Real name: Katherine Thomas

Effective period / Period of releases: 1987 - 1999

The Great Kat is the stage name of Katherine Thomas (born 1966), an English-born, Long Island NY raised, musician best known for her thrash metal interpretations of well-known pieces of classical music.

Thomas is in fact a classically-trained violinist, graduating from the Juilliard School and touring for a time playing conventional classical music before crossing over to metal.

Kat's public persona, as portrayed in her publicity photos and videos, is mainly that of a dominatrix, albeit in a somewhat over-the-top, tongue-in-cheek manner.