Framed

Joanie wants recognition for her paintings; her crime-boss husband, Nick, can ensure that she gets it. Slut-shirt May wants to learn how to paint so she can have a picture of her dead mother; her mechanic husband, Jake, wants to elevate himself to crime thug so that May will respect him. Nick just wants Joanie to love him the way he deserves ... Two men, two women, two loopy marriages, some paintings, and some crime collide in this comedy about marriage, ambition and art. "If there is a common thread in York's projects, it is that they are full of uncommon characters: children, 1960's housewives, black financial consultants, Native American activists. Very few of York's characters seem to have anything to do with the playwright herself ... and her attention to those differences gives her work a frankly political spin ..." -American Theater ..". York herself has an ethereal, gentle quality. Her work has a piercing intuition. It is literate and often treads a line between blackness and humor ..." -MidWeek, Hawaii "Though treating weighty issues, York doesn't clobber you with them, instead maintaining a light touch. While her themes may be familiar, she (finds) a fresh and individual approach ... accurately capturing the quirks of human attitudes and interplay ..." -Houston Chronicle "She makes her points by not taking herself too seriously, even as she offers astute observations ..." -New York Times "York has a real flair for wry, intelligent humor ..." -Seattle Times "York has a wonderful gift for writing funny lines, and she endows her characters with individual senses of humor ..." -Bellevue Journal American