Since researching Dawn French and Miranda Hart, I have been looking at other larger female idols such as Rebel Wilson in her hit movie Pitch Perfect and Melissa McCarthy in her hit films Bridesmaids Identity Thieve and The Heat.

What at I found similar between these two actresses is that they are both big, and that they play the funny side kick role as support actresses. In Pitch Perfect, Rebel plays a young college student called Amy, or Fat Amy, “so that people like you don’t make fun of me behind my back”. She addresses the fact that she is big from the very beginning. When I first saw this clip I was shocked because you shouldn’t have to state your size to someone you meet, they should like you for who you are. But then I realised, I always used to make jokes about my weight to fit in with new people and I related with Fat Amy in that aspect. One of Melissa McCarthy’s most remembered  film role was in Bridesmaids as Megan. Megan was a secret agent and was the Groom’s sister. She was the one that nobody wanted to be around because she did not fit in. She was an overweight, boyish character, very similar to the character Alan in The Hangover movies.However, Melissa McCarthy has now become so popular with the public that she is the female lead in films, such as Tammy. In addition, Rebel Wilson is too very popular with the public, and they are both considered comical geniuses.

In certain ways, I can relate to McCarthy and Wilson in the fact that I was always cast as the fat, funny sidekick in musicals or plays. For example, I was cast as Mabel in the musical Fame. I was really happy about this, I had my own solo and was considered one of the lead roles. What I did not realise was that underneath the name Mabel was the description, “worlds fattest dancer”. I mean, I did not mind, I was cast in the show. But I felt I had a pressure to be funny because if I didn’t joke about my size, I wouldn’t be comfortable with people laughing at me. One thing I have been thinking about, was when I was cast as Scaramouche in We Will Rock You. I was much slimmer in this role, but if I was to audition again with the same abilities as I did before, would I be cast as her again? Probably not. I would be cast as The Killer Queen, who is more voluptuous and much bigger in her presence.

“The problem of how the female comedian is to construct her own identity through her performance, for there remains the potential for the weight of traditional meanings to push the female body, and especially the fat female body, back into the place of object, or butt, of the comedy.” (Hole, 2003)

This, from my experience, is very true and is something that I will include in my performance. I want to state my size from the beginning just like Fat Amy, so that people won’t be laughing at my weight, but hopefully be laughing at the jokes I make.

References.

Hole, A. (2003). Performing identity: Dawn French and the funny fat female body. Feminist Media Studies, 3(3), pp.315-328.