Christina Tannous & Zaynna Khalife in Karma | Photo by Cylla von Tiedemann
I appreciate the essence of playwright Aksam Alyousef’s poetic melodrama Karma, presented in its world premiere by Pleiades Theatre, recognize the heartfelt belief he has in the story’s emotive potency and understand the complex humanity he’s trying to wrestle with; the actual writing, however, is clunky and cloying. Intent has inherent value, but this type of hard-hitting theatre requires an alignment of that intent with nuanced and solid execution. This falters significantly on the page and in performance.
The story is trying to negotiate the gritty realities of civil war with a lyrical mysticism. Adeeb (Andrew Iles) is a young man, who, growing up in Canada, was haunted by dreams of a Syrian household. When his fraught psyche compels him to go to Syria to investigate, his mother, Karma (Christina Tannous) is quite terrified. As a journalist, he is apprehended and interrogated by a playfully intimidating official who turns out to be his uncle, Younis (Basel Daoud). After being pressured into going home with him, he meets his Aunt, Souhad (Zaynna Khalife).
With only his dreams as a guide, he insinuates himself into the life of Muhammad (also Daoud) and a resistance fighter, Shaheen (Yusef Zine), believing he’s their lost son and brother, Malek. Connecting with Shaheen, Adeeb finds compelling proof that he actually is the reincarnated spirit of this man. Delving deeper, he discovers an even darker truth about his identity, one that places him at the centre of a tragic family history and disrupts his sense of self.
Towards the end, the play launches into a deliriously poetic mode, with Adeeb communing spiritually with his previous self and his mother vibing in a graveyard with a mysterious figure who seems to understand her plight. These episodes tried my patience, even more than the overly declarative dialogue throughout. There is so little verisimilitude or shading here. Under Ash Knight’s overly deliberate staging, the actors, full of emotive intent, rely heavily on expressive posturing.
I can’t quite parse the logic of why characters break the fourth wall or even the necessity. That said, there is a moment—as Zine’s Shaheen goes on a lengthy monologue reflecting upon the relentless anger and violence that has defined his life since childhood—when Alyousef’s writing, and Zine’s delivery, resonates. As he imagines a life without that psychic stress, I was briefly entranced by the play’s potential.
Alas, it never took me to such a place again. There are moments, however, when the massive white draperies and picturesque vistas of Lucas Arab’s scenic and projection design conspire to immerse the characters in a majestic, hyperreal depiction of Syrian environments.
Though I sense there is sincere purpose driving it, I really struggled to invest in Karma.
Karma
May 1 to 17, 2026
Theatre Passe Muraille, Mainspace
(16 Ryerson Avenue)
100 minutes
Basel Daoud, Zaynna Khalife & Christina Tannous in Karma | Photo by Cylla von Tiedemann