Joshua Bao, Kristen Walter, Kartic Bhargav, and Jaime Meléndez Photo by Christian Pizzirani

Founders, executive teams, and their companies' ads that espouse New Age, la-la values are the focus of Dipika Guha's Yoga Play, now in an often laugh-out-loud production at Los Altos Stage Company. The play, which premiered in 2017, is packed with tongue-in-cheek, full-of-satire references to a certain, similar company (Lululemon) whose CEO in a 2013 Blumberg interview sparked a huge controversy by claiming "some women's bodies just don't actually work for Lululemon leggings." That same year, the CEO later claimed in his book "Little Black Stretchy Pants," that the company had to recall 17% of its pants for being too sheer, costing the company about $60 million. Guha's script and LASC's production poke fun at similar confluence of yoga-gone-wild and profits-above-all.

Just as Joan (Kristen Walter) thinks she has the perfect plan to raise the roof on more profits by expanding their "family" base to larger women and offering them the new lavender-activated Joyon line, a BBC report claims that in the retail giant's subcontracted plant in Dhaka, India, the employees are 60% underage girls, setting off a new firestorm of 15,000 emails and 100,000 Tweets from furious "family" members (i.e., paying customers).

Joan immediately goes into overdrive to find a quick solution. However, in a company where employees stop to br-r-r-eeeathe while holding hands whenever stress shows its face, she first has her own series of chest-grabbing, breath-gasping panic attacks that completely erase her carefully projected image of always being totally in control and available via her ever-present phone.

Joan has decided her team must immediately locate a teacher of "original," "pure" yoga (but certainly not "aerial," "prenatal," "heated-power," or "goat" yoga). She wants a yogi–preferably ancient and bearded–with great credentials to help reestablish in the minds of all their worldwide "family" that real yoga is "truth, authenticity Jojoman."

Joining Joan in this world-wide search are her pair yes-men, Raj (Joshua Bao) and Fred (Kartic Bhargav). The two are buds who sometimes bump heads about which is more authentic to his heritage culture (Raj's Indian or Fred's Singaporean Chinese), but who are quick to follow the company norm of sharing last night's dreams during breaks on the company's outdoor patio (like the one Raj had about having a baby covered in flaky chicken skin or Fred's about sitting on a plane next to a seat-buckled, white pigeon). They are always the first ones to call for a breathing break when Joan starts stressing them out, but they are hyper-ventilated as they rush–no, run–to fulfill her latest wishes.

Through a phone call to his India-American parents (Mr. and Mrs. Kapoor, voiced with parent-loving-and-probing hilarity by Mukund Marathe and Ranjita Chakravarty), Raj locates somewhere in the Himalayan foothills the perfect-sounding yogi. When he is flown overnight to be ready for a world-wide audience of millions where he will mesmerize the "family" into believing all is well in Jojoman-Land, the fun really begins. This yogi, named Guruji, is like none any one has ever seen, offering Chris Mahle (also playing founder John Dale) the opportunity to "ohm" in barefoot, cross-legged fashion in a role that is hilarious.

Guruji's arrival sets up a highly reluctant Raj to accept a job-enriching role that he is literally all bug-eyed to take once promised a three-week Hawaii vacation for doing so. Raj's pal Fred tries to interpret for him (in the night's funniest scene) the foreign language of his new job. After a first act that is only at times mildly humorous and a bit slow of pace, director Gary Landis, these two bros, and the visiting Guruji join forces to ensure that the increasingly uproarious second act makes the price of the ticket a good deal.

Jaime Meléndez finds eye-popping and body-bending positions full of sexual hilarity as LA instructor to the stars Romola, instructing a befuddled and disguised Raj in the basics of yoga. She is also over-the-top funny as Lauren Clark Rose, a yapping, giggling interviewer who is totally enthralled by the yoga yogi that Jojoman has flown across the globe for the world to meet.

Upon entering LASC'S Bus Barn setting, Camryn Lang's designed headquarters of Jojoman is quite breath-taking with its use of calming wood tones, architectural curves, and green plants both in large pots and as a living wall. Center on the back wall is a large video screen that becomes the locus of much of the play's hilarity as a number of characters make appearances, from the basking-in-paradise CEO John to the hyperventilating interviewer Rose to Raj appearing in front of millions in a role he never expected to play–all via the talents of projection designers Bryan Hornbeck and Gary Landis. Lisa Rozman has had fun designing costumes that meld LA-smart with yoga-high-style with the latest guru look of bright color and flowing fabric. Special kudos to the dialect coaching of Kimily Cockle with much of the evening's funniest moments emerging from her fine work with the actors.

If for some reason the first act of Los Altos Stage Company's Yoga Play is not quite as funny as you expected, relax, breathe, and just wait to laugh big time after intermission.

Yoga Play runs through February 15, 2026, at Los Altos Stage Company, 97 Hillview Avenue, Los Altos CA. For tickets and information, please visit losaltosstage.org or the box office in person Thursday and Friday, 3 - 6 p.m., or call 650-941-0551.