School of Theatre and Dance

Professor Mata is the head of Musical Theatre at The University of Florida, and serves as an affiliate faculty member for the Center for Latin American Studies. He holds an MFA in Musical Theatre from San Diego State University. Mr. Mata has directed, choreographed, and performed in over 150 plays, musicals, operas and cabarets in New York, Off-Broadway, and in regional theatre. His regional credits include The Kennedy Center, the Old Globe Theatre, Theatre Under the Stars, Stages Repertory, San Diego Opera, The Houston and San Diego Gilbert and Sullivan Companies, and The Lambs Players. In New York, he has worked with the renowned Circle Repertory Theatre, The Puerto Rican Traveling Theatre, The Lincoln Center Summer Festival, New Dramatists, Riverside Shakespeare, INTAR and the Obie Award winning Repertorio Español. He is a proud member of Actor’s Equity Association, the Society of Stage Directors and Choreographers and the American Guild of Musical Artists. 

Internationally Mr. Mata has worked in Canada, Mexico, Grand Cayman, Dominican Republic and most recently in Italy with the Opera Festival di Roma.He has worked with such notable names as Julie Harris, Brian Bedford, Ken Page, Christine Ebersole, Director Jack O’Brien, Dudley Moore, Colleen Dewhurst, Zoe Caldwell, Chita Rivera, and the legendary Stephen Sondheim while in graduate school at SDSU and working at the Old Globe Theatre in California.

Mr. Mata has been the recipient of numerous awards in New York for his productions. Some of his awards include seven prestigious Latin ACE Awards, including Best Director and Best Production. Most recently his Off-Broadway production of Dinner for Two won four HOLA Awards (Hispanic Organization of Latin Actors) including Best Production. He was also the recipient of the Society of Stage Directors and Choreographers Foundation Directing Fellowship in New York. His critically acclaimed Off-Broadway production of Garcia Lorca’s The Evil Spell of the Butterfly was nominated for five Latin ACE Awards and won two, including Best Production. The New York Times hailed “It may strike you as funny and delightful how this tale becomes in the hands of the director Tony Mata and a first rate cast. He brings out a good deal of whimsical humor…this is tragedy to die for.” Time Out New York said “Director Tony Mata has staged a visually crisp production that transcends word play…it’s a gorgeous play.” The Village Voice hailed “Director Tony Mata weaves a magical spell with music and imagery that is stunning.”

For three seasons, Mr. Mata served as Managing Artistic Director of Central Ohio’s leading and oldest professional summer theatre, Weathervane Playhouse.  He is currently the Founding Artistic Director of Florida’s First Coast Arts Festival in St. Augustine Florida. He is the host of Gallery, a television show devoted to the Arts in North Florida produced by WUFT/PBS.