Meet Katharine Scarborough | Actress and Writer

We had the good fortune of connecting with Katharine Scarborough and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Katharine, what role has risk played in your life or career?
Choosing to pursue a creative life is one of the biggest risks a person can take. Our culture’s obsession with productivity/PRODUCING is in direct conflict with what it means to live the life of an artist. It is a process, a journey, a not-guaranteed path that ebbs and flows and never looks exactly how one might expect it to. I knew, especially as a young, plus-size, character actress that the road to the career I wanted would be rocky, but nothing prepares you for how hard it is to stay the course and believe in yourself when things get tough. I knew it was a huge risk, in fact, it’s still a huge risk. It still might never happen exactly how I hope it will, But, being an artist is not just a job, it’s a calling. We only get one life, we’re all going to be worm food in the end, so why not spend the time we have going after what we love and want at one hundred miles an hour? A mentor of mine once told me to always follow my bliss, and that’s what I’m doing. The risk is worth it.

Alright, so let’s move onto what keeps you busy professionally?
I am a New York City based actress and writer, having trained at the New School for Drama, Moscow Art Theater School, and the People’s Improv Theater. On my resume, under special skills, I say that I am “Plus-Sized and Mouthy”, which pretty much sums up my point of view and brand! I am a naughty, provocative, awkward misfit, and my work for the past decade on stage and in film has challenged society’s standards of beauty, sexuality, and personal identity. As a plus-size, character actress “fitting in” has never been part of my experience as a performer or human being, nor, frankly, is it particularly interesting to me. Often told I would “grow into my type”, writing for myself has become paramount to my artistic expression.

After I received my MFA from the New School, I held an Artist Residency with Mabou Mines under the mentorship of JoAnne Akalaitis, which is where I discovered how much I love writing for myself. I developed my show “Myth Keeper” with them, which I then went on to produce at both Dixon Place, and in residency at The Brick in Williamsburg. I also wrote, co-executive produced (with Brazen NYC), and starred in my own web series, “Big Girl” (available to stream on Seeka.tv). Big Girl follows my character’s misadventures dating and living in NYC over five short episodes that all emulate a different film genre (including a silent, clown film!). Big Girl did very well in the film festival circuit, and I’m very proud of the work. Most recently, I am currently in development of an hour-long pilot with Hondo Productions, and I am very thrilled and excited to see where it goes.

Of course this process hasn’t been easy, and I think it’s been my stubbornness that’s gotten me through the rough patches, time and again. I refuse to give up. If I could sum up what I’ve learned as an artist and a human I would say: All bodies are good bodies, and can and should be celebrated. Our vulnerabilities are our super powers, and ultimately are what connects us all as human beings.

If you had a friend visiting you, what are some of the local spots you’d want to take them around to?
If a close friend were coming to visit me here in NYC, I would of course take them to the Met, The American Museum of Natural History, MOMA, and the Whitney. I would also check out what shows were playing at St. Ann’s Warehouse, BAM, the Irish Arts Center, Soho Rep, and maybe Ars Nova, too! For comedy, I’d look at Caveat, QED Astoria, the PIT, or honestly, I’d just see what my buddies in the comedy scene were doing that weekend. For a nice dinner out, I’d take them to The Clam or The Mermaid Inn in the West Village, and for brunch, we’d go to Comfortland in Astoria (where I live). Shopping and tacos at Chelsea Market followed by sunset on the High Line. What else could we cram in there? The Cloisters! And the Brooklyn Museum and Brooklyn Botanical Garden! Maybe we could also fit in some solid Lantern Fly squashing. I’d also bring them to my friend Edie Ugot’s restaurant Sidney’s Five: https://www.sidneysfive.com/menu and also my friend Aaron Foster’s specialty grocery and butcher shop Foster Sundry: https://www.fostersundry.com/

The Shoutout series is all about recognizing that our success and where we are in life is at least somewhat thanks to the efforts, support, mentorship, love and encouragement of others. So is there someone that you want to dedicate your shoutout to?
I am very lucky to have a family and group of friends who are endlessly supportive of me and my work. Knowing that my support system is proud of me and has my back is invaluable. I have also been incredibly lucky in my education – I received my BA in Performance Studies from UMass, Amherst, I studied with the Moscow Art Theater, and I got my MFA in Acting from the New School for Drama. At all of these institutions, I found professors who cared about me, my voice, and my point of view as an artist. Julie Nelson, Melissa Sivvy, Alyona and Oleg Topolianskaya, Evengy Pisarev, Misha Lobanov, Jean Taylor, Kathryn Rossetter, Casey Biggs, Ron Leibman, Teva Bjerken, Cotter Smith, Susan Cameron, and JoAnne Akalaitis are all teachers whose lessons and impressions will be with me forever.

Website: https://www.katharinescarborough.com/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/ksscarborough/

Twitter: https://mobile.twitter.com/ksscarborough

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/katharine.scarborough/

Other: https://watch.seeka.tv/en/big-girl

Image Credits
Emily Lambert Photography, Sheryl Liu, Elaine White, Stephanie Mallick