Katina Olsen is a proud Wakka Wakka and Kombumerri woman and also has Norwegian, German and English Ancestry.

Katina’s choreographic interests lie in the fusions of her Indigenous cultural dance and story with contemporary dance, film, theatre, moving sculpture and installation.

She holds a BFA (Dance) from Queensland University of Technology and a Diploma in Dance from Queensland Dance School of Excellence.

Her choreographic highlights include movement direction for a segment from the ABC TV series Cleverman 2 and Walking into the Bigness (Malthouse), collaborating with Dance Makers Collective on their Australian Dance Award nominated DADS and Instaras part of Big Dance in Small Chunks (Parramatta Riverside).

Other performance highlights include Champions (Martin del Amo, Sydney Festival), Tangi Wai (Victoria Hunt, Liveworks Festival), Long Grass (Vicki Van Hout, Sydney Festival), Cultivate (Force Majeure), Murder (Erth Visual & Physical Inc.), I Am Eora (Wesley Enoch), Forseen (Frances Rings/Narelle Benjamin).

From 2007 to 2010 Katina performed nationally and internationally with Bangarra Dance Theatre in works Clan,True Stories: X300 and Emeret Lu, Mathinna, Rites of Spring (Australian Ballet/Bangarra Dance Theatre), Awakenings, Fire – A Retrospective: 20th Year Anniversary and Of Earth & Sky.

In 2011 Katina received a danceWEB scholarship at ImPulsTanz and in 2014 she received an Australia Council JUMP Mentorship with Philip Channells in disability inclusive dance and  choreographic practice in Norway and a Group JUMP Mentorship (Dance Makers Collective) with Michelle Silby, Ausdance NSW.

In 2016, Katina was profiled by BlakDance at PAX/APACA and is one of their NEXT GENERATION Indigenous choreographers.