Jana Oľhová was born in Myjava. She studied acting at the Academy of Performing Arts in Bratislava. After finishing school, she worked at the Radošina Naive Theatre and then found an engagement at the J. G. Tajovský Theatre in Zvolen. Since 1988, she has been a member of the Slovak Chamber Theatre in Martin. For more than twenty years, she has also been teaching. She has taught at the Academy of Arts in Banská Bystrica, at the Conservatory in Žilina and currently teaches at the Ján Levoslav Bella Conservatory in Banská Bystrica. She was also a frequent guest at the Municipal Theatre Žilina and the Arena Theatre in Bratislava. Since September 2012, she has been a member of the Slovak National Theatre in Bratislava. She is one of her generation's most expressive and best actresses – in the theatre, in films, in series.
Awards:
2001 – Annual Award for the character of Doña Juan in the production Don/a Juan/a
2005 – Annual Award for the character of Phaedra
2008 – The Sun in the Net for the best performance by a female actress in the film Music
2009 – the DOSKY Award for the character of Sara in the production called Mobile
2009 – Annual Award for the role of Sara and the role of Roma in the production The Woman from the Past
2010 – Jozef Kroner Award for the best actress in the production of The Misanthrope (Arsinoé)
2010 – The Annual Award for the character of Arsinoe in the production of The Misanthrope and the character of Mrs Robinson
2010 – Tatra Banka Foundation Award for Art (the character of Arsinoé)
2011 – The Annual Award for the role of Barbara in the production of August at the End of America
2014 – The Sun in the Net for the best female performance in a supporting role (Fine, Thanks)
2016 - Annual Award for the character Žo in the production Back Then in Bratislava
2018 - Literary Fund Award for the character of Ľubov Ranevská in the production of the play Cherry Orchard, taking into account the character of Jaruš Bajanová in the TV series The Wolves
The complete character list is on the Theatre Institute's website (
Divadelný ústav).