What's next for Piazza's Katie Clarke? — Page 3

Regarding the "weight" issue...

Katie is a beautiful young woman. She is at a very nice weight for life as a human being.

For life as an actress... particularly a pretty, blonde ingénue... there is an unfortunate expectation of what that should be. And the "reality" of this "unreal" world of theatre, television and film shows Katie to be about 10-20 pounds over weight. At her current size, she will lose roles to slimmer competition. It's a sad fact. But a fact, nonetheless.

And while it's worse out in Movieland than in it is in the theatre, if Katie wants to have a diverse and solid career as a “young leading lady,” she should understand that the weight needs to come off. Not anything DRASTIC, and it should be monitored very carefully, but 10-20 pounds would do it. And it can mean the difference of getting a job or losing it… with no one actually telling her directly why she is losing out. Nobody wants to talk about it, but everyone is thinking about it.

People have been trying to change this sad truth forever and crying, "Foul!" understandably.

But there is no sign of our world’s “beauty standard” changing, as of yet. And this is Katie’s chosen profession. She signed up for it willingly and eagerly. And she's been very lucky and has the talent to back it up.

But it's expected of her to look a certain way, as part of the job. That's the harsh truth.

---

Updated On: 6/19/06 at 07:19 PM

I just saw her a couple days ago and she was good....not great. You could really tell she had an amateur quality to her voice and needs more experience on the stage. I think she's absolutely gorgeous, but there are expectations for many actors and actresses on Broadway. I personally don't think she needs to lose weight, just tone her body. In the case an actress needs to take off his/her clothes, a casting agent would need to cast accordingly and won't cast somebody with wobbly bits. With that being said, she is incredibly fortunate to have the opportunity to debut on Broadway in THIS production.

20 pounds? Are you insane? Do you know how much weight that is to lose for someone of Katie's I agree that the PC attitude about weight has gone too far. I said as much when someone said Sara Ramirez was of a healthy weight. No way is that healthy. But 20 pounds for Katie? Do you know how much even the slightest weight loss shows up on an already fit young woman? A 10 pound weight loss would definitely show up pretty substantially on a girl of Katie's size and weight. If she lost 20 pounds, the whispers of a physical illness or a mental illness like anorexia would be all over this board.

I think she is a thin girl, but I agree with whatever was said about being "ingenue" thin...it's a completely different thing. And while it may not be the healthiest, best thing, it's a part of life. Underweight is the way to be if you want to be in musical theatre/television/film...

---

In the 1950's, they didn't like a few curves. "Mona Lisa Smile"? Those women had to be perfection for their men.

---

Lose a few pounds? No way. She's hot, without reservation.

Lol, how could any forget about Kelli playing "Kate the cockleshell seller" in J&H?

---

Wicked_Fan: Your icon is so amazing. Someday, Kelli and Celia should do "Side Show"

I agree. She had the SAME facial expression throughout the whole show.

I think Clara should be as beautiful as the women she's surrounded. Margaret seems the type to WANT her daughter to be just like every other girl, right? Well, that would mean regulating her diet. She wouldn't let Clara fatten up.

---

Defie Grammer Lizzie!

---

Wicked_fan: I don't thikn she's pompous at all. I think she knows she's very fortunate and this profession is all about networking so you really can't hate someone for getting the role "the easy way."

I think Clarke was great in the role. She has this quality about her that I love. She is unconventionally pretty, like a poster said above, and I love that. I loved watching her. I thought she did a great job. Her voice didn't bother me nor did her weight? Honestly, out of everything, that's what we're focusing on? Her acting was great and I believed every choice she made. In another thread, someone said the disease is "fictional," so how are we to dispute how she would act? If it's a fictional disease, no one would know exactly how the person acts? In my acting classes, my teacher always tells us not to generalize, so I think by saying that "no 8 or 9 year old would..." is a useless comment. She isn't portraying a "typical" 8 or 9 year old, she portraying Clara. Who's to say how fast she would learn or not learn or if she'd hug her mom or cry? She's obviously been through a lot so maybe she's stronger than her parents give her credit for? Maybe that's why she didn't cry when she got slapped.

As for commenting on the actul thread....

Katie would be great in any of the Disney roles. She'd be a great Belle, could pull off Jane in Tarzan if she wanted, and I think she'd be wonderful in the Little Mermaid. Though maybe her unconventional beauty wouldn't work in that role. It seems like Katie has a very strong belt. I guess she's too young to play Babe in Pajama Game when it transfers. I think it'd be funny if she replaced Keli O'Hara in yet another show. Who knows, maybe she'll be cast in High Fedility or Grey Gardens or something. I'm sure she's def. looking.

i could see her replacing o'hara in pajama game. wouldnt that be funny?


i could also see her as kate monster in Q. that would be awesome.

---