Kay Martinovich
Dr. Kay Martinovich is a Chicago-based director and acting coach. Recent credits include the Jeff-nominated and Chicago premiere of The Father by Florian Zeller at Remy Bumppo Theatre, Deirdre of the Sorrows by John M. Synge at City Lit Theatre, the Jeff-nominated Naked by Luigi Pirandello, and the Jeff-award winning La Bête by David Hirson both at Trap Door Theatre. For Irish Rep of Chicago, Kay directed the American premiere of By the Bog of Cats ... by Marina Carr.
At Northern Illinois University, Kay is Associate Professor and Head of the BFA Acting program. She teaches in the Meisner-based acting sequence, audition technique, directing I, directing II (devising), and professional development for the actor. She has directed many productions at NIU including In a Word by Lauren Yee (co-director), The Trestle at Pope Lick Creek by Naomi Wallace, Shakespeare's Much Ado About Nothing in her own adaptation, and Women In To Light, a devised piece centering on the story of a woman journalist in wartime. She is Producer and Director of NIU's annual MFA/BFA Professional Actor Showcase held each spring. Most recent showcase here: https://www.niushowcase2025.com, held at Chicago Shakespeare Theater.
As Associate Artistic Director for Irish Repertory of Chicago (1999-2006), Kay supported selection of their three-show seasons, casting of productions, and media materials. At Irish Rep, she directed the Jeff-nominated Bailegangaire by Tom Murphy, Pentecost by Stewart Parker, The Mai by Marina Carr, and Two by Friel: The Bear and the American premiere of The Yalta Game.
Currently, Kay is an Artistic Associate of Her Story Theatre and Perennial Theatre, where she is involved in the development of new works along with Chicago Writers Bloc. During 2020, Kay directed the live-streamed production of Girls and Dolls by "Derry Girls" creator Lisa McGee and the online Equity reading of Mentors by Kristen Palmer starring Austin Pendleton for Kane Repertory Theatre. She directed the online production of The Life by Mary Bonnett for Her Story Theatre as part of the Women in the Arts & Media Coalition "Conversations in America" series.
Kay's work has been seen on many Chicago area stages including Trap Door, American Blues, The Gift Theatre, Lifeline Theatre, Buffalo Theatre Ensemble, Mary-Arrchie Theatre, Live Bait Theatre, GreatWorks Theatre, Circle Theatre, Apple Tree/TYA, Famous Door Theatre, Emerald City, Genesis Productions, and Chicago Dramatists, among other performance venues in the Midwest. Prior to NIU, she was Owner, Artistic Director, & Head Instructor of the Actors' Center, a Meisner-based professional acting studio in Chicago.
Kay holds an M.Phil. in Irish Theatre and Film Studies from Trinity College in Dublin, Ireland, and a Ph.D. in Theatre Historiography from the University of Minnesota, Minneapolis. Her master’s thesis: “The UnConsious, The UnCanny and the UnDead: Tropes of Spectrality in Contemporary Irish Drama.” Her dissertation: “A Poetics of Haunting in Contemporary Irish and Northern Irish Drama.” Since graduate school, her research has continued to center on Irish drama and the figure of the ghost, specifically issues of haunting, trauma, and the past. As a specialist in theater and Irish studies, Kay has peer-reviewed both book proposals and articles. Her work has been published in journals and collected volumes and she has presented her research at numerous conferences. Currently, her focus is on new Irish adaptations of Greek drama and the endurance of mothers in wartime. Always, she is concerned with the women in these plays and the ways in which they navigate their worlds.
Website: kaymartinovich.com
Upcoming:
Julius Caesar by Shakespeare, NIU, FALL 2025
Green Corridors by Natalka Vorozhbyt, Trap Door Theatre, WINTER 2025
Proud member of SDC, the professional director's union, Stage Directors and Choreographers Society
Head of BFA Acting
Associate Professor
Education: Ph.D in Theatre Historiography, University of Minnesota, Minneapolis; M.Phil in Irish Theatre and Film Studies, Trinity College, Dublin
Office: SB 242
Email: kaymartinovich@niu.edu
