DESTROYING DAVID to Receive East Coast Premiere at American Theater Group
The production marks the first offering of American Theater Group's 2026-27 season.
American Theater Group has announced the first production of its provocative and stimulating new season, as it presents the East Coast premiere of Destroying David written and performed by Emmy Award-nominee Jason Odell Williams. ATG's new Producing Artistic Director Charlotte Cohn will direct.
Destroying David is a thrilling, witty and heartfelt solo show about the power of art to help us through our darkest hours. Over the course of 75 minutes, a tour guide at the Galleria dell'Accademia in Florence, Italy shares the fascinating history and precarious physical condition of Michelangelo's most famous statue. But the story becomes more personal as the guide slowly reveals the real reason he has organized this private tour. Funny, heartbreaking, and ultimately uplifting, Destroying David will be presented at the DMK Theater at Union Arts Center from Oct. 9-18th and at the Sieminski Theater from Oct 23-25th.
Jason Odell Williams is an award-winning playwright, television producer and novelist. His play Church & State was nominated for Best New Play by the Off-Broadway Alliance and L.A. Ovation Awards and won the 2019 Henry Award for Best Play. It ran for over 100 performances off-Broadway at New World Stages and went on to have over 80 productions and counting nationwide. As an actor, Williams has performed in numerous venues Off-Broadway and across the regions including Baltimore Center Stage, Washington DC's Studio Theatre, B Street Theatre and NJ Rep.
His other produced plays include: Handle with Care, On the Market, Baltimore in Black & White, Someone Else, America in One Room, and Make 'Em Laugh – a play for high schools which has had over 30 productions in three years. Most recently, Williams co-wrote a new musical called The Sound (Semi-Finalist, 2025 National Music Theater Conference at the O'Neill Theatre Festival) with his collaborator, Charlotte Cohn, and composer Christian Douglas. It had a workshop production at CenterStage at the JCC Rochester in May, 2026.
'We believe Destroying David is the perfect new work to launch our new season and the next chapter of ATG,' noted Charlotte Cohn. 'Producing the East Coast premiere of this thought-provoking and acclaimed play will demonstrate the path audiences can expect ATG to take going forward.'
Other productions expected to be announced shortly include special presentations of a new musical in development which will feature Broadway artists, and the NJ premiere of an exciting new Rap musical previously performed off-Broadway. In addition, ATG will present special cabaret performances, play readings and In Conversation Series with theater professionals as part of its regular programming.
Charlotte Cohn was appointed ATG's Producing Artistic Director in 2026, assuming the role from co-founder Jim Vagias. She is a recent recipient of the Denham Fellowship Award from the Stage Directors and Choreographers Foundation (SDCF) which is awarded annually to women who are early and mid-career directors to further develop their skills. Her directing highlights include My Italy Story and Canned Goods (both for ATG), Walden (Premiere Stages), Church & State (Berkshire Theatre Group), The Whole Shebang and Baltimore in Black and White (The Cell Theatre, NYC) and Best Friends (Jazz at Lincoln Center). She has appeared on Broadway in La Boheme and Coram Boy and her producing credits include Here Lies Love (Broadway), Without You (starring Anthony Rapp) and Handle with Care and Church & State by Jason Odell Williams. Cohn is an Ovation Award Winner and a Bay Area Critics' Circle Award nominee. Her original musical The Sound, based on her father's true story of escaping from Denmark to Sweden in WWII, was recently presented at the JCC in Rochester, NY. www.thesoundmusical.com @cohncharlotte.
ATG recently announced a partnership with the Township of Union to bring professional theater and diverse arts programming to the newly constructed DMK Black Box Theater.
The Union Arts Center is located within the new, state-of-the-art Public Library at 1980 Morris Avenue in Union. The Arts Center includes the DMK Black Box Theater, the Union Art Gallery curated by Les Malamut, Union TV studios, classrooms, and The Center Café. Please visit https://www.uniontownship.com for more information.
Performances of Destroying David will be:
- Fri. Oct. 9 and 16th at 7pm
- Thurs. Oct. 15th at 7pm
- Sat. Oct. 10th and 17th at 7pm
- Sun. Oct. 11th and 18th at 2pm
Tickets are priced from $25 (student) to $60 (including fees) and are available at americantheatergroup.org or here: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/1991202097074?aff=oddtdtcreator
The Sieminski Theater is located on the scenic campus of Fellowship Village at 8000 Fellowship Road in Basking Ridge, NJ. This beautiful, 257-seat state-of-the-art theater boasts an innovative design that exudes professionalism while maintaining an intimate ambiance.
Performances of Destroying David at Sieminski Theater will be:
- Fri., Oct. 23rd at 7:30pm
- Sat. Oct 24th at 7:30pm
- Sun. Oct. 25th at 2:30pm
Tickets are priced from $25 (student) to $61 (including fees) and available at www.sieminskitheater.org.
American Theater Group (ATG), founded in 2012, produces new and classic works primarily by American Playwrights with an emphasis on the development of new works and the rediscovery of undeservedly neglected older ones. It also provides quality arts-in-education initiatives, including its New Works/New Voices playwriting program for high school students and its PlayLab program for BIPOC and queer playwrights. More information can be found at www.americantheatergroup.org.
