Sampson is treading familiar territory. His father, Will Sampson, played the role in the 1975 film adaptation of Dale Wasserman's play. The work about an uprising in a mental institution is based on the novel by Ken Kesey.
Rose Riordan will direct the production that will run Feb. 22-March 27. One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest will officially open Feb. 25.
The cast will also feature PJ Sosko as Randle McMurphy, Gretchen Corbett as Nurse Ratched, Bobby Bemea, Craig Bockhorn, Stephen Caffrey, Rich Cashin, Michael Fisher-Welsh, Val Landrum, Amy Newman, Vin Shambry, John Shuman, Ebbe Roe Smith, Ryan Tresser, Tracy Turner and Sara Catherine Wheatley.
Designing Cuckoo's Nest are Tony Cisek (scenic design), Jeff Cone (costume design), Sam Kusnetz (sound design) and Diane Ferry Williams (lighting design).
According to PCS, "Cuckoo's Nest pits Randle Patrick McMurphy (a convict who has feigned psychosis so that he can spend the final months of his sentence at a mental institution) against Nurse Ratched (the icy head nurse of the ward), who believes that rules must be followed without exception. A band of crazies gets half-inspired, half-destroyed by McMurphy's rebellion and the question remains… was it worth it anyway?" For tickets visit PCS.org. Portland Center Stage performs at the Gerding Theater at the Armory, 128 NW Eleventh Avenue in Portland, OR.