David L Williams - Playwright

David L. Williams

Playwright/Director/Instructor

Dramatic Works include:

Ampersand

Full Length Tragicomedy, 5 M, 4 W, Riverside Stage Company Founder's Award Winner, first produced October 1999, Riverside Stage Company, NYC, subsequent production by Zabawa Theatre (NYC), 2001.

The Armageddon Dance Party

Full Length Comedy, 4M, 5W, first produced August 2006, W&W Productions, NYC, as part of 2006 New York International Fringe Festival, subsequent productions by ADHD Productions (Springfield, IL), 2007, Nothing Special Productions (Chicago, IL), 2010, and Cone Man Running (Houston, TX), 2016.

The Bully

One-Act Children’s Musical, music and lyrics by John Gregor, 4M, 3W, first produced December 2005, Vital Theatre, NYC, touring through the Northeast since.

The Censor

Full-Length Drama, 2M, 2W, first produced September 2016, Throughline Theatre, Pittsburgh, PA.

The Counter Offer

One-Act Drama, 1M, 2W, first produced December 2011, Amios Theatre Company, NYC.

The Divine Visitor

Full-Length Comedy, 4M, 4W, first produced April 2015, Northern Kentucky University, Highland Heights, KY, 17th Biennial YES Festival.

In The Meantime

Full Length Drama, 1M, 2W, first produced May 2012, Amios Theatre Company, NYC.

The Information She Carried

Full Length Drama, 3M, 4W, first produced March 2005, W&W Productions, NYC, additionally produced as part of the 2005 New York International Fringe Festival.

The Johnny

Full Length Musical Comedy, music by David F.M. Vaughn, 8M, 7W, first produced August 2008, Awesome Junior Productions, NYC, as part of 2008 New York International Fringe Festival.

The Red Light

One-Act Drama, 2W, first produced July 2016, Source Festival, Washington, D.C..

Spake

Full-Length Drama, 3M, 4W, first produced April 2013, Northern Kentucky University, Highland Heights, KY, 16th Biennial YES Festival.

The Starving

Full-Length Drama, 1M, 2W, first produced April 2015, Barter Theatre, Abingdon, VA.

Tess’ Last Night

Full Length Musical Comedy, music and lyrics by Joel Weiss, 8M, 8W, first produced January 2003, W&W Productions, NYC, additionally produced as part of 2003 NY International Fringe Festival.

The Winners

Full Length Drama, 1M, 2W, winner 2010 GreenHouse New Play Festival, first produced September 2011, HotCity Theatre, St. Louis, Missouri, subsequent productions by The Owl and Cat Theatre (Melbourne, Australia), 20016, and Cone Man Running Productions (Houston, TX), 2017.

Directing Experience:

Beyond Therapy, written by Christopher Durang, produced by State College Community Theatre as part of their 2013 Season, State College, PA, September 2013.

The Tailers, written by David L. Williams, produced by the Turnip Theatre as part of the 17th Annual 15 Minute Play Festival, NYC, April 2011.

The Wolf Manhood, written by David L. Williams, produced by Shortened Attention Span Theatre as part of their 2010 Horror Festival, NYC, October 2010.

The Craving, written by David L. Williams, produced by the Turnip Theatre as part of the 16th Annual 15 Minute Play Festival, NYC, April 2010.

The Johnny, written by David L. Williams & David F.M. Vaughn, produced by Awesome Junior Productions as part of the New York International Fringe Festival, NYC, August 2008.

The Information She Carried, written by David L. Williams, produced by W&W Productions at Access Theater, NYC, March-April 2005.

Tess Last Night, written by David L. Williams & Joel Weiss, produced by W&W Productions as part of the New York International Fringe Festival, NYC, August 2003.

Maybe You Should Go... (An Evening of One-Act Plays Ingulf and Near Tragedy), written by David L. Williams, produced by W&W Productions at the Mazer Theater, NYC, January-February 2003.

Tess Last Night, written by David L. Williams & Joel Weiss, produced by W&W Productions at the Mazer Theater, NYC, January-February 2003.

Ampersand, written by David L. Williams, produced by Zabawa Theatre at the Chelsea Playhouse, NYC, 2001.

Love’s Fire, written by Tony Kushner, Marsha Norman and John Guare, produced by Zabawa Theatre at the Producers Club, NYC, 2001.

The Dogs, written by Sam Vena & Near Tragedy, written by David L. Williams, produced by Zabawa Theatre at Here, NYC, 2000.

Near Tragedy, written by David L. Williams, produced by Cornell Theatre Department at Cornell Center for Theatre Arts, Ithaca, NY, 1998.

Hair, written by James Rado and Jerome Ragni, produced by Brand X Musical Theatre at James Law Theater, Ithaca, NY, 1997.

Into the Woods, written by Stephen Sondheim and James Lapine, produced by Gateway Theatre at James Law Theater, Ithaca, NY, 1996.

Lesbian School, written by David L. Williams, produced by Gateway Theatre at Noyes Theater, Ithaca, NY, 1995.

Teaching Experience

Course: Intermediate Playwriting, Adult Education class for State College Community Theatre, 2017-present - Instructor

Level: Intermediate playwrights

Responsibilities: Developed new adult education class playwriting class, created syllabus, reviewed all assignments, gave in-class and one-on-one feedback on scenes and scripts, ran one-act play readings, and delivered lectures on “The One Act Play,” “Drama,” “Comedy,” “Experimental Writing,” “Finding Motifs, Symbols, and other Highbrow Literary Things,” and “Submitting and Production.” 

Course: Beginning Playwriting, Adult Education class for State College Community Theatre, 2016-present - Instructor

Level: Novice playwrights

Responsibilities: Developed new adult education class playwriting class, created syllabus, reviewed all assignments, gave in-class and one-on-one feedback on scenes and scripts, ran short play readings, and delivered lectures on “Dialogue & Conflict,” “Plot & Structure,” “Character,” “Titles,” “Rewriting,” and “Where Do You Go From Here.”

Course: Beginning Playwriting, Online class, Spring/Summer 2009 - Instructor

Level: Novice playwrights

Responsibilities: Developed new online playwriting class, created syllabus, reviewed all assignments, gave in-class and one-on-one feedback on scenes and scripts, ran one-act play readings, and delivered lectures on “Formatting,” “Dialogue vs. Conversation,” “Pitfalls of Dialogue,” “Structure,” “Character,” “Writing the One-Act Play,” “Writer’s Block & Editing,” “Titles,” and “Readings & Development.”

Course: Playwriting 1, Cornell University - Fall 1997 - T.A.

Level: Undergraduate students

Responsibilities: Advised students individually on their one-act play scripts, facilitated in-class discussion, and gave “Titles” lecture.

Education

University of Nebraska: Master of Fine Arts - Playwriting; 2015. 

Cornell University: Bachelor of Arts - Theatre, Emphasis in Writing; 3.7 GPA, Phi Beta Kappa, Distinction in All Subjects, 1998. 

“Writing the Musical Theatre Libretto” - HB Studios, Fall 2007, taught by David Spencer, author of “The Musical Theatre Writer’s Survival Guide.”

“Marketing and Production for Playwrights” - Primary Stages, Spring 2011, taught by Christopher Burney, Assoc. Artistic Director, Second Stage Theatre, and Don-Scott Cooper, General Manager, Second Stage Theatre.

Awards

Heermans-McCalmon Playwriting Contest:  Ithaca, NY; 1st Place - 1996, 1998; 2nd Place  - 1996, 1997

Riverside Stage Company Founder's Award: Ampersand South Norwalk, CT; 1999

2004 American Zoetrope Screenplay Contest - Quarterfinalist for Jesus of Havana.

EBE Ensemble “You Fill In The Blank” Festival - Winner for Spake:  New York, NY; 2009 

HotCity Theatre GreenHouse Playwriting Contest - Winner for The Winners, 2010, Finalist for Spake, 2009,  St. Louis, MO.

League of Cincinnati Theatres’ Best of the YES Festival - Spake:  Cincinnati, OH; 2013.

Barter Theatre’s Appalachian Festival of Plays and Playwrights, Critic’s Choice - The Starving:  Abingdon, VA; 2013.

Throughline Theatre’s 2016 Playwriting Contest - The Censor:  Pittsburgh, PA; 2016.

ATHE (Association of Theatre in Higher Education) 2017 Award of Excellence in Playwriting - The Censor:  United States, 2017.

Member: Dramatist Guild