Profile Theatre Presents SAMSARA By Lauren Yee

Profile ushers in its 2024-2025 Lauren Yee Season with Samsara, a play about what to expect when expecting someone else’s child.

Samsara follows suburban couple Katie and Craig as they contract the services of Suraiya, a young woman living in Ahmedabad India, to act as surrogate mother for their child. While bouncing between continents, the three confront their insecurities, their hopes for the future, and their own status in the global society. An unctuous Frenchman and a cursing fetus offer additional complications with a Yee-esque flare. “With Lauren’s signature playfulness, this play will leave you in stitches as it takes you from suburban America, to Paris, to South Asia, and back again. Samsara is a one-of-a-kind experience” says Artistic Director Josh Hecht.

One of Lauren Yee’s oldest comedies, the production is a vibrant and whimsical confrontation with modern day colonialism. “I’ve been a fan of this play for many years now” continues Hecht, “even a decade after being written, it tackles subjects that are absolutely fresh and have still never been seen on stage.”

Profile’s new season features playwright Lauren Yee as a by-popular-demand extension of her residency with the company, and Samsara serves as a re-introduction to Yee’s signature style - one that matches witty humour, innovative story structure, and a distinct unraveling of reality with complex and timely socio-political critiques. As one of her early works, Samsara offers audiences a unique opportunity to see the birth of Yee’s style before experiencing the latest evolution of that style later in the season with Mother Russia, Yee’s newest play, still in development.

Samsara features a world-class Production Team, including Portland favorites Jamie M. Rea and Ajai Tripathi as a co-direction team, as well as New Expressive Works Executive Director and former Creative Laureate of Portland Subashini Ganesan-Forbes as cultural consultant and pre-show performance curator.

The production opens January 25th at Artists Repertory Theatre, and closes February 9th. Profile extends its commitment to deep and engaging theatrical experiences by offering a host of supplemental programming, including BIPOC and Pride Affinity Nights, discussions with the artistic team (Mat Chats), and a series of curated pre-show performances in the ART lobby space.

“After an acclaimed production of King of the Yees [by Lauren Yee] in 2022 and sold-out readings of three other of her plays last February, it’s clear that audiences are eager for more” says Hecht. Samsara is a side-splitting and strikingly original production that will meet Portland’s demand for more of Yee’s work, deepen the audience’s appreciation of her oeuvre, and leave the audience with a unique perspective on themselves and the world around them all at once.

Tickets to Samsara go on-sale to the general public December 19th, and can be found by heading to profiletheatre.org/samsara, by emailing boxoffice@profiletheatre.org, or by calling 503-242-0080. Profile members can book their tickets early and secure their preferred seating. Membership information can be found at profiletheatre.org/memberships.

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