Education and Early Career As An Actor
Sharon Ott received her BA from Bennington College in 1972 with a triple major in theater, anthropology, and music. During her years there, she received a fellowship from the National Science Foundation to work on an archaeological site in northern Arizona. She was accepted into the MFA acting program at Cal Arts under the direction of Dr. Herbert Blau. When Blau left Cal Arts, his students followed him to Oberlin College, forming the ensemble Kraken under his leadership. This group of young actors included Julie Taymor (director of The Lion King, Titus Andronicus, and Frida,) and noted clown and actor, Bill Irwin.
After two years with Kraken, Ott joined the ensemble Camera Obscura, a resident company at La Mama Experimental Theater Club in New York, and the Mickery Theater in Amsterdam, Holland. Their work was presented at La Mama, The Mickery, and in other theaters throughout Germany, Belgium, and Holland.
Ott left Europe to return to the United States where she formed her own theater company, Aleph. Aleph's work was presented in Los Angeles before they were hired as the company in residence at the University of Wisconsin/Milwaukee.
While in Milwaukee, Ott developed an interest in the work of Theatre X, eventually joined the company, and directed several productions for the company including The Wreck: A Romance, based on the poems of Adrienne Rich, and A Fierce Longing based on the life and work of Japanese novelist Yukio Mishima. The Wreck was presented at theater festivals in the United States and Holland, and the company received an Obie award for A Fierce Longing after its run at New York City's Performing Garage.
Ott became resident director of the Milwaukee Repertory Theater in 1980. During her association with the Milwaukee Rep, she was able to travel to Japan; once to work with Japanese director Tadashi Suzuki, and twice more with productions she directed. She also directed the world premiere of Amlin Gray's How I Got That Story at the Milwaukee Rep, which won an Obie award after its New York run.
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