Sommer Austin

Sommer is a director, actor, improviser, producer and stand-up comedian. She holds an MFA in Acting from the University of Wisconsin-Madison, is a certified Meisner acting teacher, and has been teaching acting since 2000. She is an alum of the improv and comedy writing programs at iO Chicago. As an actor, she has appeared in theatres all over the country, has appeared in a myriad of indie feature and short films, including the award-winning shorts Eat at Joe’s and Feral Fatale. She performs stand-up all around Los Angeles, is a regular cast member of the award-winning comedy game show, Wisecrackin’, and is a co-producer of The Gogo Show, now in its 10th year. As a director, she has worked at The Gift Theatre, The Arc Theatre, The Agency Theater Collective (which she co-founded and managed for 10 years), Triton College, Northeastern Illinois University; assistant directing credits include David Rabe’s Good for Otto at The Gift Theatre and Annie Baker’s The Flick at Steppenwolf Theatre. In addition to AMAW, she has taught at The Second City Chicago, The University of Wisconsin-Madison, Triton College, Green Shirt Studio, The Theatre School at DePaul University and Northeastern Illinois University. She is incredibly grateful to be a part of the wonderful community of storytellers at AMAW. Why Did You Become an Actor? For me, a life in art has always been about the people I have met along the way. I have tried to quit the artist’s life so many times, and the amazing friends with whom I have the pleasure of creating always reel me back in. Also, as far back as my memory goes I remember my family laughing together, which was, to me, the most wonderful feeling in existence (it still is). I have been inspired by, to name a few: my parents, my sister, my grandfather, just about every SNL cast member from my childhood and comedians from Comic Relief, as well as all of my teachers including Mark Hunter, John Cameron, Larry Silverberg, Dexter Bullard, Anthony Meindl and all of the teachers at AMAW, Aretha Sills, Susan Messing, Michael McCarthy, Dat Phan, Chris Clobber, Vicki Baumann, and many others, including every student I’ve ever encountered in class. A big thank you to those who never really let me quit. “There is no right or wrong way to solve a problem; there is only one way— the seeking…” -Viola Spolin