Interview: Frank Verlizzo Goes From Designing Broadway Posters to Writing Mystery Novels (About Broadway)

For more than five decades, Frank “Fraver” Verlizzo has been one of the theater world’s preeminent theater poster designers. His iconic imagery has been used to advertise the original Broadway productions of Disney’s The Lion King and Stephen Sondheim’s Sweeney Todd and Sunday in the Park With George, among others.

Now, he’s putting pen to paper in a different artistic endeavor: writing novels. His first book in his Retro Broadway Mystery Series—Scenery of the Crime (Camel Press), set during previews of a 1975 Broadway show—was recently released.

Verlizzo spoke to TheaterMania about the origins of this new project, his literary inspiration, why he chose to set this book in 1975, and what’s next in the series.

This conversation has been condensed and edited for clarity.

Did you always want to become a professional author?
I have always loved reading and writing; I got that from my mom who always had a book in her hand. And I have always loved murder mysteries; they attracted me even when I was 10 years old. As for writing, over the years, whenever I worked at ad agencies if we were in a crunch for needing brochures or flyers, I would pitch in and write. But that wasn’t creating something from nothing, like novels are. When the pandemic hit, it gave me some time to try this kind of writing. But I honestly didn’t expect this to be anything more than a hobby to keep me busy in retirement.

Was there an author you used for inspiration?
I’m sure Agatha Christie is on everyone’s list, but she’s at the top of mine. I loved her structure of focusing on life in a little village and a small circle of people. I applied that to the idea of Broadway, where everyone knows everybody and “word travels fast” in our little circle.

It’s pretty amazing for a first-time author to get a series published. How did that happen?
I wrote an email to a literary agent I really didn’t know and asked for advice through emails. In one of them, I mentioned it was a series, since I already had written the second book, and had a third in the works. She suggested a publisher who liked series. I was told everything takes time, so I wasn’t expecting a quick response. A week later, she called to say they committed to the first three books! I’ve started on a fourth book, and I hope they’ll agree to publish that one too.

Is there a particular reason the book is set in 1975?
I started working in theatrical advertising around then. David Byrd, who designed the famous Follies poster, was a mentor and my professor, and he suggested I present my portfolio to Blaine Thompson, which was on the 7^th floor of the Sardi’s building. When I got a freelance job there, I thought I’d died and gone to heaven. The whole adventure was unforgettable. Honestly, I have a horrible memory for most things, but I can recall that specific period of time so vividly that it made sense to use it at the setting for my book.

Are the characters based on people you knew?
Yes and no. Vic Senso, the agency art director, is like an older version of me. Most of the other characters are composites of real people. Let’s say given my history in the theater, it wasn’t hard to come up with so many colorful characters.

What should we expect next?
My next book comes out in December. It’s called Sanity Claus. It is also set on Broadway, at the end of 1975, and it features a family in show business who are all obsessed with Broadway. Vic comes back as do some of the other characters from Scenery of the Crime, and I am introducing a Broadway producer who becomes part of the continuing main character group. I originally thought it would be hard to continue using the same characters from book to book, but as I began writing, I decided it would be fun—at least for me—to see them make new mistakes.

Click here to order (paid link).