories from 1st and 2nd generation Canadians. We encourage 1st and 2nd generation storytellers - particularly artists of colour, but through intersectionality, also Deaf artists, artists with disabilities, artists living with mental illness, New Gen artists, 2SLBTQIAP artists, and Indigenous artists - to create:

• INSPIRATIONS: new, relevant plays exploring 1st and/or 2nd generation stories;

• TRANSLATIONS: sharing stories from other languages for all audiences;

• ADAPTATIONS: exploring existing works through a new lens.