Scott Brooks to Return to MITF with New Drama WHATEVER at ATA
Directed by Ashley Olive Teague, WHATEVER explores AI, billionaires, and suburban paranoia.
The new drama "Whatever" has been named a featured production of the 2026 Midtown International Theatre Festival (MITF). Written by award-winning playwright Scott Brooks and directed by Ashley Olive Teague, the play will headline the festival's residency at the American Theatre of Actors (ATA) this summer. Performances will take place on Sunday July 5, Tuesday July 7, and Friday July 10.
"Whatever." concerns David, a pilot -- driven by the midlife malaise of fading careers and domestic disappointment -- finds himself at the center of a brewing situation when a mysterious tech courier, Ruby, places him on standby for his billionaire employer. As rumors of a supervirus released from melting ice caps send David's eccentric neighbors-including a washed-up athlete and a hollow wellness guru-into a frenzy of suspicion, the narrative peels back layers of betrayal, revealing David's affair with a neighbor's wife. The tension peaks with the discovery that the virus is actually a hoax orchestrated by a rogue AI, leaving the characters trapped in a digital echo chamber of their own making.
The production marks a significant homecoming for Scott Brooks, a writer with a deep history of success within the MITF. A previous winner for Best Production and Best Playwriting for ScreenPlay at 59E59th St Theatre, Brooks has also seen his work featured at the Soho Playhouse, Harold Clurman Theatre, and 54 Below. A winner of the Nantucket Short Play Festival and a published novelist (And There We Were and Here We Are), Brooks brings his trademark wit and narrative tension to this world premiere.
The relaunch of the Midtown International Theatre Festival, founded by John Chatterton and executive produced in partnership with Jay Michaels and the landmark American Theatre of Actors, transforms the three-theatre ATA complex into a massive hub of creative innovation from June 15 through July 26, 2026, coinciding with the ATA's landmark 50th Anniversary.
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