Catherine

actor & theatre artist

Baird

Excited woman with long brown hair smiling against a yellow background while pulling open her purple jacket.
Close-up portrait of a woman with brown hair, green eyes, hoop earrings, and a black top against a dark green background.
Three women in blue uniforms baking together behind a kitchen counter, holding a mixing bowl and lattice-top pie against a pink background.
Two smiling performers posing for a selfie in front of a colorful stage set, wearing costumes and headphones.

A little backstory…

With a background in musical theatre, outdoor Shakespeare, and interactive shows for young audiences, Catherine thrives in high-energy, athletic productions that embrace physical comedy.

As an actor, Catherine has toured nationally with the award-winning rock & roll nutrition education program Jump with Jill. Other acting credits include Dawn in Waitress (Pittsburgh Musical Theater), Viola in Twelfth Night (Pittsburgh Shakespeare in the Parks), Mary in the solo play The Twelve Dates of Christmas (Steel City Shakespeare Center), Pittsburgh CLO, City Theatre, PlayMakers Repertory Company, the Hangar Theatre, regional commercials, and indie films.

As a director, Catherine aims to helm vibrant, thoroughly conceived productions by leaning hard into an organization’s strengths and making sure all artists feel empowered to collaborate. Her goals always include that audiences leave the show motivated to attend more theatre.

As a teaching artist, Catherine takes care to ensure every young artist feels seen, heard, and respected exactly as they are. She knows how life-giving the arts can be, so she strives to create supportive, energetic spaces where students can discover their own superpowers.

collab with catherine

Fall 2026 Projects

New Plays Galore!

Catherine joins the acting company of City Theatre’s Young Playwrights Festival! This program features six one-act plays written by the region's most promising young writers and directed by Kelly Trumbull.

Across the various scripts, Catherine plays a conniving pipsqueak villain, a student navigating the weight of life, a stressed costumer on opening night, and a carefree voice-to-texter.

Student matinees & public performances run October 13-23.

Bright yellow City Theatre poster advertising Young Playwrights Next Fest, October 13–23, directed by Kelly Trumbull, featuring a red-brick theater, flowers, and pencils.

Returning to the Woods

Catherine directs Into the Woods, Jr. featuring the junior and senior Musical Theatre majors at Pittsburgh CAPA, alongside choreographer Elexa Hanner and Music Directors Doug Levine & Lee Saville-Iksic.

This cast of advanced students will perform a string of student matinees, which adds valuable Theatre for Young Audiences skills to their training.

Public performances run Nov. 19 & 20 with cash-only tickets available at the door.

Framed chalkboard poster advertising “Into the Woods Jr.” on November 19 and 20, 2026, at 7 p.m. at Pittsburgh CAPA Mainstage, featuring junior and senior musical theater majors.

Recently:

New Appointment at CAPA

Catherine joins the Musical Theater department at CAPA, Pittsburgh’s Creative and Performing Arts magnet school.

This fall, she is teaching Acting and Movement for the Actor classes. She will also be directing the fall production for the junior and senior musical theatre majors!

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Learn More about CAPA!

“The ‘No Small Roles’ award goes to Catherine Baird for her rubber­-faced, bug-eyed antics and expressive braids”

- syracuse.com

Woman wearing a black helmet and backpack gestures on a dimly lit stage.
Two comedic stage performers pose in front of a football-themed set; one wears a leather helmet and holds a football while the other flexes behind him.
Woman in a purple blazer points and shouts outdoors beside a woman in red wearing sunglasses and a leaf headband.

“Catherine Baird is daring and witty as Viola.”

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- Trib Live

Female performer wearing a headset and blue bow sits onstage facing an enthusiastic theater audience.

“Catherine Baird was outstanding as the confused Hermia”

- onStage Pittsburgh

Recently:

Be More Chill

Five performers pose in a dramatic formation on a blue-lit theater stage, wearing metallic costumes.

Catherine recently directed BE MORE CHILL at Stagedoor Manor, the renowned theatre summer camp in the Catskills.

The team also included Anthony Smith as Music Director, Isabelle Falkiner as Choreographer, and an incredible design team who made the video game inspired world come to life.

“With the rapid acceleration of non-human technologies making decisions for humans, there’s no better time than the summer of 2026 to do a live, in-person musical about a boy who swallows a supercomputer that implants in his brain and tells him what to do!”

Six young performers pose on colorful cardboard boxes on a theater stage under vibrant blue, purple, red, and green lights.
More Directing