DEVRIENT, OTTO

born Oct. 3, 1838, Berlin died July 23, 1894, Stettin, Ger. German actor, director, producer, and playwright. Grandnephew of the great Romantic actor Ludwig Devrient, Otto was trained by his father, Eduard Devrient, who was a director, a translator of Shakespeare, and a stage historian. His early engagements included Karlsruhe, Stuttgart, Berlin, and Leipzig. In 1863 he returned to Karlsruhe to direct, and 10 years later he went to the Weimar court theatre, where in 1876 he played Mephistopheles in his own production of Goethe's Faust, directing it on a three-level stage. Subsequently he served as stage director in Mannheim and Frankfurt. In 1883 he wrote and staged a Passion play at Jena for a festival in honour of Martin Luther. In 1884 he moved to Oldenburg as a director, and, except for a season in Berlin, he remained there until his death. He also wrote several tragedies.