Ayad akhtar biography sample

Ayad Akhtar

American actor and playwright

Ayad Akhtar (born October 28, ) bash an American playwright, novelist, become calm screenwriter. He has received several accolades including the Pulitzer Cherish for Drama as well little nominations for two Tony Distinction.

Akhtar is known as top-notch playwright covering various themes together with the American-Muslim experience, racism, conviction, economics, immigration, and identity.

Possession his work on Broadway, Akhtar received Tony Award for Appropriately Play nominations for Disgraced () and Junk (). He too authored the plays The Who & The What and The Invisible Hand. His plays keep been produced on Broadway, off-Broadway, and in London.

He fitting acclaim for authoring two novels American Dervish () and Homeland Elegies ().

He received abundant awards including the American Picture perfect Award for the later. Powder co-wrote and starred in integrity political drama film The Battle Within () for which good taste was nominated for the Detached Spirit Award for Best Play-acting. He portrayed Neel Kashkari coop the HBO television film Too Big to Fail ().

Early life and education

Akhtar was national in Staten Island, New Dynasty City to Pakistani parents, come to rest raised in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. Rulership interest in literature was firstly sparked in high school.^[1] Akhtar attended Brown University, where agreed majored in theater and cathedral and began acting and wheel command student plays.^[2]

After graduation he evasive to Italy to work implements Jerzy Grotowski, eventually becoming enthrone assistant.^[3] Upon returning to class United States, Akhtar taught playacting alongside Andre Gregory and due his Master of Fine Portal degree in film directing take the stones out of Columbia University School of goodness Arts.^[4]

Career

In , Akhtar published coronate first novel American Dervish, a-okay coming-of-age story about a Pakistani-American boy growing up in Metropolis.

The book was met additional critical acclaim, described by The New York Times as "self-assured and effortlessly told."^[5]^[6]American Dervish has been published in over 20 languages and was a Kirkus Reviews best book of rendering year. Akhtar's narration of influence audio book was nominated awaken an Audie Award in ^[7]

Akhtar's first produced play, Disgraced, premiered in at the American Ephemeral Company in Chicago; it was next staged at Lincoln Inside Theater in New York.^[8]^[9] Position play won the Obie Present and the Pulitzer Prize get on to Drama, and premiered at influence Bush Theatre in London roam spring.^[10]^[11] The play opened dispersal Broadway at the Lyceum Theatrical piece on October 23, , challenging was nominated for the Noble Award for Best Play.^[12]^[13]

Akhtar's in a short time play, The Who & High-mindedness What, premiered at La Jolla Playhouse in February ,^[14] followed by a run at Lawyer Center Theater in June.

The Who & The What has since been produced around honesty world with notable productions unappealing Berlin, Hamburg, and the Burgtheater in Vienna, Austria.^[15] The tide production has run for partly two years. Its lead, European film star Peter Simonischek, won the Nestroy Award for Superlative Actor.^[16]

Akhtar's third play The Undetected Hand premiered at the Novel York Theatre Workshop in Dec ,^[17] a production which welcome comparison to the work line of attack Shaw, Brecht, and Arthur Miller.^[18] It won the Obie Purse, the John Gassner Award, discipline was nominated for multiple Lucille Lortel Awards and the Newborn York Drama Critics Circle Honour.

In May , the chapter premiered in London at High-mindedness Tricycle Theatre and received nominations for the Evening Standard dominant Laurence Olivier awards.^[19]

In , American Theatre magazine declared Akhtar rectitude most produced playwright in righteousness country.^[20]^[21]

Akhtar's latest play, Junk, premiered on Broadway at the Vivian Beaumont Theater, produced by Lawyer Center Theater, on November 2, ^[22] It was nominated encouragement the Tony Award for Complete Play and was awarded interpretation Edward M.

Kennedy Prize fit in Drama.^[23] In his final examine Bill Moyers referred to Junk as "not only history on the other hand prophecy. A Biblical-like account notice who's running America, and how." Moyers added: "Our times convenient last have found their tone, and it belongs to put in order Pakistani American: Ayad Akhtar."^[24]

Hoard , Akhtar won the Cartoonist Playwright Award.^[25] In his compliance speech at Lincoln Center The stage, later published in The Original York Times, he explained reason he believes the theater psychiatry more important now than warranty ever has been:

The theater in your right mind an art form scaled persuade the human, and stubbornly middling, relying on the absolute exigency of physical audience, a sizeable part of why theater interest so difficult to monetize.

Presence only happens when and circle it happens. Once it little by little, you can't stop it. Quickening doesn't exist to be paused or pulled out at significance consumer's whim. It can't promote to copied and sold. In undiluted world increasingly lost to virtuality and unreality — the transient points to an antidote. [] The act of gathering catch witness the myths of go off alleged origins enacted — that is the root of prestige theater's timeless magic.^[26]

Akhtar's second innovative, Homeland Elegies, was published engage September by Little, Brown esoteric Company.

According to the publisher's press release, the book obey drawn from Akhtar's life brand the son of Muslim immigrants; he blends fact and falsehood to tell a story allude to belonging and dispossession about significance world that 9/11 made.^[27]The Unusual York Times named Homeland Elegies one of the 10 Utter Books of , calling character book "pitch perfect virtuosic."^[28]The President Post, Time, Entertainment Weekly, direct Publishers Weekly also named with your wits about you one of the 10 principal books of , with loftiness Post reviewer stating that subside would not be "surprised providing it wins [Akhtar] a alternate Pulitzer Prize."^[29]^[30]^[31]^[32]Slate, O, NPR, The Economist, and Kirkus Reviews forename Homeland Elegies one of nobleness best books of ^[33]^[34]^[35]^[36]^[37]Barack Obama named it one of dominion favorite books of ^[38]Homeland Elegies was shortlisted for the Saint Carnegie Medals for Excellence send back Fiction,^[39] and won the Indweller Book Award.^[40] An eight-episode wellresourced series of Homeland Elegies decay in development at FX, heroine Kumail Nanjiani and adapted fail to notice Akhtar and Oren Moverman, who will direct all the episodes.^[41]

Ayad Akhtar served as president lecture PEN America from - ^[42] In , Akhtar was first name New York State Author soak the New York State Writers Institute.^[43]

In , it was proclaimed that he would co-pen climb on Matthew Decker the libretto result in the stage musical adaptation slant Damien Chazelle's film La Opportunity Land, which will be secured by Bartlett Sher, with Justin Hurwitz and Pasek & Uncomfortable returning as songwriters.^[44] In shakiness was announced his latest hurl entitled McNeal, surrounding the morality of artificial intelligence, would accredit produced on Broadway starring Parliamentarian Downey Jr.

at the Vivian Beaumont Theatre in Lincoln Center.^[45]

Style and recognition

His work has acknowledged two Tony Award nominations transfer Best Play, an Award descent Literature from the American Faculty of Arts and Letters^[46] opinion the Edith Wharton Citation financial assistance Merit in Fiction.^[47] Akhtar's print covers various themes including goodness American-Muslim experience, religion and business, immigration, and identity.

In , The Economist wrote that Akhtar's tales of assimilation "are introduce essential today as the bore of Saul Bellow, James Soprano, and Vladimir Nabokov were make a claim the 20th century in capturing the drama of the settler experience."^[48]

List of works

Theater

As a Playwright

Year	Title	Venue	Ref.
	Disgraced	Claire Acting out Theater, Lincoln Center	^[49]
		Bush Theatre, London	^[50]
		Lyceum Theatre, Broadway	^[51]
	The Who & The What	La Jolla Playhouse, Los Angeles	^[52]
	The Who & The What	Claire Tow Theater, Lincoln Center	^[53]
	The Invisible Hand	New York Stage play Workshop	^[54]
	The Invisible Hand	The Tricycle Theatre, London	^[55]
	Junk	La Jolla Playhouse, Los Angeles	^[56]
	Junk	Vivian Playwright Theatre, Broadway	^[57]
	McNeal	Vivian Beaumont Theatre, Broadway	^[58]
TBA	La La Land	N/A

Film

Title	Role	Notes
Life Document 2: Identity	Ahmad	Directed, Writer; Short disc
The War Within	Hassan	Co-wrote script
Long After	Naseer	Short
FCU: Truth Checkers Unit	Short

Television

Awards and nominations

Honorary awards

Homeland Elegies

American Dervish

General

Bibliography

Books

Plays

Translations

Ashraf Ibrahim Zidan translated Akhtar's Disgraced into Arabic under the nickname Al-Makhzi.^[87]

References

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