About
Kate Trotter
I am an actress to the very depths of my soul. I am also a teacher, a director and a corporate coach. It is a blending of careers that works extremely well both for myself and for the people I work with. There is an element of performance in so much of what we do. It is part of my style as a coach to help people connect to their inner ‘star’. After all, as a speaker one needs to stand above the competition and leave a lasting impression. One way of doing that is to use the skills that actors use every time they step in front of a camera or on to a stage.
I love my career as a coach: a coach of corporate executives (male and female), members of the legal profession, leaders of all kinds seeking to improve their management, presentation and speaking skills and young performers,
I also love my career as an actress. I have worked in spectacular locations (Prague, Luxembourg, Ireland, Los Angeles and Washington) but I have happily, deliberately and proudly made my home here in Canada. In my early years I learned my craft on the stage working in all the major theatres this wonderful country has to offer. It was exhilarating and humbling. I stood on the stage with Canadian icons: Martha Henry, Bill Hutt, Roly Hewgill and Brent Carver. I was directed by wonderful people with astonishing minds: Robin Phillips. Richard Monette, Richard Rose, Martha Henry, Henry Tarvainen, Brian Bedford, Michael Shamata, Christopher Newton and Duncan McIntosh to name but a few.
Young Kate Trotter with Father
And it was all so surprising because I began my life in a tiny town called Fennell’s Corners. I grew up on a farm. I collected eggs and picked strawberries with my mother. I rode the horse through the orchard and learned to drive on a tractor. I dug post holes and helped my dad put shingles on the roof of our family home. It was a solid beginning for a career full of new experiences, hard work and moments of challenge.
When my beautiful daughter Kathleen was born traveling for theatre for months at a time became problematic. I needed to be close to home. So I concentrated my attention and my career on the world of television and film. Again I was lucky. I worked opposite huge stars with enormous talent and even larger hearts. I have shared the screen with Sophia Loren, Alison Pill, Angelina Jolie, Gary Sinise, Jon Voight, James Woods, Whoopi Goldberg, Mariska Hargitay, Claire Bloom and all three of the Carradine Brothers.
And I have been privileged in my career. I have played Marie Curie on film. I have directed for the stage, the screen and made corporate videos. I have prepared young performers for big auditions and watched them get the job. I have smiled with pride as corporate executives walked up to the podium with style and confidence after only a few sessions of training.
I am a very lucky and happy actress. I am a very lucky and very happy mother. I am a very lucky and happy dog and cat owner. I am excited, challenged and motivated by my work as a teacher.
I hope to concentrate more time on my work as a coach in the future, because my skills and experiences as an actress are skills that provide a trampoline for speakers and students alike to jump higher, risk more and experience the exhilaration of success.
