Claude Solnik
Official Site of journalist, playwright, novelist,
short story writer
JOURNALISM
Best in Local News, Health News, Folio Awards, 2017
First Place, Investigative Reporting, New York Associated Press 2016
Second Place, Investigative Reporting, New York Associated Press 2016
Third Place, In-Depth Reporting, New York Press Association 2016
Third Place, Coverage of Education, New York Press Association, 2016
First Place, Feature Story, New York Press Association 2015
First Place, Coverage of Education, New York Press Association 2015
novels
THE RUBBER
GUN SQUAD
The NYPD takes Marcus Fox's gun after he fails to try to stop a jewelry store robbery. Part of the rubber gun squad, a cop with no gun, he seeks to solve the crime.
Written with Mike Gaynor, former NYPD homicide detective
SUNSET AT ORIENT POINT
The first Jewish candidate with a good chance of winning the presidential nomination of a major party faces a problem. His son becomes involved in
a crime. He has to figure out how and whether to save his son - and whether to run.
FLY ME TO THE MOON
The story of the men (and women) who built the lunar module - and stayed with the Apollo program from start to finish.
Written with lunar module foreman Richard Kupczyk
THE LIFEGUARD
A lifeguard at the Pentagon pool (yes, there is one) is recruited into the CIA. We follow him from training to missions, based on a true story, as he seeks to maintain his cover - from his family and the public.
Written with Dan Dyer
ITALIAN ICES
An Italian American heads to Italy to get a job before WWII.
He's there when war breaks out, and is conscripted into the Italian army. When the war ends, he fights for the right to return to the U.S. - and falls in love.
OLD SOUL'S DAY
A vampire story about a man on a trip to Paris who finds he can see events that happened there centuries ago.
MY LIFE AS A WOMAN
A tough kid in Jersey goes home - and puts on women's clothes. The boy gets older and marries, living as a cross dresser, working as an accountant with a secret, careening between worlds before switching over entirely to women's clothes.
Fran Sisco with Claude Solnik
THE OTHER SIDE
OF THE MOUNTAIN
A man proposes to a woman on the Amalfi Coast. After she says no, he and the town try to figure out why. She eventually explains she may be in love with someone she met on the trip, as she decides who and whether she's in love.
MIDNIGHT IN MEXICO
A father's memory begins to fail on a trip to Mexico, as they must all confront the arrival of disease even as they find themselves in a kind of paradise.
FLORIDA GOLD
Developers say they want to by the land surrounding a prison - to build a golf club. Gradually, we learn they want to get the rights to drill for oil cheap by not revealing the value of the land.
DREAM WORLD
Dream travel lets people voyage through sleep. When a man finds he has literally vanished from his world and arrived in that of his nightmares, he seeks to navigate through that world and return home.
collected
short
stories
POWERLESS: STORIES FROM THE STORM
Short stories from Superstorm Sandy.
7 TIMES AROUND THE SHIP
Seven short stories
set on a cruise ship.
young adult
fantasy
books
AN ISLAND IN TIME
Kids at summer camp ride a sailboat through a portal into the past, where they find themselves on an island occupied by pirates.
DOG BOY
In a surreal world, a dog with a boy's face is hunted by dog catchers. After he's caught, he escapes and runs for freedom. A parable for the Holocaust and treatment of immigrants today.
THE MAGIC QUILT
A family buys a quilt at a flea market - and travels through the quilt to another world. He's lost there, prompting his family to figure it out and follow him - to come to his rescue.
BLUE LOBSTER
A fisherman catches a rare blue lobster, which ends up adopted as a pet. We follow the lobster as it seeks to find the cause of water pollution - teaming with human beings to stop toxins poured into the ocean.
WACONAH PARK
What begins as a scenic concert in the Berkshires quickly transforms into a mystery when a mother disappears.
We find out she ran off - leaving behind a husband and child who live on their own - until she returns.
Official Site of journalist, playwright, novelist,
short story writer
JOURNALISM
Best in Local News, Health News, Folio Awards, 2017
First Place, Investigative Reporting, New York Associated Press 2016
Second Place, Investigative Reporting, New York Associated Press 2016
Third Place, In-Depth Reporting, New York Press Association 2016
Third Place, Coverage of Education, New York Press Association, 2016
First Place, Feature Story, New York Press Association 2015
First Place, Coverage of Education, New York Press Association 2015
novels
THE RUBBER
GUN SQUAD
The NYPD takes Marcus Fox's gun after he fails to try to stop a jewelry store robbery. Fox becomes part of the "rubber gun squad," a term for the cops who have no guns, and seeks to solve the crime.
With Mike Gaynor, former NYPD homicide detective
SUNSET AT ORIENT POINT
The first Jewish candidate with a good chance of winning the presidential nomination of a major party faces a problem. His son becomes involved in
a crime. He has to figure out how and whether to save his son - and whether to run.
FLY ME TO THE MOON
The story of the men (and women) who built the lunar module - and stayed with the Apollo program from start to finish.
Written with lunar module foreman Richard Kupczyk
THE LIFEGUARD
A lifeguard at the Pentagon pool (yes, there is one) is recruited into the CIA. We follow him from training to missions, based on a true story, as he seeks to maintain his cover - from his family and the public.
Written with Dan Dyer
ITALIAN ICES
An Italian American heads to Italy to get a job before WWII.
He's there when war breaks out, and is conscripted into the Italian army. When the war ends, he fights for the right to return to the U.S. - and falls in love.
MY LIFE AS A WOMAN
A tough kid in Jersey goes home - and puts on women's clothes. The boy gets older and marries, living as a cross dresser, working as an accountant with a secret, careening between worlds before switching over entirely to women's clothes.
Fran Sisco with Claude Solnik
OLD SOUL'S DAY
A vampire story about a man on a trip to Paris who finds he can see events that happened there centuries ago.
THE OTHER SIDE
OF THE MOUNTAIN
A man proposes to a woman on the Amalfi Coast. After she says no, he and the town try to figure out why. She eventually explains she may be in love with someone she met on the trip, as she decides who and whether she's in love.
MIDNIGHT IN MEXICO
A father's memory fails on a trip to Mexico, as the whole family must confront the deterioration of his faculties.
FLORIDA GOLD
Developers say they want to buy the land surrounding a prison - to build a golf club. Gradually, we learn they want to get the rights to drill for oil cheap by not revealing the value of the land.
DREAM WORLD
Dream travel lets people voyage through sleep. When a man finds he has literally vanished from his world and arrived in that of his nightmares, he seeks to navigate through that world and return home.
WACONAH PARK
What begins as a scenic concert in the Berkshires quickly transforms into a mystery when a mother disappears.
We find out she ran off - leaving behind a husband and child who live on their own - until she returns.
collected
short
stories
POWERLESS: STORIES FROM THE STORM
Short stories from Superstorm Sandy.
7 TIMES AROUND THE SHIP
Seven short stories
set on a cruise ship.
young adult
fantasy
books
AN ISLAND IN TIME
Kids at summer camp ride a sailboat through a portal into the past, where they find themselves on an island occupied by pirates.
DOG BOY
In a surreal world, a dog with a boy's face is hunted by dog catchers. After he's caught, he escapes and runs for freedom. A parable for the Holocaust and treatment of immigrants today.
THE MAGIC QUILT
A family buys a quilt at a flea market - and the son travels through the quilt to another world. He's lost there, prompting his family to figure out what occurred and follow him into the world of the quilt - to come to his rescue.
BLUE LOBSTER
A fisherman catches a rare blue lobster, which ends up adopted as a pet. We follow the lobster as it seeks to find the cause of local water pollution - teaming with human beings to stop toxins poured into the ocean.
self
help
THE MESSAGE
Words are just the surface of communication. This book reminds us of all the signals we receive - and often ignore - making us better communicators.
Plays
VICTORIA WOODHULL
The true story of Victoria Woodhull, the first woman to run for president,
Theater for the New City and Northport
YEAR OF THE IGUANA
Tennessee Williams' plays succeed with a main character based on his sister, even as her life deteriorates.
Studio Theatre Long Island
THE KISS
An adaptation of the classic Chekhov short story of a soldier who falls in love with a woman who kisses him in the dark.
Theater294
GRACE IS GOOD
Office workers suspect that an older and younger employee are having an affair and set about exposing what they believe is a #metoo moment.
Theater for the New City
THE FARE
A banker's run in with a cabbie from the Middle East changes both of their lives.
Theater for the New City
LEMON TREE
An older man and woman meet in an assisted living facility, falling in love even as one's faculties deteriorate.
Theater294
PEDRO CASTILLO IS INNOCENT
A play about an innocent man in jail and his family inspired by the case of Fernando Bermudez
Theater for the New City
PERFECT NIGHT FOR THE PROM
Two people become involved after meeting at the prom, but their parents have other
plans.
Theater294
THE CARETAKER
OF COROFIN
A tourist in Ireland finds herself accused of murder - inspired by a story told by Deborah Rupy
Theater for the New City
PERFECT NIGHT FOR THE PROM
After a girl meets a boy at the prom, her parents become suspicious and wreak havoc, while trying to protect her.
Theater294
THE MAN WITH ALL THE LUCK
A man makes a deal with a psychic - that gives him other people's luck.
Theater294
NOWHERE MAN
The fictional story of the fifth Beatle, brought in after Paul gets into a car accident. A variation of a famous Beatle myth with characters including George Martin.
Theater for the New City
BUTTERFLY HOUR
A soldier returns from war and comes up with a scheme to get rich before getting married by robbing a drug dealer's home - only to find Hendrix's guitar there.
Theater for the New City
IMAGINE
A series of one acts inspired by beloved Beatles songs, bringing the tunes and their stories to life on stage.
Theater for the New City
IMAGINE
A series of one acts inspired by Beatles songs, bringing characters and stories to life.
Theater for the New City
AROUND THE WORLD
A series of one acts set around the world, bringing places to life.
Theater294
A WALK ON THE BEACH
A sculptor's design of a sculpture of JFK and his son John Kennedy Jr. causes a furor in a town on the Cape, based on the story of sculptor David Lewis,
Theater for the New City
THE FALLS
A one night stand turns into a trip to Niagara Falls where two people learn about each other and themselves.
Theater for the New City
THEATER GAMES
A drama class exercise leads to chaos when others in the school think that it's real rather than an example of a performance.
Bare Bones Theater
SAND CASTLES
When a family goes on vacation, the woman disappears on her own on the beach - where she meets someone. He turns out to be more than an ordinary tourist.
THE BASEBALL PLAYS
A series of one acts about baseball ranging from Little League to MLB
ROSES - A BOUQUET OF MONOLOGUES
A series of monologues related to flowers from happy to sad occasions
SHAKESPEARE
IN THE SNOW
A Hollywood actor returns to the Broadway stage later in life - only to find he keeps forgetting lines, leading to chaos and some comedy
THE BOHEMIANS
When a couple move into an apartment in a "bad" area, their
parents vow to make them move - at all costs.
OPENING
NIGHT
When producers and a playwright fight over the ownership of a script, the characters end up in limbo- awaiting opening night.
ARMENIAN TEA
An architecture student designs a memorial to the Armenian holocaust as a school project - but then ruffles feathers and unearths her own family's past when she tries to build it for real
BIRDS OF PARADISE
In the grim world of the Great Depression, a store owner gives customers credit - that's worthless. His wife borrows money - but instead convinces him it's from people paying debts back. When the man finds out who's giving them the money, it shatters their private peace.
BLOOD BROTHERS
Edwin Booth became the greatest actor of his era.
His brother became an assassin. The tale of two brothers whose rivalry changed
the world.
THE BATTLE
OF BROADWAY
Characters based on David Merrick and Frank Rich lock horns in this battle over a Broadway play. Based on a true behind the scenes story regarding 42nd Street.
Musicals in development
LONG ISLAND LOLITA
The Amy Fisher story brought to life on the stage with a very singular cast of characters.
STEALING MONA LISA
The true story of the man who stole the Mona Lisa - and kept her for two years - and of the painting itself.
YANKEE GIRL
He was a Yankee fan. She lived in the shadow of the stadium. A Bronx love story that reaches all the way to the Dominican Republic.
A STITCH IN TIME
The Emperor's New Clothes is set in the present day United States
PANDEMONIUM
Peter Pan arrives at a suburban house after the boy doodles a door in the book. Captain Hook follows as they live in suburbia until Peter's kidnapped by a book collector.
In the Press
"The play, freighted with melancholy — similar to many of Williams’ best-known works — is occasionally lyrical enough to be worthy of the master. "
Steve Parkes, Newsday, Year of the Iguana
"The dark, sprawling Irish drama. I was impressed."
Linda Winer, drama critic, Newsday, Caretaker of Corofin
"This play is a start on the path to a continued public education."
exoneree Martin Tankleff
on Pedro Castillo is Innocent
Simon Doonan,
THE WASHINGTON PAPER
Mandy Fernandez,
SEATTLE DAILY
Gemma Nashville,
BOOKS IN REVIEW
Bio
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SNAPSHOTS OF SHOWS
Contact
For any inquiries, please contact Claude Solnik:
Tel: 516-404-2960 | claudesolnik@gmail.com
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