A Look Back at “Fat Pig”

When looking forward to Frostburg’s Theatre and Dance’s upcoming season, we can also revisit what was brought to campus last school year as well. To highlight a few, there was, “Detroit 67”, “Five by Ives”, “The Miraculous Journey of Edward Tulane”, “The Best Christmas Pageant Ever”, and “Fat Pig”. All of these productions left the audience with messages of determination, strength, practice, equality, and love. But, what did “Fat Pig” leave us with? Don’t date the fat girl?

The capstone of the 2018-2019 Theatre and Dance season, “Fat Pig”, from my point of view, was a disappointment. Now, that is not a reflection on actors, tech crew, or scenery. Everyone involved in this production performed their roles perfectly: the sexy secretary, the rude playboy, the meek boyfriend, and the unnervingly confident plus-sized woman, all portrayed, so the audience would hate most of the cast in the end, which is a part well played. However, with a title such as, “Fat Pig”, I knew the show wouldn’t exactly be politically correct, but I truly didn’t expect what seemed like 2 hours of pure fat shaming. The story was about a thin man, meeting and dating a plus-sized woman, his friends make fun of him for dating “someone like her” and ultimately he breaks up with her in the middle of a work party, claiming he can no longer handle being constantly embarrassed by being with her in public. Now, I’m not sure if it’s the feminist part of me that would like to see this script burned or just the human part of me, but I know that I laughed less than 5 times throughout this “humorous” production. As of right now, the toxic, fat-shaming legacy of, “Fat Pig”, is what is to be broken in the new season for Theatre and Dance. 

I only hope that the new season leaves the audience with feelings of empowerment, humor, hope, or joy, and not a curiosity as to how this production was ever approved as I felt with, “Fat Pig”.