Anita Gonzalez

Anita Gonzalez is an American writer, director and educator. She is most commonly known for her works that discuss human identity, highlighting experiences based on race, ethnicity, and gender. She has received a number of awards for her works, including the Shirley Verret Awards in 2022 and the Distinguished Faculty Achievement Award, from the University of Michigan, and in 2023 was elected to the American Academy of Arts and Sciences.

In 1977, Gonzalez began attending Florida State University, where she pursued a degree in theater. She graduated in 1979 with a Bachelor of Arts degree in theater. In 1994, Gonzalez began attending University of Wisconsin–Madison, and graduated in June 1997 with a PhD degree in theater and performing arts.

Career Productions Gonzalez has written and directed numerous theatrical productions, including a number of pieces that discuss a common theme of human experiences through identity. These productions include Blood Wedding in 2009, performed in April 16 to April 26, The Hunting of The Snark, first performed in January 2013, The Living Lakes, first performed in May 2015,

Publications Gonzalez also is a published author. Her publications include Jarocho’s Soul: Cultural Identity and Afro-Mexican Dance, published in 2004, Black Performance Theory, published in 2014, and Performance, Dance and Political Economy: Bodies at the End of the World, published in 2021. She has edited academic sources, including Performance, Dance, and Political Economy, published April 22, 2021.

Teaching Today, Gonzalez works as a professor of both performing arts and African American studies, at Georgetown University. the National Theatre Conference, and a founding member of the Urban Bush Women, with her work supported by the National Endowment for the Arts, NYFA, the Rockefeller Foundation the Mid-Atlantic Arts Association, the Bellagio Center, and the Fideicomiso for the United States and Mexico Arts Exchange.

She also offers two online courses entitled Storytelling for Social Change and Black Performance as Social Protest, reaching over 50,000 students to date