Rosemary Parrillo

Rosemary Parrillo (she/her) is a New Jersey playwright and journalist. Her post-9/11 play, “The New Normal Trilogy,” was selected as a semifinalist for the 2017 Eugene O'Neill Theater Center National Playwrights Conference. “The Nature of Stars,” was a 2024 finalist for the Tennessee Williams One-Act Contest, marking Parrillo's fourth finalist placement in the New Orleans competition. The monologue "On the Road to Tikrit" was recently performed at the 8 Tens @ 8 Festival at Actors Theatre in Santa Cruz, Ca., and was featured on the podcast Se"ll Yourself Short," by Curtain and Mic Productions. “Sheila and the DMV” was recently performed at the Ritz Theatre Company One-Act Play Festival in Haddon Heights, N.J., and her new full-length, “Spaghetti Western,” had a staged reading at the...

Rosemary Parrillo (she/her) is a New Jersey playwright and journalist. Her post-9/11 play, “The New Normal Trilogy,” was selected as a semifinalist for the 2017 Eugene O'Neill Theater Center National Playwrights Conference. “The Nature of Stars,” was a 2024 finalist for the Tennessee Williams One-Act Contest, marking Parrillo's fourth finalist placement in the New Orleans competition. The monologue "On the Road to Tikrit" was recently performed at the 8 Tens @ 8 Festival at Actors Theatre in Santa Cruz, Ca., and was featured on the podcast Se"ll Yourself Short," by Curtain and Mic Productions. “Sheila and the DMV” was recently performed at the Ritz Theatre Company One-Act Play Festival in Haddon Heights, N.J., and her new full-length, “Spaghetti Western,” had a staged reading at the Waterfront South Theatre in Camden, N.J. Parrillo is a member of the Dramatist Guild, the New Play Exchange, The New York Playwrights Group, The Philadelphia Dramatists Center, The Theater Project in Cranford, N.J. the International Centre for Women Playwrights, Honor Roll Playwrights, and New York Women in Film and Television.

Scripts

Spaghetti Western

by Rosemary Parrillo

Synopsis

Olivia Forte is forced to confront the abomination that is the Texas-Mexico border after discovering she has inherited a worthless plot of land in El Paso, Texas, where her mother demands she bury her father’s ashes. As mom continues to slow-walk the sale of the family’s decrepit Philadelphia pizzeria, Olivia encounters barriers, physical and psychological, to fulfilling dad’s American Dream to “Go West.”

Olivia Forte is forced to confront the abomination that is the Texas-Mexico border after discovering she has inherited a worthless plot of land in El Paso, Texas, where her mother demands she bury her father’s ashes. As mom continues to slow-walk the sale of the family’s decrepit Philadelphia pizzeria, Olivia encounters barriers, physical and psychological, to fulfilling dad’s American Dream to “Go West.”

The Nature of Stars

by Rosemary Parrillo

Synopsis

The proprietor of a bookstore that specializes in poetry is priced out of the neighborhood and must now close her doors. As a handyman fumbles his way through a final maintenance task, a young customer arrives, offering the store owner an unforeseen opportunity make peace with her misfortune and share the redemptive power of poetry.

The proprietor of a bookstore that specializes in poetry is priced out of the neighborhood and must now close her doors. As a handyman fumbles his way through a final maintenance task, a young customer arrives, offering the store owner an unforeseen opportunity make peace with her misfortune and share the redemptive power of poetry.

Sheila and the DMV

by Rosemary Parrillo

Synopsis

Abby agrees to take a new congregant to the DMV to get her New Jersey driver's license. But when the well-off, straight-laced Jersey Shore resident shows up at Sheila's Atlantic City motel room, she quickly realizes the former exotic dancer needs much more than a driver's license to set her on a better road.

Abby agrees to take a new congregant to the DMV to get her New Jersey driver's license. But when the well-off, straight-laced Jersey Shore resident shows up at Sheila's Atlantic City motel room, she quickly realizes the former exotic dancer needs much more than a driver's license to set her on a better road.

On the Road to Tikrit

by Rosemary Parrillo

Synopsis

In this 10-minute monologue, an American soldier finds himself in no man's land, trying to understand what has shaped his journey to oblivion.

In this 10-minute monologue, an American soldier finds himself in no man's land, trying to understand what has shaped his journey to oblivion.

Cent'Anni

by Rosemary Parrillo

Synopsis

An Assisted Living Center is preparing to celebrate the 100th birthday of a beloved resident. Local press is covering the event, but the reporter assigned is not having a good day. Neither is the centenarian birthday girl, who would much rather listen to her favorite opera, Wagner's Tristan and Isolde. There will be spectacle, but not the kind the center expects.

An Assisted Living Center is preparing to celebrate the 100th birthday of a beloved resident. Local press is covering the event, but the reporter assigned is not having a good day. Neither is the centenarian birthday girl, who would much rather listen to her favorite opera, Wagner's Tristan and Isolde. There will be spectacle, but not the kind the center expects.

The Waiting Room

by Rosemary Parrillo

Synopsis

Two women -- one young with an early-stage cancer, the other old with a late-stage cancer -- navigate fear and uncertainty in their own way while waiting for radiation treatments in an oncology center.

Two women -- one young with an early-stage cancer, the other old with a late-stage cancer -- navigate fear and uncertainty in their own way while waiting for radiation treatments in an oncology center.

The New Normal Trilogy

by Rosemary Parrillo

Synopsis

“The New Normal Trilogy” takes place in a Hoboken, New Jersey, dining spot that has three different proprietors over the course of 15 years following the terrorist attacks of 9/11.
This fast-paced 90 minute play takes place in real time as the neighborhood transitions, with new owners and new customers. Through it all, one constant remains: fear of “the other.”

“The New Normal Trilogy” takes place in a Hoboken, New Jersey, dining spot that has three different proprietors over the course of 15 years following the terrorist attacks of 9/11.
This fast-paced 90 minute play takes place in real time as the neighborhood transitions, with new owners and new customers. Through it all, one constant remains: fear of “the other.”

Circus Maxim

by Rosemary Parrillo

Synopsis

Maureen and Maxim, married trapeze artists, attempt to reach a detente as Maureen forcefully questions the true intent of her husband’s potentially fatal misstep during a routine.

Maureen and Maxim, married trapeze artists, attempt to reach a detente as Maureen forcefully questions the true intent of her husband’s potentially fatal misstep during a routine.

Madonna's Stash

by Rosemary Parrillo

Synopsis

Three first cousins gather at the home of a recently deceased great aunt to comb through her possessions, hoping to find cash and other family treasures. What they discover, however, challenges their assumptions and shakes the underpinnings of their cultural beliefs.

Three first cousins gather at the home of a recently deceased great aunt to comb through her possessions, hoping to find cash and other family treasures. What they discover, however, challenges their assumptions and shakes the underpinnings of their cultural beliefs.

Ascension Day

by Rosemary Parrillo

Synopsis

A mother and son, who settle into a dysfunctional routine in their attempt to cope with a traumatic death, eventually realize the true path to recovery is just steps away.

A mother and son, who settle into a dysfunctional routine in their attempt to cope with a traumatic death, eventually realize the true path to recovery is just steps away.

Shelter

by Rosemary Parrillo

Synopsis

Inspired by true events, Shelter, set in 1980s Camden, New Jersey, explores how a despondent single mother of three living illegally and precariously in public housing with her unsympathetic mother, comes to commit an unspeakable act. The action is set against the backdrop of Camden's ABSCAM years, when the mayor and other complicit state politicians were jailed on federal corruption charges resulting from an...

Inspired by true events, Shelter, set in 1980s Camden, New Jersey, explores how a despondent single mother of three living illegally and precariously in public housing with her unsympathetic mother, comes to commit an unspeakable act. The action is set against the backdrop of Camden's ABSCAM years, when the mayor and other complicit state politicians were jailed on federal corruption charges resulting from an FBI sting. It turned out, the guilty were not the only ones sent up the river.