Necrology

Carole Ann Bellini-Sharp

May. 5, 1945-Aug. 28, 2019

Carole Ann Bellini-Sharp, the Margaret Bundy Scott Professor of Theatre Emerita, was born in Pittsburgh on May 5, 1945, a daughter of Albert Bellini and Jemima Swayne White. She earned her bachelor’s and master’s degrees at The Pennsylvania State University before receiving her Ph.D. in drama at Carnegie-Mellon University in 1971.

After teaching briefly at LaRoche College in Allison Park, Pa., and at the Community College of Allegheny County, she joined the faculty at Kirkland College in 1973 as assistant professor of drama. Bellini-Sharp remained on College Hill as a member of the Hamilton faculty after the two colleges merged in 1978.

“Carole had a sign on her List office door: ‘Speak up even when your voice is shaking.’ That was thematic of her life and the way she lived it. I’m sure she would give us the same advice now,” said Professor of Comparative Literature Nancy Rabinowitz in a memorial tribute she shared at a faculty meeting in honor of her friend. “We started together at Kirkland, and while we were both aware of its flaws, we also struggled against the merger and then to make Hamilton the best coeducational college it could be.”

Instrumental in shaping the College’s theatre program, Bellini-Sharp taught courses in acting, directing, and voice. When she retired in 2016, she had directed over 60 professional and college productions — both innovative and avant-garde — and for more than a decade worked with The Roy Hart International Theatre Institute in Malérargues, France.

A number of the students she mentored went on to distinguished acting careers, some after studying at the Yale School of Drama and other prestigious MFA programs. “She was a master with our students,” noted her colleague Mark Cryer, associate professor of theatre, at the same faculty meeting. “Like a good cannoli, which she loved, hard on the outside — which meant do your work, no excuses, and the show must go on — and soft and sweet on the inside — which meant she cared about the person and their growth and personal well-being.”

Bellini-Sharp served the campus community as a member of the Committee on Academic Policy, the Planning Committee, the Committee on Appointments, and as the College Marshal, where she proudly carried a staff decorated in flowers. In 2004, the Hamilton Alumni Association honored her with its Distinguished Service Award for her pioneering work.

“True to your ardent belief that theatre is empowering in its recognition of the human condition and celebration of human character, in addition to being great fun, you have been the theatre program’s guiding light virtually since its inception on College Hill,” the citation read. “Over the years, through their vision and commitment, individual faculty members have occasionally made an indelible imprint on the academic programs on College Hill. We count you among those rare individuals.”

Carole A. Bellini-Sharp died on Aug. 28, 2019. She was 74 years old and is survived by her husband, Gordon Sharp, a son, two grandchildren, a sister, and two nieces.

 

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