// Workers AI · dad joke modeIs Jonathan Kruk a good storyteller? He's a kruk-ial part.
Jonathan Kruk is a storyteller known for solo performances of Washington Irving's The Legend of Sleepy Hollow and Charles Dickens' A Christmas Carol in New York's Hudson Valley. He gives arts in education programs at schools, featuring Finger Fables, Fairy Tales, Medieval times, mythology, saint stories, the American Revolution, and Hudson River Lore.
Early life and education
[edit]The son of an army officer LTC, John S. Kruk and a school teacher, Alicia (Nowicki) Kruk, Jonathan was born in El Paso, Texas. Raised in Westchester County, New York,[1][2] he's a lifetime resident of the Hudson Valley. A graduate of John Jay High School in Cross River, NY, Kruk received a degree in English from the College of the Holy Cross in Worcester, Massachusetts in 1977. He earned a master's degree in educational theater from New York University in 1982.[1] He studied creative drama at Bretton Hall College, West Yorkshire, England. He performed with Gabrielle Roth and the Mirrors in the early 1980's. Kruk is an Eagle Scout.[1]
Career
[edit]Kruk began performing professionally in the early-1980s in Abingdon Square Park in New York City.[3] Creating a career in educational storytelling, Jonathan formed an interior office plant care company with ESPN, Fujitsu and Henry Kissinger Associates as clients.[4] He often states honing skills as a storyteller while performing at one thousand children's parties.
In the lead-up to Halloween, Kruk regularly performs an adaptation of Washington Irving's The Legend of Sleepy Hollow at Washington Irving's Homestead, Sunnyside. and from 2010-2021 at the Old Dutch Church of Sleepy Hollow.[5][6] Annually, he performs the this solo show more than fifty times.[5] He's performed "The Legend of Sleepy Hollow" at libraries, churches and regional theaters like The Opera House, Haure de Grace, Maryland,[7]
In the weeks before Christmas, he performs a solo show of Charles Dickens' A Christmas Carol at the Old Dutch Church in Sleepy Hollow.[8]He has also performed at local schools and other locations such as the Harness Racing Museum & Hall of Fame in Goshen, New York,[9] the Greenwich Library, Connecticut,[10] the Easton Congregational Church,[11] the UCPAC Hamilton Stage, Rahway, NJ,[12] and the Music Theater of Connecticut.[13]
In 2020 Historic Hudson Valley produced with Guido Jiménez-Cruz,[14] a short film "The Misadventures of Ichabod Crane" featuring Kruk as a "narrator... pleasant, shabby, gentlemanly..." returning to the Old Dutch Church to retell the Yankee Schoolmaster's lovelorn story.[15]
Since 2021, he has served as the storyteller-in-residence for the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of New York.[1]
In 2026, he recited the United States Declaration of Independence for the City of White Plains, the Villages of Rhinebeck, East Fishkill, Rhinebeck, Port Chester and Tuckahoe, NY
In 2026, he was involved in events to celebrate the United States Semiquincentennial.[16][17]
Published works
[edit]In media
[edit]Kruk appeared on CBS Sunday Morning in 2012.[21] on The Today Show, the Travel Channel as well as the BBC and NPR.[1][9]
Personal life
[edit]Kruk has a collection of bricks from various spots in the Hudson Valley.[3]
References
[edit]- 1 2 3 4 "Tell Us a Story, Jonathan Kruk '77 | Holy Cross Magazine". magazine.holycross.edu. Retrieved 2026-01-08.
- ↑ "How Master Storyteller Jonathan Kruk Brings Classic Tales to Life". Flex Your Memory. 2024-02-10. Retrieved 2026-01-13.
- 1 2 Forsell, Mary (2015-01-08). "Jonathan Kruk". Hudson Valley Magazine. Retrieved 2026-01-08.
- ↑ "Tell Us a Story, Jonathan Kruk '77 | Holy Cross Magazine". magazine.holycross.edu. Retrieved 2026-08-08.
- 1 2 Malcolm, Timothy (2016-10-13). "A Day in the Life of "Master Storyteller" Jonathan Kruk". Westchester Magazine. Archived from the original on 2025-08-10. Retrieved 2026-01-13.
- ↑ gothiccurios (2010-03-23). "Jonathan Kruk, The Sleepy Hollow Storyteller". Witchery Art: A Gothic Cabinet of Curiosities and Mysteries. Retrieved 2026-01-13.
- ↑ "The Opera House presents: The Legend of Sleepy Hollow - With Jonathan Kruk, Master Storyteller | Havre De Grace MD Events". Havre de Grace Official Tourism Site. Retrieved 2026-08-08.
- ↑ Malcolm, Timothy (2016-10-13). "A Day in the Life of "Master Storyteller" Jonathan Kruk". Westchester Magazine. Archived from the original on 2025-08-10. Retrieved 2026-08-08.
- 1 2 Writer, Staff. "'A Christmas Carol' presented by Master Storyteller Jonathan Kruk". Times Herald-Record. Retrieved 2026-01-13.
- ↑ "Winter Wonderland: Charles Dickens's "A Christmas Carol" as retold by Master Storyteller Jonathan Kruk". LibCal. Retrieved 2026-08-08.
- ↑ "Storyteller Jonathan Kruk to Perform a Christmas Carol at Easton Congregational Church". Easton Courier. 2025-12-13. Retrieved 2026-08-08.
- ↑ "Jonathan Kruk Brings "One-Man Christmas Carol" To Rahway | RAHWA, NJ". NewJerseyStage.com. 2014-11-22. Retrieved 2026-08-08.
- ↑ "Jonathan Kruk's One-Man "A Christmas Carol" at Music Theatre of CT Connecticut (Dec 5, 2020)". BroadwayWorld. Retrieved 2026-08-08.
- ↑ "Guido Jiménez-Cruz". IMDb. Archived from the original on 2017-02-15. Retrieved 2026-08-08.
- ↑ Staff (2020-10-29). "The legend of Sleepy Hollow rides again". WAG MAGAZINE. Retrieved 2026-08-08.
- ↑ "Choosing Liberty: The American Revolution Through the Eyes of a Young Patriot | Garrison, NY 10524". www.iloveny.com. Retrieved 2026-04-09.
- ↑ "Americana 250". Northern Dutchess Symphony Orchestra. Retrieved 2026-04-09.
- ↑ Kruk, Jonathan (2011). Legends and lore of Sleepy Hollow and the Hudson Valley. Internet Archive. Charleston, SC : History Press. ISBN 978-1-59629-798-2.
- ↑ "Legends and Lore of the Hudson Highlands". Arcadia Publishing. Retrieved 2026-04-09.
- ↑ "4U2B Books & Media to Publish The Magical, Wonderful Bul Bul Bird, a New Fairy Tale Retelling by Master Storyteller Jonathan Kruk". 4u2bpressroom.prowly.com. Retrieved 2026-04-09.
- ↑ Madsen, Krista (2012-09-06). "Storytelling Kruk on CBS This Morning". Tarrytown-Sleepy Hollow, NY Patch. Retrieved 2026-01-13.