Faculty Profiles

Dr. Ana Martínez holds a doctoral degree in Theatre Studies from CUNY Graduate Center, an MA in Scenography from Central Saint Martins College of Art and Design in London, and an Architectural degree from Universidad Anáhuac in Mexico City.

Professor Martínez specializes in theatre practices in Mexico, Latin American drama, site-specific and environmental performance. Her research integrates a knowledge of performance and spatial practices with historically and socially grounded research. In addition, she has written on topics related to scenography, material culture, theatrical urbanism, and gastronomy in performance. Her scholarship has been recognized nationally and internationally.

Dr. Martínez is the author of Performance in the Zócalo: Constructing History, Race, and Identity in Mexico's Central Square from the Colonial Era to the Present (University of Michigan Press, 2020), which was selected as finalist for the Theatre Library Association's 2021 George Freedley Memorial Award for Outstanding Theatre Books and in recognition for outstanding work in the archives. This book is structured around five case studies and examines the ways that Mexico City's main public square achieved symbolic significance over the centuries. It highlights how particular performances built upon each other by recycling past architectures and performative practices for new purposes. Some of her most recent book chapters and articles are: "La sensación de colectivo en plazas y calles: Entering Public Spaces in Latin America" in Theatre Things: Material Theories and Histories (University of Michigan Press, 2026); "Relics, Effects, and Bones: Migrancy Material Traces in Performance" in Puppet and Spirit: Ritual, Religion, and Performing Objects (Routledge, 2025); "Berta Cáceres volverá y será millones: Ancestras de Hermes Reyes" in Tramoya (Spring 2026); "Bodies of Corn, Maguey, and Water: Performing Latin American Environmentalism" in Critical Stages (2022); and with Juan Ochoa and Verónica Martínez, "¿Qué vamos a comer? Colombia's Mojojoy!" in Performance Research (Fall 2024). Dr. Martínez's current book project Performing the Goodlife: Latin American Theatre and Environmental Justice is a study of ecological theatre and performance in Latin America. This monograph has been supported by various grants including the American Society for Theatre Research, the Verena and Kenneth Wilson Grant, and the Research Enhancement Program at Texas State.

Professor Martínez has served as committee member and advisor of theses, capstone projects, and dissertations on various forms performance and cultural studies from historical to contemporary theatre practices, film adaptations, devised playscripts, and dance studies. Recent courses at Texas State include undergraduate classes and graduate seminars on material culture, research and interpretation, Latin American theatre, history of theatre, and dramatic theory. She has served as an organizer and coordinator to bring international scholars and artists to share their work at Texas State, including Teatro Línea de Sombra from Mexico and Lenguajes Gastronómicos (Universidad Areandina) from Colombia.