Every accusation begins with a memory.
"Language is a virus...communicable by conversing."
-- William S. Burroughs
The Kangalee Arts Ensemble’s Provocative Drama on Power, Language, and Institutions is a featured selection of the 2026 Summer Season at the American Theatre of Actors!
The historic return 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. The festival’s 19th year revival coincides with the ATA’s landmark 50th Anniversary, celebrating half a century of independent artistry in the heart of Hell's Kitchen.
Does language leave fingerprints?
Innovating theatrical traditions of David Mamet, Adrienne Kennedy, and Amiri Baraka, THE HARM is a ferocious, stripped-down drama born from an era in which self-criticism has given way to scapegoating and American universities increasingly police, suppress, and punish dissent over Palestine. It asks what becomes of truth when speaking it carries a cost. A damning play about the erosion of truth, identity politics, commodification of trauma, and the weaponization of language in institutes of higher learning as the cloak of fascism settles upon everything.
All production stills of The Harm are by Ashlyn Bree. © 2026
What begins as a provocative lecture on media, race, class and propaganda rapidly unravels into a profound crisis of perception and accusation.
Featuring theater stalwarts Rommell Sermons, Joy Foster, Melissa Roth, newcomer Erin Hyatt and the playwright-director himself, Dennis Leroy Kangalee — The Harm promises to be a frighteningly absurdist tragedy, that is both timely and timeless, stripping away theatrical artifice to focus on the raw power of the spoken word and HOW we communicate what is deeply felt about the injustice in life inside…and outside.
Designed by Michael Rathbun
Stage Managed by Gia Smith and Christine Davis
Wardrobe/Scenic Concept by Gia Smith
Sound by Christine Davis
The Harm aims to inspire audiences to confront their own biases as they witness the five characters navigate a landscape where a single sentence can transform a classroom into a courtroom. A world where the mere mention of an injustice -- can land you on the bread line...or behind bars.
“Kangalee Arts has crafted a work that vibrates with the nervous energy of our current cultural moment...Having The Harm as a featured production in our comeback season aligns perfectly with the festival’s mission of presenting bold, intellectually rigorous theatre that isn’t afraid to ask the hardest questions.”
For all press inquiries or to request a copy of the script please contact:
newplays@kangaleeartsensemble.org
