James Arrington

James Arrington
Born (1948-12-17) December 17, 1948 (age 77)
EducationMasters, Brigham Young University American Conservatory Theater
Websitehttps://www.jamesarringtonproductions.com/about

James Arrington (born December 17, 1948) is an American stage actor, director, playwright and scholar. His plays are about the people and culture of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church).

Early life and education

At the age of 18, he served a two-year mission in Brazil for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Arrington studied at the American Conservatory Theater in San Francisco and has a master's degree from Brigham Young University.

In 2017, he and his wife Colleen left Utah to serve a mission together in Nashville, Tennessee. Arrington is the son of LDS historian Leonard J. Arrington.

Career

Arrington served twice as the department chair for the Department of Theatrical Arts for Stage and Screen and was a film and acting instructor at Utah Valley University.

Arrington's plays include one-man shows on LDS Church leaders Brigham Young, J. Golden Kimball, and Wilford Woodruff. Here's Brother Brigham, which Arrington wrote and performs, is a two-hour, two-act play in which Brigham Young reads letters, reminisces about his past, and has conversations with other people. By 2001, Arrington had performed the play almost 700 times.

He has written and produced a large number of plays around the fictional Farley family. One to four actors play up to 20 different members of the Farley family. The play is also performed by other actors, including a U.S. Army performance company in Iraq and Afghanistan. The play has spawned a book entitled, Aunt Pearl's Family Reunion Book: Personal Pointers on "How to 'Farley-Up Your Family Reunion" Reunion Book.

Arrington has also lent his voice talents to animated film productions, including The Swan Princess series as Queen Uberta's first footman, Sir Chamberlain. He also was one of the lead voice talents in the animated film "Samuel the Boy Prophet" and several other Bible-themed animated features produced by Richard Rich. He also voiced the character Frodo Baggins in the 1979 radio dramatization of The Lord of the Rings by The Mind's Eye radio company.

Arrington was awarded the 2019 Smith-Pettit Award for Outstanding Contribution to Mormon Letters.

Works

  • Here's Brother Brigham: The original play was written in 1976 and filmed for DVD release in 2016.
  • Farley Family Reunion (1980)
  • J. Golden (1982)
  • Wilford Woodruff: God's Fisherman (with Tim Slover, 1987)
  • Farley Family Reunion II: The Next Gyration (1993)
  • The Prophet (1995)
  • Trail of Dreams (with Marvin Payne and Steven Kapp Perry, 1997)
  • Farley Family Xmas (1997)
  • Tumuaki! Matthew Cowley of the Pacific (1997)
  • The M.A.K.E.R. (2001)
  • Youtahneeks (2001)
  • March of the Salt Soldiers (with Mahonri Stewart, 2008)

Filmography

Film

Films in which James Arrington has had a role
Year Title Role Notes Ref.
1977 Brigham N/a
1983 Savage Journey Colonel TV movie
1989 A More Perfect Union: America Becomes a Nation Gouverneur Morris
1994 The Swan Princess Sir Chamberlain Voice
1997 The Swan Princess: Escape from Castle Mountain
1998 The Swan Princess: Sing Along
2012 The Swan Princess: Christmas
2014 The Swan Princess: A Royal Family Tale
2017 Here's Brother Brigham Brigham Young

Television

Television shows in which James Arrington has had a role
Year Title Role Notes Ref.
1985 Enchanted Musical Playhouse Michael 1 episode
1989-1991 Animated Stories from the New Testament
  • Dr. Zobar
  • Assistant
  • Jezreel
  • Officer
  • African Chief
  • Voice
  • 3 episodes
1991 The Animated Book of Mormon Erastus
  • Voice
  • 1 episode
1993-1995 Animated Stories from the Bible
  • Eli
  • Innkeeper
  • Voice
  • 2 episodes

References

  1. ↑ "James Arrington". Utah Valley University. Archived from the original on October 2, 2011. Retrieved April 2, 2011.
  2. ↑ Tilton, Lynn (January 1977). "Brother Brigham on Stage". New Era. Retrieved April 4, 2011.
  3. ↑ Arave, Lynn (June 1, 2001). "Brother Brigham still revered at 200". Deseret News. Salt Lake City. Retrieved April 4, 2011.
  4. ↑ "'Farley Family Reunion' still has touch". Deseret News. June 5, 2003. Retrieved April 4, 2011.{{cite news}}: CS1 maint: deprecated archival service (link)
  5. ↑ Hipps, Tim (November 13, 2003). "Army theater group to perform in Iraq, Afghanistan". Army News Service.
  6. ↑ "2019 AML Award Winners" by Andrew Hall. Dawning of a Brighter Day. Association for Mormon Letters. 2 May 2020. Accessed 2 May 2020.
  7. 1 2 Ingram, Aleah (July 21, 2017). "Brigham Young is BACK, Just in Time for Pioneer Day". LDS Daily. Retrieved September 22, 2023.
  8. ↑ Arrington, James (March 14, 2014). "BWW Interviews: James Arrington on the Final Farewell Performance of THE FARLEY FAMILY REUNION". BroadwayWorld (Interview). Interviewed by Tyler Hinton. Retrieved October 18, 2026.