Carlos Martinez

CARLOS MARTINEZ is originally from Guadalajara, Mexico. At the age of 10, he began his dance studies at "Escuela de Artes Jalisco" in Guadalajara, Mexico under the direction of Javier Zavala, Michelle Monreal, and Nazira Yakuboba. At the age of 13, he was awarded a major scholarship at the National Ballet Competition of Mexico to attend Idyllwild Arts in Idyllwild, California. He joined Idyllwild Arts Academy in the fall of 2014, where he trained with Patrick Frantz, Jonathan Sharp, Ellen Rosa-Taylor, Hai Cohen, Stephanie Gilliland, and Lauren Smith. Some of the choreographers and companies he has had the pleasure of working with during his time at Idyllwild Arts are Alexandre Munz, John Pennington, Ballet de Jalisco, BodyTraffic, California Dance Theater, and Inland Pacific Ballet. 

Upon graduation, he was offered a full scholarship to attend George Mason University, and then he joined the freshman class at George Mason University School of Dance in the fall of 2018. During his time at GMU, he trained with Susan Shields, Roger Jeffrey, Christopher d’Amboise, Ethan Brown , and others . He graduated Magna Cum Laude with a BFA in Dance and a Minor in Arts Management from George Mason University in May 2022. While at George Mason University, he had the opportunity to work with Alexander Hille and Pier Loup in Kosmos by Andonis Foniadakis, Jean Emile in Na Floresta by Nacho Duato, Fiona Jopp in Variation 10 by Rafael Bonachela, Susan Shields in Sun Lit Song, Micaela Taylor in a work she created for George Mason dancers’ 90s Sugar, Christopher d’Amboise, Mora-Amina Parker in City of Rain by Camille A. Brown, Alejandro Cerrudo in an excerpt from Silent Ghost. Outside of George Mason University, he had the pleasure to understudy for Alejandro Cerrudo’s most recent work It Starts Now.

Carlos has been a company member with First State Ballet Theatre since the fall of 2022, and some of his highlights include Viktor Plotnikov’s Dracula, Bluebird Pas de Deux from The Sleeping Beauty, and the choreography from all of the guest choreographers that he has had the pleasure of performing, as well as creating new works for the company.