Rose Sharp, a pioneering arts administrator who dedicated her life to supporting non-traditional theatre and challenging sexism in the arts, has died at the age of 74. She was a staunch lesbian feminist who worked tirelessly to promote LGBT visibility within the cultural sector.
Early Life and Education
Rose was born in Shrivenham, Oxfordshire, to Dora (nee Benford) and William Sharp. She and her older siblings, Valerie and David, attended schools in Singapore, Berlin and Northern Ireland, relocating as their father, a major in the Royal Engineers, was assigned to overseas postings.
Career Beginnings in Music and Theatre
She began developing her prodigious talents in planning, finance and organisation as a roadie for the anarchist psychedelic band the Pink Fairies in the early 1970s. She then moved to London and worked at Dingwalls, the music venue in Camden. Rose began working on the administrative side of the arts in the mid-1970s at the Bloomsbury theatre and for the groundbreaking Gay Sweatshop company.
Administrative Roles and Impact
Between the early 80s and 2009, she held administrative positions at the Drill Hall arts centre (now Rada Studios), with the Monstrous Regiment company and at the International Workshop festival, an initiative of the Arts Council of Great Britain, which later became the Arts Council England (ACE). She worked for the Deal Theatre Project in Kent from 1987 to 1989. Rose played an integral role in organising countless productions funded by the Greater London council. She also acted as an independent agent for the theatre and performance artists Siren Theatre and Split Britches.
Belief in Public Funding for Non-Traditional Work
Her attention to detail, and her unflagging belief that public-funding organisations such as ACE have an obligation to support work that falls outside the traditional boundaries of theatre, propelled her efforts. The more likely it seemed that funding for a particular project would be out of reach, the more determined she was to procure it. When Rose uttered the phrase “done and dusted”, one knew that there was literally nothing else humanly possible left to be attended to.
Later Career and Mentorship
From 2006 until the early 2020s, Rose worked within the School of the Arts at Queen Mary University of London. She generously shared her arts admin skills by mentoring students in supporting the work of artists in residence. At the end of her career, she was administrator for the multidisciplinary artist Bobby Baker. Rose worked behind the scenes to facilitate the work of many other artists and producers over the course of more than 45 years.
Personal Life and Legacy
Rose was a lighthearted rapscallion on a lifetime quest for the perfect lemon drizzle cake. She formed deep and lasting friendships throughout her life, and was truly one of a kind. She is survived by her sister, Valerie, and her nieces, Melanie and Joanne.
