About my buddy Ryan (me).

Ryan Polk is a writer, director, and a comedian. He graduated with a BFA in theatre with a concentration in Performance and Production at Texas State University. Ryan has written several short plays and screenplays, some of which have been produced at Texas State. He has also just completed his first two full length plays. In between writing sessions, Ryan has worked at Disney World, Seaworld, and FAO Schwartz. Please enjoy the following statement about his work, and feel free to read it with the cadence of Anne Hathaway when she delivers her final speech in The Princess Diaries (2001)

​

 I am a writer because I have a very specific aesthetic and preference for fast-paced dialogue and quirky characters. Tragically, I didn’t see nearly enough of that type of content in the media I watched while growing up, so I want to create worlds and characters that I would enjoy watching and spending time with. Hopefully, my passion for this type of storytelling will also be felt by audiences who see my work. I’m also extremely dedicated to writing stories that center around LGBT+ storylines and characters. Growing up, I didn’t see a lot of complex queer characters; they were either villains, saints, or stereotypes. Gay rights are great and all, but what about gay wrongs? And, while I appreciate the breadth of media revolving around the experience of coming out- there’s so much more to explore about the experience of being queer. I want to tell so many different queer narratives, more than I can fit in any "about" page.

There’s a quote from Spider-Man that sums up both my personal and artistic philosophy: “when you help someone, you help everyone.” I don’t need to be the most produced playwright in history or wildly rich and famous. I want to write plays that make an impact on people. If an actor does one of my plays at a community theater and learns to be confident in themselves and their abilities, or if an audience member leaves my play having had a change of heart or mind, I will consider myself to be a success. I’ve witnessed first hand the transformative power of theater; I met some of my best friends from working on shows in high school and college. Theater is a unique art form in that it has the power to bring people together. In an increasingly divided world, even a small thing like two wildly different people befriending each other while at a play, can change the world. Maybe that sounds naive, but I think it’s courageous to be optimistic that art can change people for the better. Just call me your friendly neighborhood playwright.