Grace Andreacchi (born December 3, 1954) is an American-born author known for her blend of poetic language and

modernism Modernism is both a philosophy, philosophical and arts movement that arose from broad transformations in Western world, Western society during the late 19th and early 20th centuries. The movement reflected a desire for the creation of new fo ...

with a

post-modernist Postmodernism is an intellectual stance or mode of discourseNuyen, A.T., 1992. The Role of Rhetorical Devices in Postmodernist Discourse. Philosophy & Rhetoric, pp.183–194. characterized by skepticism toward the " grand narratives" of moderni ...

sensibility. Andreacchi is active as a

novelist A novelist is an author or writer of novels, though often novelists also write in other genres of both fiction and non-fiction. Some novelists are professional novelists, thus make a living writing novels and other fiction, while others aspire to ...

poet A poet is a person who studies and creates poetry. Poets may describe themselves as such or be described as such by others. A poet may simply be the creator ( thinker, songwriter, writer, or author) who creates (composes) poems (oral or writte ...

and

playwright A playwright or dramatist is a person who writes plays. Etymology The word "play" is from Middle English pleye, from Old English plæġ, pleġa, plæġa ("play, exercise; sport, game; drama, applause"). The word "wright" is an archaic English ...

Biography

Grace Andreacchi was born in

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...

and grew up in the Inwood section of

Manhattan Manhattan (), known regionally as the City, is the most densely populated and geographically smallest of the five boroughs of New York City. The borough is also coextensive with New York County, one of the original counties of the U.S. state ...

. She was educated at the Academy of Mount St. Ursula High School, and went on to study theatre at the

Stella Adler Stella Adler (February 10, 1901 – December 21, 1992) was an American actress and acting teacher.
''

philosophy Philosophy (from , ) is the systematized study of general and fundamental questions, such as those about existence, reason, knowledge, values, mind, and language. Such questions are often posed as problems to be studied or resolved. Some ...

, first at

Hunter College Hunter College is a public university in New York City. It is one of the constituent colleges of the City University of New York and offers studies in more than one hundred undergraduate and postgraduate fields across five schools. It also admi ...

(New York City), and then at

Binghamton University The State University of New York at Binghamton (Binghamton University or SUNY Binghamton) is a public university, public research university with campuses in Binghamton, New York, Binghamton, Vestal, New York, Vestal, and Johnson City, New Yor ...

(Binghamton, New York). In her final year she received a fellowship to study at

Bedford College, London file:Bedford College in York place - photographer is unknown but guess 1908.png, Bedford College was in York Place after 1874 Bedford College was founded in London in 1849 as the first higher education college for education of women, women in th ...

. During this time she specialised in the philosophies of

ancient Greece Ancient Greece ( el, Ἑλλάς, Hellás) was a northeastern Mediterranean civilization, existing from the Greek Dark Ages of the 12th–9th centuries BC to the end of classical antiquity ( AD 600), that comprised a loose collection of cult ...

and

medieval Europe In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the late 5th to the late 15th centuries, similar to the post-classical period of global history. It began with the fall of the Western Roman Empire a ...

, as well as additional studies in

Chinese philosophy Chinese philosophy originates in the Spring and Autumn period () and Warring States period (), during a period known as the "Hundred Schools of Thought", which was characterized by significant intellectual and cultural developmen ...

and

freudian Sigmund Freud ( , ; born Sigismund Schlomo Freud; 6 May 1856 – 23 September 1939) was an Austrian neurologist and the founder of psychoanalysis, a clinical method for evaluating and treating pathologies explained as originating in conflicts i ...

thought. Since 1989 Andreacchi has lived in Europe, moving first to

Paris Paris () is the capital and most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), making it the 30th most densely populated city in the world in 2020. S ...

, then rural

Normandy Normandy (; french: link=no, Normandie ; nrf, Normaundie, Nouormandie ; from Old French , plural of ''Normant'', originally from the word for "northman" in several Scandinavian languages) is a geographical and cultural region in Northwestern ...

, and later to

Berlin Berlin ( , ) is the capital and largest city of Germany by both area and population. Its 3.7 million inhabitants make it the European Union's most populous city, according to population within city limits. One of Germany's sixteen constitue ...

(1994–1998) and

London London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...

, where she now resides. In 2008 she founded Andromache Books, a writers' cooperative, to publish literary fiction and poetry.

Works

Her first work was the play ''Vegetable Medley'' (1985, Soho Repertory Theater, New York and

Boston Center for the Arts Boston (), officially the City of Boston, is the state capital and most populous city of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, as well as the cultural and financial center of the New England region of the United States. It is the 24th- mo ...

, Boston, Massachusetts), an experimental work fusing elements of comedy and melodrama in a highly poeticised language. Her first novel, ''Give My Heart Ease'' (1989), received the New American Writing Award and was translated into Slovenian as ''Pomiri mi srce''. Admired by some critics, others found its frank depiction of an abusive sexual relationship disturbing. Her 1993 novel, ''Music for Glass Orchestra'', garnered much critical acclaim for its wildly beautiful, surrealistic style. Set in Paris, it contains a wide-ranging discourse on the music of

J.S. Bach Johann Sebastian Bach (28 July 1750) was a German composer and musician of the late baroque music, Baroque period. He is known for his orchestral music such as the ''Brandenburg Concertos''; instrumental compositions such as the Cello Suite ...

, with special attention to the

Sonatas and Partitas for Solo Violin The sonatas and partitas for solo violin (Bach-Werke-Verzeichnis, BWV 1001–1006) are a set of six works composed by Johann Sebastian Bach. They are sometimes referred to in English as the sonatas and for solo violin in accordance with Bach's he ...

. Her first collection of poetry, '' Elysian Sonnets and Other Poems'' (1990) was published as a chapbook in Paris. In 1995 Andreacchi was a collaborator in the project ''Violin Music in the Age of Shopping'', a work by avant-garde composer and violinist

Jon Rose Jonathan Anthony Rose (born 19 February 1951) is an Australian violinist, cellist, composer, and multimedia artist. Rose's work is centered in the experimental music known as free improvisation, where he has created large environmental multimed ...

. For her contribution Andreacchi was made an Honorary Fellow of the Rosenberg Foundation (Sydney, Australia). The novel ''Scarabocchio'' (1995), an architecturally adventurous ‘inverted

fugue In music, a fugue () is a contrapuntal compositional technique in two or more voices, built on a subject (a musical theme) that is introduced at the beginning in imitation (repetition at different pitches) and which recurs frequently in the c ...

’, is based on

Goethe Johann Wolfgang von Goethe (28 August 1749 – 22 March 1832) was a German poet, playwright, novelist, scientist, statesman, theatre director, and critic. His works include plays, poetry, literature, and aesthetic criticism, as well as treat ...

’s

Italian Journey ''Italian Journey'' (in the German original: ) is Johann Wolfgang von Goethe's report on his travels to Italy from 1786 to 1788 that was published in 1816 & 1817. The book is based on Goethe's diaries and is smoothed in style, lacks the sponta ...

, and continues the discussion of Bach through the character of ‘Barton Beale’, a lightly fictionalized

Glenn Gould Glenn Herbert Gould (; né Gold; September 25, 1932October 4, 1982) was a Canadian classical pianist. He was one of the most famous and celebrated pianists of the 20th century, and was renowned as an interpreter of the keyboard works of Johann ...

. The short novel ''Poetry and Fear'' (2001) is set in the Berlin

opera Opera is a form of theatre in which music is a fundamental component and dramatic roles are taken by singers. Such a "work" (the literal translation of the Italian word "opera") is typically a collaboration between a composer and a librett ...

world, and uses the myth of

Orpheus Orpheus (; Ancient Greek: Ὀρφεύς, classical pronunciation: ; french: Orphée) is a Thracian bard, legendary musician and prophet in ancient Greek religion. He was also a renowned poet and, according to the legend, travelled with Jaso ...

to explore themes of love and loss. Later works showed an increased emphasis on

Christian Christians () are people who follow or adhere to Christianity, a monotheistic Abrahamic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus Christ. The words ''Christ'' and ''Christian'' derive from the Koine Greek title ''Christós'' (Χρι ...

spiritual themes. A continued interest in the culture of the far east is reflected in ''Two Brothers'' (2007), a version of the Korean

pansori ' () is a Korean genre of musical storytelling performed by a singer and a drummer. The term ''pansori'' is derived from the Korean words ''pan'' (Hangul: 판) and ''sori'' (Hangul: 소리), the latter of which means "sound." However, ''pan ...

tale ''Heungbu and Nolbu''. Recent work has shown a turning away from Christianity towards an avowedly

feminist Feminism is a range of socio-political movements and ideologies that aim to define and establish the political, economic, personal, and social equality of the sexes. Feminism incorporates the position that society prioritizes the male po ...

point of view. Her semi-autobiographical novel ''You Are There Behind My Eyelids Forever'' , a coming of age story with

and

erotic Eroticism () is a quality that causes sexual feelings, as well as a philosophical contemplation concerning the aesthetics of sexual desire, sensuality, and romantic love. That quality may be found in any form of artwork, including painting, scul ...

content, is set in the Inwood of her childhood.

Publications

Novels

*''Give My Heart Ease'' (1989) *''Music for Glass Orchestra'' (1993) *''The Prodigy'' (1994, first complete print edition 2009) *''Scarabocchio'' (2008) *''Poetry and Fear'' (2008) *''You Are There Behind My Eyelids Forever'' (2021)

Plays

*''Vegetable Medley'' (1985) *''Raphael and Tobias'' (1994) *''Two Brothers'' (2007) *''Agnes'' in ''Dappled Things'' 2008 *''Lawrence'' in ''Dappled Things'' 2008 * ''Two Martyr Plays'' (contains both ''Agnes'' and ''Lawrence'') (2009) * ''Raphael and Tobias'' , ebook version . 2010

Short fiction

*''The Golden Dolphins'' (''The Carolina Quarterly'' 1991) *''The Black Swan'' (1994) *''Violin Music in the Age of Shopping -The Judy Papers'' (Editors

and Rainer Linz) ,(NMA Publications, 1994) *''Golden Vanities, Stories, Tales and Occasional Pieces'' (2018) , (Andromache Books, 2018)

Poetry

*''Elysian Sonnets and Other Poems'' (The Paris Press 1990) *''Songs for a Mad Queen'' (2000) *''Two Hands Clapping'' (with artist Alexandra Rozenman) (2009) *''Berlin Elegies'' , ebook (2010) *''Little Poems for Children'' (2010) *''Ten Poems for the End of Time'' (2015)

References

External links

Grace Andreacchi's website
on Authortrek *
Grace Andreacchi
on

Poets & Writers Poets & Writers, Inc. is one of the largest nonprofit literary organizations in the United States serving poets, fiction writers, and creative nonfiction writers. The organization publishes a bi-monthly magazine called ''Poets & Writers Magazine'', ...

Grace Andreacchi
on doollee {{DEFAULTSORT:Andreacchi, Grace 1954 births Living people American women novelists American women poets Modernist women writers Postmodern writers 21st-century American novelists 20th-century American novelists Hunter College alumni Binghamton University alumni Writers from New York City American women dramatists and playwrights 20th-century American women writers 21st-century American women writers 20th-century American poets 20th-century American dramatists and playwrights 21st-century American poets Novelists from New York (state)