SYLVIA SHORT
Sylvia Short graduated from Smith College where she studied with Hallie Flanagan Davis, trained on a 2 yr. Fulbright Fellowship at the Old Vic Theatre School in London and with Uta Hagen in New York. She taught at the Juilliard School and at the HB Studio.
Her first professional job was at the Barter Theatre of Virginia (1952 award winner) as Portia in the
Merchant of Venice. In New York, she appeared on Broadway as Regan in Orson Welles'
King Lear(1956) and in Da, A Life and Hide and Seek. Off-Broadway, she appeared at the Phoenix in
Says I, Says He; at the Public in Nasty Rumours; at the American Place, the Manhattan Theatre Club and in several independent productions including
Smile of the Cardboard Man (HB Studio) and Mirrors both by Marjorie Kellogg. Her many regional credits include
Starting Monday at the Yale Winterfest ('89), Six Characters in Search of an Author
at The American Repertory Company, Hedda Gabler at La Jolla, Lady Bracknell in
The Importance of Being Earnest at the Guthrie Theatre, on tour and at GEVA; Romulus Linney's
Love Suicide at the Actors' Theatre of Louisville; Buffalo Studio Arena Theatre (Quilters
and What I Did Last Summer); Baltimore Center Stage (A Man for All
Seasons); Agnes of God (Portsmouth, N.H. and Richmond, Va. ) and Hamlet
and Measure for Measure at Stratford, Connecticut. Moving to Santa Barbara in 1990, she joined the Ensemble Theatre Co. and played
Gertrude Stein and a Companion (1992 Drama-Logue Award), The Road to Mecca
(1992 Independent Theatre Award) , Fanny in Painting Churches (1993 Drama-Logue) , Lotte in
Lettice and Lovage, Katherine in A Perfect Ganesh, Alcandre in The Illusion
and Cortez in Castaway by Marjorie Kellogg. She also played Mag in
The Beauty Queen of Leenane at City College and Hypatia in Last Days of the Empire
at Center Stage. She presented a reading of Elizabeth Bishop's poetry at the Karpeles Museum.
T.V. appearances include Movies of the Week (Silent Cries, Broken Vows, Donato and Daughter, Absolute Strangers, The Whereabouts of
Jenny) a recurring role in the series Homefront, appearances on ER
and Sisters, Maggie and The Others (pilot) and as a guest star on
Matlock, Walker, Texas Ranger, and Jake and the Fatman. Her film appearances include
The Birdcage, Mad City, SFW, I Still Know...., Deception, Beautiful and
Silent Cries.
Sylvia also has a doctorate in Marine Biology (NYU) and is involved in environmental research on the California coast. She reads for Recording for the Blind and Dyslexic and sings in the Santa Barbara Master Chorale.
Sylvia is a member of AEA, SAG and AFTRA.