He described his Jewish faith and heritage: “My paternal grandfather, born in a small town near Kyiv, was Orthodox; my father was Conservative; and I’m Reform.”[1] Moving to Los Angeles in 1963 to serve as Director of the Theatre Group based at UCLA, Gordon Davidson was selected in 1967 to be Artistic Director of the then new Mark Taper Forum and staged as the inaugural show The Devils followed by In the Matter of J. Robert Oppenheimer.

Davidson directed over 40 plays including The Trial of the Catonsville Nine and Murderous Angels in 1971, Children of a Lesser God in 1982 and Stuff Happens in 2005.

In 2003, he made a brief cameo appearance as himself, directing a play starring James Earl Jones and Jack McFarland, in an episode of Will & Grace.

Together with dancer and producer Felisa Vanoff (1925–2014), he established the Salon at the Taper, an annual charity dinner in honor of a lyricist.

[2][3] The proceeds went to Nick's Tix, a non-profit organization selling low-cost tickets to students, seniors and the disabled for all performances at the Los Angeles Music Center.