Professor Melanie Martin Long is a professional theatre director, private performance coach, and part-time Assistant Professor of Acting and Directing. A Phi Beta Kappa graduate of The College of William & Mary in Theatre and English, Professor Long holds a certificate from the Alliance Theatre Acting Program in Atlanta and a Master of Fine Arts in Directing from the University of Minnesota in Minneapolis. She completed further theatrical studies as a Dunn Peace Research Scholar to South Africa and as an assistant director to Joe Dowling at the Guthrie Theater in Minneapolis.

Professor Long has directed productions ranging from classics such as Hamlet, The Tempest, and A Midsummer Night's Dream, to her original adaptation of the Gabriel Garcia Marquez short story A Very Old Man with Enormous Wings for the Lincoin Center Theater Directors Lab. As a performer, Professor Long has appeared on various Atlanta stages, including the Alliance Theatre, Theatrical Outfit, and Theatre Gael.

Professor Long's publications include two annotations of Shakespeare (The Tempest and Julius Caesar) for Teacher's Discovery and the book and lyrics for The Frog Prince with composer James Woodward.

Professor Long has received numerous awards, including the Ken Bryant Outstanding Directing Award, three Lotta M. Crabtree Theatrical Trust Awards, and multiple Certificates of Merit for directing from the Kennedy Center American College Theater Festival.