Arian Moayed
Encyclopedia
Arian Moayed is an Iranian
-born American
actor
and theater producer. Moayed received a Tony Award
nomination for Best Featured Actor in a Play in 2011
for his performance as Musa in Bengal Tiger at the Baghdad Zoo
.
. His father is a banker by profession. His parents left Iran following the 1979 Iranian Revolution
. The family settled in Glenview, Illinois
, a suburb
of Chicago
, when Moayed was five years old. He speaks Persian
.
Moayed graduated from Glenbrook South High School
in 1998. He then received a bachelor's degree
from Indiana University
in 2002. During college, he appeared in plays by Anton Chekhov
and William Shakespeare
.
He and his girlfriend, Krissy Shields, have two daughters, Olive Joon and Ivy Shireen.
following college. In 2002, Moayed and actor Tom Ridgely, who was Moayed's roommate
at Indiana University, co-founded the Waterwell, an experimental, multimedia
theater company in New York. Moayed and Ridgely have produced more than a dozen stage productions and shows since the theater was established. Moayed also works as Waterwell's artistic director
.
Moayed originally read for Bengal Tiger at the Baghdad Zoo
at a workshop in New York City in 2007. However, prior commitments prevented him from joining the cast of the show until just ten days before the show's debut in 2009 at the Kirk Douglas Theatre
in Los Angeles
. Moayed was cast in the role of Musa, an Iraqi
translator, by the show's director, Moises Kaufman
.
Moayed does not speak Iraqi Arabic
, which is spoken by his character in Bengal Tiger at the Baghdad Zoo. To acquire an authentic accent needed for the role, Moayed taped the translator who was hired for the play and studied her Iraqi Arabic accent
in English
.
Bengal Tiger at the Baghdad Zoo moved from Los Angeles to Broadway in 2010, where Moayed appeared opposite Robin Williams
. Moayed received a Tony Award
nomination for Best Featured Actor in a Play for his portrayal of Musa at the 65th Tony Awards
in 2011.
In 2011, filming is scheduled to begin on Moayed's debut screenplay, This Island Made Me. The film, which will star Campbell Scott
, follows an eleven-year old Iranian immigrant who tries to reunite his family for a concert.
Iran
Iran , officially the Islamic Republic of Iran , is a country in Southern and Western Asia. The name "Iran" has been in use natively since the Sassanian era and came into use internationally in 1935, before which the country was known to the Western world as Persia...
-born American
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
actor
Actor
An actor is a person who acts in a dramatic production and who works in film, television, theatre, or radio in that capacity...
and theater producer. Moayed received a Tony Award
Tony Award
The Antoinette Perry Award for Excellence in Theatre, more commonly known as a Tony Award, recognizes achievement in live Broadway theatre. The awards are presented by the American Theatre Wing and The Broadway League at an annual ceremony in New York City. The awards are given for Broadway...
nomination for Best Featured Actor in a Play in 2011
65th Tony Awards
The 65th Annual Tony Awards was held on June 12, 2011 to recognize achievement in Broadway productions during the 2010–2011 season. They were held at the Beacon Theatre, ending a fourteen-year tradition of holding the ceremony at Radio City Music Hall. The Awards ceremony was broadcast live on CBS...
for his performance as Musa in Bengal Tiger at the Baghdad Zoo
Bengal Tiger at the Baghdad Zoo
Bengal Tiger at the Baghdad Zoo is a play by Rajiv Joseph. The show is about "a tiger that haunts the streets of present day Baghdad seeking the meaning of life. As he witnesses the puzzling absurdities of war, the tiger encounters Americans and Iraqis who are searching for friendship, redemption,...
.
Early life
Moayed was born in IranIran
Iran , officially the Islamic Republic of Iran , is a country in Southern and Western Asia. The name "Iran" has been in use natively since the Sassanian era and came into use internationally in 1935, before which the country was known to the Western world as Persia...
. His father is a banker by profession. His parents left Iran following the 1979 Iranian Revolution
Iranian Revolution
The Iranian Revolution refers to events involving the overthrow of Iran's monarchy under Shah Mohammad Reza Pahlavi and its replacement with an Islamic republic under Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini, the leader of the...
. The family settled in Glenview, Illinois
Glenview, Cook County, Illinois
Glenview is a suburban village located approximately north of downtown Chicago in Cook County, Illinois. As of the 2000 census, the village population was 41,847...
, a suburb
Suburb
The word suburb mostly refers to a residential area, either existing as part of a city or as a separate residential community within commuting distance of a city . Some suburbs have a degree of administrative autonomy, and most have lower population density than inner city neighborhoods...
of Chicago
Chicago
Chicago is the largest city in the US state of Illinois. With nearly 2.7 million residents, it is the most populous city in the Midwestern United States and the third most populous in the US, after New York City and Los Angeles...
, when Moayed was five years old. He speaks Persian
Persian language
Persian is an Iranian language within the Indo-Iranian branch of the Indo-European languages. It is primarily spoken in Iran, Afghanistan, Tajikistan and countries which historically came under Persian influence...
.
Moayed graduated from Glenbrook South High School
Glenbrook South High School
Glenbrook South High School, or GBS, is a public four-year high school located in Glenview, Illinois, a suburb of Chicago, Illinois, in the United States. It is part of Northfield Township High School District, which also includes Glenbrook North High School...
in 1998. He then received a bachelor's degree
Bachelor's degree
A bachelor's degree is usually an academic degree awarded for an undergraduate course or major that generally lasts for three or four years, but can range anywhere from two to six years depending on the region of the world...
from Indiana University
Indiana University
Indiana University is a multi-campus public university system in the state of Indiana, United States. Indiana University has a combined student body of more than 100,000 students, including approximately 42,000 students enrolled at the Indiana University Bloomington campus and approximately 37,000...
in 2002. During college, he appeared in plays by Anton Chekhov
Anton Chekhov
Anton Pavlovich Chekhov was a Russian physician, dramatist and author who is considered to be among the greatest writers of short stories in history. His career as a dramatist produced four classics and his best short stories are held in high esteem by writers and critics...
and William Shakespeare
William Shakespeare
William Shakespeare was an English poet and playwright, widely regarded as the greatest writer in the English language and the world's pre-eminent dramatist. He is often called England's national poet and the "Bard of Avon"...
.
He and his girlfriend, Krissy Shields, have two daughters, Olive Joon and Ivy Shireen.
Career
Moayed moved to New York CityNew York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
following college. In 2002, Moayed and actor Tom Ridgely, who was Moayed's roommate
Roommate
A roommate is a person who shares a living facility such as an apartment or dormitory. Similar terms include suitemate, housemate, flatmate , or sharemate...
at Indiana University, co-founded the Waterwell, an experimental, multimedia
Multimedia
Multimedia is media and content that uses a combination of different content forms. The term can be used as a noun or as an adjective describing a medium as having multiple content forms. The term is used in contrast to media which use only rudimentary computer display such as text-only, or...
theater company in New York. Moayed and Ridgely have produced more than a dozen stage productions and shows since the theater was established. Moayed also works as Waterwell's artistic director
Artistic director
An artistic director is the executive of an arts organization, particularly in a theatre company, that handles the organization's artistic direction. He or she is generally a producer and director, but not in the sense of a mogul, since the organization is generally a non-profit organization...
.
Moayed originally read for Bengal Tiger at the Baghdad Zoo
Bengal Tiger at the Baghdad Zoo
Bengal Tiger at the Baghdad Zoo is a play by Rajiv Joseph. The show is about "a tiger that haunts the streets of present day Baghdad seeking the meaning of life. As he witnesses the puzzling absurdities of war, the tiger encounters Americans and Iraqis who are searching for friendship, redemption,...
at a workshop in New York City in 2007. However, prior commitments prevented him from joining the cast of the show until just ten days before the show's debut in 2009 at the Kirk Douglas Theatre
Kirk Douglas Theatre
The Kirk Douglas Theatre is located in Culver City, California and in 2004, was acquired by the famed Center Theatre Group. The theatre is the most intimate of the group's three stages and seats 317 patrons at max occupancy.- History :...
in Los Angeles
Los Ángeles
Los Ángeles is the capital of the province of Biobío, in the commune of the same name, in Region VIII , in the center-south of Chile. It is located between the Laja and Biobío rivers. The population is 123,445 inhabitants...
. Moayed was cast in the role of Musa, an Iraqi
Iraq
Iraq ; officially the Republic of Iraq is a country in Western Asia spanning most of the northwestern end of the Zagros mountain range, the eastern part of the Syrian Desert and the northern part of the Arabian Desert....
translator, by the show's director, Moises Kaufman
Moisés Kaufman
Moisés Kaufman is a playwright, director and founder of Tectonic Theater Project. He is the author of Gross Indecency: The Three Trials of Oscar Wilde, 33 Variations and is perhaps best known for writing The Laramie Project with other members of Tectonic Theater Project...
.
Moayed does not speak Iraqi Arabic
Iraqi Arabic
Iraqi Arabic is a continuum of mutually intelligible Arabic varieties native to the Mesopotamian basin of Iraq as well as spanning into eastern and northern Syria, western Iran, southeastern Turkey, and spoken in respective Iraqi diaspora communities.-Varieties:Iraqi Arabic has two major varieties...
, which is spoken by his character in Bengal Tiger at the Baghdad Zoo. To acquire an authentic accent needed for the role, Moayed taped the translator who was hired for the play and studied her Iraqi Arabic accent
Accent
-Speech and language:* Accent , pronunciation characteristic of a certain locality* Accent , of a word* Stress , tone levels and emphasis used in many languages for words or grammar* A diacritical mark is also known as an accent....
in English
English language
English is a West Germanic language that arose in the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms of England and spread into what was to become south-east Scotland under the influence of the Anglian medieval kingdom of Northumbria...
.
Bengal Tiger at the Baghdad Zoo moved from Los Angeles to Broadway in 2010, where Moayed appeared opposite Robin Williams
Robin Williams
Robin McLaurin Williams is an American actor and comedian. Rising to fame with his role as the alien Mork in the TV series Mork and Mindy, and later stand-up comedy work, Williams has performed in many feature films since 1980. He won the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor for his performance...
. Moayed received a Tony Award
Tony Award
The Antoinette Perry Award for Excellence in Theatre, more commonly known as a Tony Award, recognizes achievement in live Broadway theatre. The awards are presented by the American Theatre Wing and The Broadway League at an annual ceremony in New York City. The awards are given for Broadway...
nomination for Best Featured Actor in a Play for his portrayal of Musa at the 65th Tony Awards
65th Tony Awards
The 65th Annual Tony Awards was held on June 12, 2011 to recognize achievement in Broadway productions during the 2010–2011 season. They were held at the Beacon Theatre, ending a fourteen-year tradition of holding the ceremony at Radio City Music Hall. The Awards ceremony was broadcast live on CBS...
in 2011.
In 2011, filming is scheduled to begin on Moayed's debut screenplay, This Island Made Me. The film, which will star Campbell Scott
Campbell Scott
Campbell Scott is an American actor, director, producer, and voice artist.-Life and career:Scott was born in New York City, the son of George C. Scott, an actor, director, and producer, and Colleen Dewhurst, a Canadian-born actress. He graduated from Lawrence University in 1983. His brother is...
, follows an eleven-year old Iranian immigrant who tries to reunite his family for a concert.