Profligate Romances: Frank Anthony Polito’s Drama Queers!
by Mackenzie Worrall
“Poor Mom… She thought Lady Z was really a lady. Or she pretended to. I doubt she would ever point out something as obvious as a man wearing a dress. That would be rude.” (Drama Queers! by Frank Anthony Polito, Kensington Books, 411 pages, $15 paperback)
Previously, In the Lambda Award-winning Drama Queers!…
Best friends Bradley Dayton and Jack Paterno have a falling out at the beginning of their senior year – because they both know Jack is gay! So is Brad, but he doesn’t mind. In fact, it’s his calm charisma that gets him nominated into Hazel Park High’s Top 25, class of ’88, and a fact that Jack does not take in stride. Along with preparing for an audition at Julliard, Brad has his eye on a budding drama queer: Cute Sophomore Guy (aka CSG, aka Richie Tyler). But is Richie really in love with Brad, or is he just acting?
Frank Anthony Polito captures the spirit of the age of Dynasty in his high school romance. The storytelling has all the focus of a toddler attempting to file his tax return, but the jumps after each dramatic cliffhanger flesh out the teenage voice that’s recounting these misadventures. Each moment is dramatic while it’s happening, but two days later it’s all old news. By the time something actually traumatizing happens, the students of Hazel Park are too shocked to blow it out of proportion. It’s the under-reaction of the student body that marks their growth. Trivial fights that seemed important before are put to rest, and mundane moments are remembered more fondly. And in all that, we see a young man inducted into the world of gay bars (which is somehow less drama-filled than his high school). Instead of another high school coming-out novel, Polito presents a confident novice gay trying to make sense of the world, instead of himself. I had a chance to talk to Frank Anthony Polito about the world of Drama Queers! and his first novel, Band Fags!
Mackenzie Worrall: Your tale of two BFF’s seems like an odd couple story at times. Jack is the closeted high school gay boy, and Brad is (occasionally) out and proud. Writing from another character’s point of view allowed you to explore a different side of the story. Did you discover anything new about your characters by writing as someone who, in many ways, is the complete opposite of Jack Paterno?
Frank Anthony Polito: For me, I’d enjoyed writing from Brad’s POV much more than Jack’s. When you write autobiographical fiction, there is the fear that anything my character (Jack) does, people will believe I did – whether it’s true or not. So in writing Brad, I was able to break free from any constraints, and allow his character to do and say things I/Jack would never. (Or if I would, no one would think it since I’m technically not Brad.) And it was so much fun to imagine what it would be like to be in a drag show – something I’ve never done before (nor has my real-life best friend, to my knowledge!).
MW: Are you Team Bradley or Team Jack?
FP: Interestingly enough, I’m totally Team Bradley, as are most of my readers. I think what makes him so lovable is his mantra: “To thine ownself be true.” Even when he strays from it, there is the sense that he’ll come around. Readers really identified with Brad’s strength as a young, gay protagonist, and a positive role model. The character of Jack may be more “realistic” (especially for anyone growing up in the ’80s), but “realism” isn’t always fun to read!
MW: Word on the street is that your first novel (Band Fags!) is based on a play that was originally produced here in Columbus. Did we catapult you to fame?
FP: Columbus has been very good to me. Sadly, I don’t know how well received Band Fags! the short play was when produced at Stoney Shorts in 2007. I’m told that people enjoyed it. I hope the success of the novel will provide an opportunity for the full-length version of the play to be seen in Columbus, and give me a chance to finally come and visit.
MW: When Brad goes to New York to audition for Julliard, he panics about being gay and in theater – that he wouldn’t ‘make it’ in the 80’s. While many people see gays and theater to be synonymous now, do you (as a theater professional) see any vestiges of this attitude floating around?
FP: Unfortunately, I still think there’s “you can’t be gay and famous” attitude floating around. Not so much in the Theatre, but among actors who aspire to “greater” things – like film and TV. I know a few Carnegie Mellon actors (where I got my MFA in Dramatic Writing) who were gay in school, but no longer are. Thankfully, we have Cheyenne Jackson and Neil-Patrick Harris and Jonathan Groff, who are proving people wrong.
MW: Why do you think so many LGBT high school students are attracted to both band and theater programs?
FP: I think, for starters, because so many LGBT youths are “creative-types” just by nature. And for kids who aren’t into athletics (like me), being in band and drama is the equivalent of playing on a sports team. They are both “ensemble” groups where you learn “team-work,” and you get to have FUN! Who wants to sit in yet another math class, when you can be making music or acting? I also think the non-gay kids in band and drama are, by nature, more “understanding” and don’t mind being around the LGBT kids.
MW: “To thine ownself be true” appears throughout the novel. I think it’s some of the best advice you can give to a high school student struggling to find who they are. Did you hear this often as a kid?
FP: I did, though not in this context. (I don’t recall ever reading Hamlet until college.) I do remember one teacher, who I base the teacher-character of Ms. Lemieux in Band Fags! on, telling me that I shouldn’t worry about being “different.” One day, I would grow up and “all this” wouldn’t matter anymore. She, herself, was a creative-type, and a lot of the other teachers didn’t seem to care for her. Though not gay, I think she could totally relate to my plight!
MW: Plugs, Book Recommendations and Fashion Advice?
FP: Plugs: I just finished writing my first YA novel, tentatively titled Lost in the ’90s. The plan is for it to be on shelves in April 2012, which is when the story is set, in-part. The rest is set in 1994. Book recommendations: I just picked up a copy of my gym-buddy, Nick Burd’s A Vast Field of Ordinary which came out last year to critical acclaim. I look forward to starting it soon. Fashion advice: I’m the worst dresser! Only because I hate to shop (and have no $!) Give me a comfy pair of jeans and a navy blue T-shirt from H/M and I’m all set.
Frank Anthony Polito is a Brooklyn-based actor and playwright. He can be seen in the films One Angry Man, One True Thing and Hitch. On stage he has worked off-Broadway, and regionally in Washington, D.C., Hartford, CT, and Rochester, MI. Frank’s first play, JOHN R is the basis for his debut novel, BAND FAGS! His play Another Day on Willow St. premiered at the New York International Fringe Festival in 2007 where it was named “Outstanding New Play” by Talkin’ Broadway. Other plays have appeared at Bailiwick Repertory Theatre in Chicago, Mill Mountain Theatre in Roanoke, VA, and at The Dayton Playhouse in Dayton, OH.
I had the pleasure of discovering these books this past summer and they were both fantastic! I am looking forward to reading the new book when it comes out! Great interview with a great author!