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When she’s not acting in musicals or dramas, Hannah Kato works behind the scenes as Program Assistant for Northwestern’s Center for Synthetic Biology (CSB). We caught up with her to discuss how she balances her life in theater with her day job—and how the two worlds intersect more than one might expect.

What are your current job responsibilities?

I work for CSB as its Program Assistant, which entails helping manage the co-directors’ calendars, schedules, and travel, and handling other responsibilities for labs and around the center—from ordering faculty lunches to supplies. I also help plan and implement events, such as seminars and CSB’s 10-year anniversary.

What does your typical day look like?

A little bit of everything. Something I really enjoy about the role is that it feels like every day is different—whether it’s staffing an event or handling different things for [CSB co-directors] Danielle and Julius. No day looks the same. It’s very fun, and I really like the creative aspects, like designing flyers or merchandise.

How did your theater career begin?

I graduated from North Central College in 2022 with a degree in musical theater and acting. Right out of college, I worked for six months at Northern Sky Theater in Door County, Wisconsin. I was performing and interning there in an outdoor amphitheater. It felt like summer camp. We would go to the beach during the day, and then at night, we’d perform the show under the stars. It was amazing.

What first brought you to Northwestern?

One thing about acting is that it’s a lot of gig work, and it’s not consistent. Acting is often a hustling job because you’ve got to have multiple jobs.

I started at Northwestern in 2023 as a temp in the Chemical & Biological Engineering Department. I wasn’t really working with Julius yet, but I was working with Danielle, and then I booked a national tour for a musical. What stuck out to me during that time was how everyone here was super supportive. That was really, really cool.

I ended up finishing my temp role and then going on tour for a year. When I moved back, I was looking for work again and thought I’d see if there were any openings at Northwestern that I was specifically interested in. Danielle told me there was an opening in CSB, and the rest is history. It was the biggest gift. The people are incredible, and it’s been so fun getting to know everyone. I’m very thankful to be in such a supportive environment.

What was your role in Come from Away?

I played a reporter. The play is about what happened on 9/11, when American airspace was closed and 38 planes were diverted to Gander, Newfoundland, which is off the coast of Canada. Overnight, the population in this small town doubled. The story is all about people coming together and how this community cared for thousands of people from all different backgrounds.

Does your work as an actress inform your work at CSB?

What I’ve found is that there is so much crossover between what I do as an actor and what I do here. For example, I use a lot of theater skills interacting with seminar speakers and visitors and escorting them to different places. It’s a lot like improv.

Creativity definitely comes into the role as well. I love creating things, whether that’s visual things like photography—I love film photography and analog stuff—graphic design, or brainstorming merch.

It’s also fun to talk with lab members and professors about improv classes and theatrical skills, because they have to present and do public speaking. The communication piece was something I didn’t anticipate being as huge in this role and environment.

Working in shows like Come from Away helps me see things in a different light. A big theme of the show is coming together. We’re all humans worthy of respect and dignity, and kindness should be at the forefront of what we do.

I’ve also carried over things from my CSB job into acting. Acting is your own business. To be successful, you need strong organization and entrepreneurial skills.

How do you balance both careers?

It’s kind of like having a nine-to-five and then a five-to-10. I’m currently in a show that’s rehearsing after working hours. It’s called Top Girls at Raven Theatre. It’s a very British show.

I’m playing two different characters—one is a Japanese character, which is my first time playing a role written for a Japanese actor, and I’m half Japanese. She’s a woman of the courts. The other character is a woman working at an agency. The show is set in the ’80s, and the themes center on feminism and women’s roles in society and at work.

This center has been very kind, offering me flexibility. I’m also learning to maximize my time on my commute—that’s my designated time to learn my lines or answer emails. I’m also trying to figure out how to find time to rest and recognize that rest is also productive.

Other than acting do you have time for other things outside of work?

I love being outside. I’ve really gotten into running, so I’m training for a half marathon. Every person in their 20s has a crisis, right? And mine has been running.

My good friends are really into biking. When I first moved to the city, I liked biking, but now I’m really into it. I can’t wait for the summer because every Saturday morning we’d bike to the lake, jump in, and then get coffee after. That was the highlight for me.

What are you most proud of?

Awards and acting jobs are great, but I think the biggest accomplishment is being able to support myself.

My parents have been a big influence. There’s no way I could have done it without them. I’m financially independent now, but right out of college it was nice knowing they were there for me while I figured things out.

A few generations back, both sides of my family were immigrants. The fact that they could have a great-great-granddaughter who could study the arts is huge. That’s only because they worked so hard to create financial stability.

What does being in the arts mean to you?

I did not see myself represented in the arts growing up. There’s not a lot of Asian representation. Being able to meet young Asian American girls who would come to the stage door with their moms and ask to take pictures was really cool. I could think, “This was me, 15 years ago.”

Hopefully, I can be an inspiration that if I can do it, you can do it too—there’s space for you in this industry. That’s something I’m still really passionate about.

Having the ability to tell stories while working at Northwestern has been a huge gift. I’m very grateful to Northwestern for offering support with it.

Have you had to face much rejection?

Before I booked Come from Away, I think I had 62 auditions and didn’t get anything. But that number is actually pretty decent. I know people who audition for hundreds of things and hear nothing.

It’s perspective—realizing it’s not personal. It really is just business. That sounds harsh, but in an odd way, it takes pressure off.

Can you tell me a fun fact about yourself?

Have you seen the movie Mean Girls? My life is kind of parallel to the character Cady because I used to live in Africa and then moved to the Chicago suburbs.

My parents worked overseas, so for four years during high school I lived in Cameroon, West Africa. My dad was a chaplain at my international school, and my mom runs a program similar to World Vision that helps kids get food and education. She also works with centers that support women learning trades so they can support themselves.

I loved it. I went to Rainforest International School. There were a lot of unique birds and bugs, and snakes on campus were pretty normal.

What’s surprising is the crossover with CSB’s work. Julius and NU Water have a partnership with an African water organization. Access to clean drinking water is a massive problem there. It’s a full-circle experience knowing that work being done here could change lives.

by Lisa La Vallee