Arthur Yorinks
Encyclopedia
Arthur Yorinks has written and directed for opera
, theater, dance
, film
, and radio
and is the author
of over thirty-five acclaimed and award-winning books, including "Hey, Al
," a children's book which earned the Caldecott Medal
in 1987.
In his over four decades of working in the performing arts
, Yorinks has written and directed numerous plays including So, Sue Me which premiered at The Kennedy Center and It's Alive
, premiering at the Tribeca Performing Arts Center in New York
. Yorinks was Philip Glass
’s librettist for the operas The Juniper Tree
and The Fall of the House of Usher, both of which have been performed all over the world.
Compelled by the use of sound in the theater, Yorinks has, for almost twenty years, experimented with the relationship between audio and live performance
. In 2002 he formalized that passion into a company devoted to exploring, evolving, and redefining audio theater. Since then, Yorinks has written and directed over 30 original audio plays performed live in several series he established at The Kennedy Center, The Henry Street Playhouse, The Jacob Burns Film Center, and The New Victory Theater in New York City as well as other venues across the country. This audio work has been broadcast nationwide on XM Satellite Radio
. Yorinks is at the forefront of a quest to redefine audio theater and create and produce what he has coined a new theater of sound for the 21st century—-theater work where the core of the dramatic narrative
comes primarily from the use of sound—-as both a live theatrical experience as well as a recorded and broadcast medium. Yorinks has directed the radio works of Tom Stoppard, adapted and directed for radio Garson Kanin's The Rat Race
, Kafka's The Metamorphosis
, Gogol's The Portrait
, Dickens' A Christmas Carol
, and many other works of literature. His most recent original multimedia audio theater work, The Invisible Man
was commissioned by WNYC Radio and premiered at The Jerome L. Greene Performance Space in New York.
In the field of dance, among the several dance companies he collaborated with, Yorinks helped create a full-length dance/theater piece entitled A Selection with the renowned dance company Pilobolus
. Over the years, his eclectic
and wide ranging career has brought him into projects with celebrated artists from Andre Serban to Bill Irwin
to the legendary film maker Michael Powell
along with many others.
Among his over 35 published works for adults and children, his writings have been hailed as “one of the most distinctive prose styles in children’s literature.” Through his over thirty-four years of picture-book
making, he has collaborated with such famed artists as Maurice Sendak
, William Steig
, Mort Drucker, David Small
, and Richard Egielski
. The New York Times once hailed Yorinks’s body of work as “some of the best humor to appear since Woody Allen
was writing for The New Yorker
...” His books include Louis the Fish, Oh, Brother, The Miami Giant, Company's Coming
, Harry and Lulu, It Happened in Pinsk, and many others. His book, Mommy?, was a New York Times bestseller in 2006. Recently, Yorinks reunited with his long-time collaborator Richard Egielski for two new picture books -- What A Trip! published by Scholastic and Homework
published by Walker Books
.
Yorinks, along with originating a new theater of sound in collaboration with WNYC Radio's The Jerome L. Greene Performance Space, where he is a consulting adviser, devotes his time to the Yorinks Theater Group, and writing and directing.
Opera
Opera is an art form in which singers and musicians perform a dramatic work combining text and musical score, usually in a theatrical setting. Opera incorporates many of the elements of spoken theatre, such as acting, scenery, and costumes and sometimes includes dance...
, theater, dance
Dance
Dance is an art form that generally refers to movement of the body, usually rhythmic and to music, used as a form of expression, social interaction or presented in a spiritual or performance setting....
, film
Film
A film, also called a movie or motion picture, is a series of still or moving images. It is produced by recording photographic images with cameras, or by creating images using animation techniques or visual effects...
, and radio
Radio
Radio is the transmission of signals through free space by modulation of electromagnetic waves with frequencies below those of visible light. Electromagnetic radiation travels by means of oscillating electromagnetic fields that pass through the air and the vacuum of space...
and is the author
Author
An author is broadly defined as "the person who originates or gives existence to anything" and that authorship determines responsibility for what is created. Narrowly defined, an author is the originator of any written work.-Legal significance:...
of over thirty-five acclaimed and award-winning books, including "Hey, Al
Hey, Al
Hey, Al is a book written by Arthur Yorinks and illustrated by Richard Egielski. Released by Farrar Press, it was the recipient of the Caldecott Medal for illustration in 1987.-Synopsis:...
," a children's book which earned the Caldecott Medal
Caldecott Medal
The Caldecott Medal is awarded annually by the Association for Library Service to Children , a division of the American Library Association, to the artist of the most distinguished American picture book for children published that year. The award was named in honor of nineteenth-century English...
in 1987.
In his over four decades of working in the performing arts
Performing arts
The performing arts are those forms art which differ from the plastic arts insofar as the former uses the artist's own body, face, and presence as a medium, and the latter uses materials such as clay, metal or paint which can be molded or transformed to create some physical art object...
, Yorinks has written and directed numerous plays including So, Sue Me which premiered at The Kennedy Center and It's Alive
It's Alive
It's Alive may refer to:* It's Alive , a 1974 horror film directed by Larry Cohen* It's Alive!, a 1969 American TV film directed by Larry Buchanan* It's Alive , a 2008 remake of the 1974 horror film...
, premiering at the Tribeca Performing Arts Center in New York
New York
New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...
. Yorinks was Philip Glass
Philip Glass
Philip Glass is an American composer. He is considered to be one of the most influential composers of the late 20th century and is widely acknowledged as a composer who has brought art music to the public .His music is often described as minimalist, along with...
’s librettist for the operas The Juniper Tree
The Juniper Tree (opera)
The Juniper Tree is an opera co-composed by Philip Glass and Robert Moran in 1985 to a libretto by Arthur Yorinks based on the Brothers Grimm fairy tale....
and The Fall of the House of Usher, both of which have been performed all over the world.
Compelled by the use of sound in the theater, Yorinks has, for almost twenty years, experimented with the relationship between audio and live performance
Live performance
live performance may refer to:*A play or musical*A concert, a live performance before an audience*A dance performance, dance performed for an audience.*Live radio, radio broadcast without delay...
. In 2002 he formalized that passion into a company devoted to exploring, evolving, and redefining audio theater. Since then, Yorinks has written and directed over 30 original audio plays performed live in several series he established at The Kennedy Center, The Henry Street Playhouse, The Jacob Burns Film Center, and The New Victory Theater in New York City as well as other venues across the country. This audio work has been broadcast nationwide on XM Satellite Radio
XM Satellite Radio
XM Satellite Radio is one of two satellite radio services in the United States and Canada, operated by Sirius XM Radio. It provides pay-for-service radio, analogous to cable television. Its service includes 73 different music channels, 39 news, sports, talk and entertainment channels, 21 regional...
. Yorinks is at the forefront of a quest to redefine audio theater and create and produce what he has coined a new theater of sound for the 21st century—-theater work where the core of the dramatic narrative
Narrative
A narrative is a constructive format that describes a sequence of non-fictional or fictional events. The word derives from the Latin verb narrare, "to recount", and is related to the adjective gnarus, "knowing" or "skilled"...
comes primarily from the use of sound—-as both a live theatrical experience as well as a recorded and broadcast medium. Yorinks has directed the radio works of Tom Stoppard, adapted and directed for radio Garson Kanin's The Rat Race
The Rat Race
The Rat Race is a 1960 American drama film directed by Robert Mulligan and starring Tony Curtis and Debbie Reynolds as struggling young entertainment professionals in New York City. Filming took place in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.- Plot :...
, Kafka's The Metamorphosis
The Metamorphosis
The Metamorphosis is a novella by Franz Kafka, first published in 1915. It is often cited as one of the seminal works of short fiction of the 20th century and is widely studied in colleges and universities across the western world...
, Gogol's The Portrait
The Portrait (short story)
The Portrait is a short story by Nikolai Gogol, originally published in the short story collection Arabesques in 1835....
, Dickens' A Christmas Carol
A Christmas Carol
A Christmas Carol is a novella by English author Charles Dickens first published by Chapman & Hall on 17 December 1843. The story tells of sour and stingy Ebenezer Scrooge's ideological, ethical, and emotional transformation after the supernatural visits of Jacob Marley and the Ghosts of...
, and many other works of literature. His most recent original multimedia audio theater work, The Invisible Man
The Invisible Man
The Invisible Man is a science fiction novella by H.G. Wells published in 1897. Wells' novel was originally serialised in Pearson's Weekly in 1897, and published as a novel the same year...
was commissioned by WNYC Radio and premiered at The Jerome L. Greene Performance Space in New York.
In the field of dance, among the several dance companies he collaborated with, Yorinks helped create a full-length dance/theater piece entitled A Selection with the renowned dance company Pilobolus
Pilobolus (dance company)
Pilobolus is a contemporary dance company whose origins are traced to a 1971 Dartmouth College dance class taught by Alison Becker Chase. The group first began performing in October 1971....
. Over the years, his eclectic
Eclecticism
Eclecticism is a conceptual approach that does not hold rigidly to a single paradigm or set of assumptions, but instead draws upon multiple theories, styles, or ideas to gain complementary insights into a subject, or applies different theories in particular cases.It can sometimes seem inelegant or...
and wide ranging career has brought him into projects with celebrated artists from Andre Serban to Bill Irwin
Bill Irwin
William Mills "Bill" Irwin is an American actor and clown noted for his contribution to the renaissance of American circus during the 1970s. He is known for his vaudeville-style stage acts, but has made a number of appearances on film and television and won a Tony Award for a dramatic role on...
to the legendary film maker Michael Powell
Michael Powell (director)
Michael Latham Powell was a renowned English film director, celebrated for his partnership with Emeric Pressburger...
along with many others.
Among his over 35 published works for adults and children, his writings have been hailed as “one of the most distinctive prose styles in children’s literature.” Through his over thirty-four years of picture-book
Picture book
A picture book combines visual and verbal narratives in a book format, most often aimed at young children. The images in picture books use a range of media such as oil paints, acrylics, watercolor and pencil.Two of the earliest books with something like the format picture books still retain now...
making, he has collaborated with such famed artists as Maurice Sendak
Maurice Sendak
Maurice Bernard Sendak is an American writer and illustrator of children's literature. He is best known for his book Where the Wild Things Are, published in 1963.-Early life:...
, William Steig
William Steig
William Steig was a prolific American cartoonist, sculptor and, later in life, an author of popular children's literature...
, Mort Drucker, David Small
David Small
David Small is an American author and illustrator. He was only 2 years old when he began drawing, health problems having kept him home for much of his childhood.-Life:...
, and Richard Egielski
Richard Egielski
Richard Egielski is an American illustrator most famous for Hey, Al, a book that Arthur Yorinks wrote, but for which Egielski won the 1987 Caldecott Medal for his illustrations...
. The New York Times once hailed Yorinks’s body of work as “some of the best humor to appear since Woody Allen
Woody Allen
Woody Allen is an American screenwriter, director, actor, comedian, jazz musician, author, and playwright. Allen's films draw heavily on literature, sexuality, philosophy, psychology, Jewish identity, and the history of cinema...
was writing for The New Yorker
The New Yorker
The New Yorker is an American magazine of reportage, commentary, criticism, essays, fiction, satire, cartoons and poetry published by Condé Nast...
...” His books include Louis the Fish, Oh, Brother, The Miami Giant, Company's Coming
Company's Coming
Company's Coming is a popular line of cookbooks that has sold over 30 million copies since 1981. The series is produced by Company’s Coming Publishing Limited based in Edmonton, Alberta...
, Harry and Lulu, It Happened in Pinsk, and many others. His book, Mommy?, was a New York Times bestseller in 2006. Recently, Yorinks reunited with his long-time collaborator Richard Egielski for two new picture books -- What A Trip! published by Scholastic and Homework
Homework
Homework, or homework assignment, refers to tasks assigned to students by their teachers to be completed outside of class. Common homework assignments may include a quantity or period of reading to be performed, writing or typing to be completed, problems to be solved, a school project to be built...
published by Walker Books
Walker Books
Walker Books is an independent British publisher of children's books, founded in 1978 by Sebastian Walker.The success of their Where's Wally? series enabled them to expand into the American market, starting a sister company called Candlewick Press in 1991.Amelia Edwards, co-founder of Walker Books,...
.
Yorinks, along with originating a new theater of sound in collaboration with WNYC Radio's The Jerome L. Greene Performance Space, where he is a consulting adviser, devotes his time to the Yorinks Theater Group, and writing and directing.
External links
- http://www.yorinkstheatergroup.org Yorinks Theater Group
- http://www.nightkitchenradio.com/ Night Kitchen Radio Theater
- http://www.iblist.com/author12109.htm Arthur Yorinks at Internet Book List