• Artistic Director
• Instructor

Kate began her professional acting career at the age of 17 participating in several theatrical productions before moving to Vancouver to pursue acting in film and television.

Kate wrote and directed "Torched" performed by Terri-lyn Storey to national acclaim in 2005. Kate has taught for The Canadian College of Performing Arts, The Vancouver Film School (through which she co-wrote and directed "Serfing" with Mark Ragan), Cineworks, The Company We Keep, and in 2001 she co-founded The Lyric School of Acting.

To date Kate has directed over two dozen stage plays, written three stage plays, which have been produced across Canada, and has taught well over a thousand students. In 2009 she completed directing her first feature film entitled “Candyland” and is currently in pre-production for her next.

She has had a profound effect on the arts community as a mentor and innovator, and is known for her creative tenacity and fearless exploration of otherwise difficult subject matter.

• Technical Director

Ronan Reinart balances a busy law practice with a very active role as Technical Director of Cucumber Satellite Theatre Society. Ronan’s unique ability to combine left brain/right brain thinking is a strong asset for the group. Working closely with co-founder Kate Twa, Ronan focuses on both the business and the creative aspects of the Society, including designing its website, promotional brochures and filming and editing the Society’s groundbreaking video and multimedia productions.

Ronan is also a cinematographer, with a keen eye for composition, lighting, and film production workflow management, and has experience using a wide array of the industry’s cutting-edge film editing, processing, and visual effects compositing computer software, including Final Cut Studio Pro, Adobe After Effects, Side Effects Software’s Houdini, and the Foundry’s Nuke (to name a few).

As an attorney, Ronan practices with the firm Bell Alliance in the areas of commercial, entertainment, and estate planning law.

• Instructor

Dr. Iris MacGregor-Bannerman studied theatre and drama at the Rose Bruford College for Speech and Drama, in London, England. Upon leaving College, she joined the Royal Shakespeare Company in Stratford-upon-Avon. A veteran performer with numerous roles on stage, film, television and radio, Iris then joined the National Theatre School in Montreal in 1971 as the Head of Voice and Speech.

She then went on to becoming the Director of the Acting Program at Ryerson Theatre School in Toronto where she wrote the highly acclaimed curriculum for the four year Bachelor of Fine Arts Degree. She obtained her Ph. D. from the University of Toronto in 1995. Since moving west, Iris has taught with the Canadian College of Performing Arts in Victoria, Lyric School of Acting and now with Kate Twa. Iris has been an integral part of Kate’s development of Cucumber Satellite’s Ensemble of Professional Actors.

*Iris is in the process of completing her book THINK BREATHE SPEAK. This is what she has been teaching to actors for many years.

• Instructor

A native New Yorker, Lori Triolo studied at the renowned Neighborhood Playhouse in NYC with revolutionary instructors Sanford Meisner, Ron Stetson and Richard Pinter. After graduation she was granted permission to teach The Meisner Technique. While living in NYC, Lori built a 60 seat Black Box Theatre where Robert Deniro, Talia Shire and Kenneth Branagh sat on the Board of Directors.

A busy film and TV career brought Lori to Vancouver where she quickly guest starred on many American TV shows. An avid believer in diverse and continuous study, Lori became assistant to Ivana Chubbuck before her career took her to Los Angeles. Lori has spent the last 10 years under the mentorship of master instructor Larry Moss.

Lori has received rave reviews from critics and audiences in productions of The Sweetest Swing in Baseball (Jessie Award Nomination), Italian American Reconciliation, Where’s My Money, Miss Julie, In The Eyes of God and Stop Kiss.

Triolo is passionate about the craft of acting, and relentless in her teaching of the craft. To watch Lori act is an inspiration and to study with her is a gift.