PLAYS
Frank Anthony Polito received his MFA in Dramatic Writing from the prestigious Carnegie Mellon School of Drama.
His plays have been performed in New York City, San Francisco, Annapolis, Omaha, and his native Detroit.
ANOTHER DAY ON WILLOW ST
3 M, 1 F - ages 35-40, Run Time: 1h. 45 min.
Wall Street investment banker Ian Brown and his eight months pregnant wife Stacy Gold live in a beautiful Brooklyn Heights brownstone on Willow Street.
When Stacy gives up her publishing job to become a stay-at-home mom, she soon gets bored with sitting on the Promenade, sipping Starbucks. With time on her hands, Stacy begins to fear losing what little intimacy she and Ian have left, once the baby arrives.
Aspiring actor Mark Gray and his lover Paul Green have been living long-distance for the past six months. Mark keeps a studio on Willow Street while Paul works as a lawyer in Boston, near his sick mother.
When Mark learns of Paul’s mom’s dying wish to see him marry her son, he is faced with the reality of finally coming out to his parents. With time running out, Mark soon discovers what committing himself fully to another person truly entails.
After a chance meeting Stacy and Mark become friends. Stacy’s frustrations with Ian’s commitment to his job are revealed along with the strain Mark’s fear of coming out is putting on his relationship with Paul. The pair soon helps each other see their culpability in their relationship problems and accept their share of the blame.
But with the clock ticking, will these two couples ever learn to compromise -- or will they keep putting things off for a day that may never come?
Praise for Another Day on Willow St
“Frank Anthony Polito’s new play, being given its world premiere at Compass Rose Theater, owes a debt of gratitude to Thornton Wilder’s Our Town, both being quiet plays about ordinary days and the remarkable moments within them. Yet Another Day on Willow St is very much its own rumination on relationships, communication, aspirations and disappointments. It touches the heart, elicits laughter and, by the final curtain, leaves us with something to think about.”
— DC Theatre Scene
“An evocative new work that sends chills up your spine — it’s an emotionally gripping drama that
reminds audiences to cherish each and every day as no one can be certain what tomorrow brings... Playwright Frank Anthony Polito has managed to write a post-9/11 play that brings the tragedy of that historic event and the topic into focus in a subtle manner. One of the first of its kind where the
focus is not on the tragedy itself or the aftermath... Polito’s use of phrasing and scenic repetition is brilliant; creating a loop of life that is inescapable until it is not.”
— DC Metro Theatre Arts
“The relationship issues this fascinating and provocative new play delves into, the characters and their connections, the emotional and romantic resonances, are all unequivocally adult. Not in the naughty way. In the knotty way... Another Day on Willow St takes its sweet time introducing us to these two couples and their disparate yet parallel private lives. All the while, the playwright is slyly inviting us to eavesdrop on the details of their love stories. The languid exposition may leave one wondering, wherever is this going? But keep watching and listening — because where it’s going gets deep.”
— Capital Gazette
“Comprised of simultaneous settings in various cities, Another Day on Willow St is a series of conversations that take place two weeks before September 11, 2001. The conversations are brilliant in terms of the duet, trio, and quartet pairings that play off each other and intertwine as well. The entire production plays like a symphony.”
— MD Theatre Guide
BFS!
2M - ages 14-18, Run Time: 1h. 45 min.
Stage play of the award-winning debut novel by Frank Anthony Polito, as produced by Slipstream Theatre Initiative in Hazel Park, MI - Bailey Boudreau, Artistic Director
Jack Paterno is a straight-A student living in the Detroit suburb of Hazel Park. The only thing he has in common with his best friend since seventh grade, Brad Dayton, is that both are in band... Or maybe that's not the only thing? As Jack and Brad make their way through junior high and high school, their friendship grows deeper and more complicated. From stealing furtive glances at Playgirl to discussing which guys they would find cute (if they were girls), Jack is trying to figure out who and what he is. More than anything, he wants to be popular and "normal." But as Brad points out, this is real life -- not a John Hughes movie. Sooner or later, Jack will have to choose. And when he does, the decision he makes could cost him.