Katherine Bahena-Benitez (they/elle) is an actor, playwright, poet, creative director, production manager, filmmaker, model and educator based between California and New York City. 

Katherine's artistry in all capacities, is rooted in her lived experiences as a first generation daughter of immigrant and Indigenous farm-working parents. 

Katherine has trained at the American Conservatory Theater, The Juilliard School, Shakespeare and Company, the Eugene O’Neill Theater Center, California State University Sacramento and Broadway Advocacy Coalition at Columbia University. They’ve performed with New York Stage and Film, Teatro Linea de Sombra, NYU Skirball, La Lengua Teatro, National Queer Theater, La Mama Experimental Theater Club, and Teatro Espejo, among others. Katherine has been featured in Vogue, HipLatina, Remezcla, VoyageLA, Fenty, Brooks, YITTY, and Apostrophe Magazine. Katherine is a Miranda Family Fellow Alumni, a Queer Art Fellow Alumni, a LORT Fellow Kennedy Center Alumni, a BAX Emergenyc Arts Alumni, recipient of the John Cauble Emerging Producer Leader Award, and Miranda Family Fund Grant recipient. Katherine’s writing has been published with United We Dream, HEROICA, RISD Museum Guild, the International Human Rights Arts Movement, Arkbound, and Routledge. Katherine is a playwright in residence with La Lengua Teatro at Brava Theater. As well as part of the Slaywriting Cohort. A playwriting cohort with the Miranda Family Fellowship. Some of Katherine's original works include Jota, Morena, Lola Reyes, La Tierra de Sueños, and Curandera. Katherine says, “Con mucho amor y cariño, I do this for our gente, I do this for us."