Katina Olsen
#About
Katina Olsen is a proud Wakka Wakka and Kombumerri woman and also has Norwegian, German and English Ancestry. Her choreographic interests interrogate her Indigenous cultural dance and story through various forms including theatre, moving sculpture, film and installation. Katina makes solo, ensemble and larger community contemporary dance works for inside and outside traditional theatre spaces. She holds a BFA (Dance) from Queensland University of Technology and a Diploma in Dance from Queensland Dance School of Excellence.
Katina’s choreographic highlights include Mother’s Cry for Sydney Dance Company’s New Breed 2018, namu nunar Supercell 2020, Horizon Festival, Yonder, and Festival 2018, movement direction for the ABC TV series Cleverman 2 and Walking into the Bigness (Malthouse), and collaborating with Dance Makers Collective on their sold out show ‘THE RIVOLI’ for Sydney Festival 2020 and Australian Dance Award nominated DADS. In 2017 Katina choreographed Min Min for QUT’s graduating year and worked with Digi Youth Arts' Unsettle project, in collaboration with the Queensland Museum.
As a performer she has worked nationally and internationally with Bangarra Dance Theatre, Force Majeure, Expressions Dance Company, Martin del Amo, Victoria Hunt, Vicki Van Hout, Liesel Zink, bwsene !nmotion Australia, Erth Visual & Physical Inc, Wesley Enoch, De Quincey Co, Frances Rings and Narelle Benjamin.
In 2011 Katina received a danceWEB scholarship at ImPulsTanz Vienna and in 2014 she received an Australia Council JUMP Mentorship with Philip Channells in disability inclusive dance, choreographic practice and community arts in Norway/Australia. In 2016, Katina was profiled by BlakDance at PAX/APACA and is one of their NEXT GENERATION Indigenous choreographers.