Meet Katie Wilbert | Actor, Writer, Comedian

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

Hi Katie, have there been any changes in how you think about work-life balance?
When I was in my early twenties I was willing to sacrifice ANYTHING to be a successful artist, even if that meant dooming myself to an eternity of singledom and never having a family of my own. However, as I’ve gotten older my priorities and perspectives have totally changed (thank God.) Now, at 30, I’m in a healthy, committed relationship with a fellow artist and our careers are no longer our sole focus. My partner and I are still passionate as ever about comedy, but we also value our time together, the life we want to build (which will eventually include a family), and the adventures we want to have. It feels so healthy and balanced, which only aids my creative side.

It is so good to hustle hard when you’re in your twenties and have the energy for that kind of relentless grind. However, there is so much more to life than just working and networking. I also think, with special regards to creating art, that you have to give yourself over to more of life’s experiences (good or bad) and allow time to explore all parts of who you are. That means making time for relationships, travel, education, being active in your community, etc. You can’t hope to make new art if you aren’t growing as a person, and how can you grow as a person if all you ever do is work?

I no longer subscribe to the idea that we must sacrifice everything to create great works, no matter the art form. I would love for our culture as a whole to start approaching art like any other line of work. Most people who work 9-5 jobs entertainment, there’s this myth that artists must toil and sacrifice and only then will their work be great. I don’t think that’s true. There’s no reason a TV writing room, for example, can’t work more like a 9-5 job. In fact, I’ve found that most people do better work when they’re able to get rest and recovery time in between.

My experience has taught me that balance aids creativity, and when one’s life is not in balance, creativity suffers. When you think about it like that, then the act of nourishing other parts of your life (relationships, family, hobbies) is just a smart career move!

Alright, so let’s move onto what keeps you busy professionally?
I can be a bit greedy when it comes to art, because I don’t just love acting… I love writing, songwriting, singing, comedy, painting, etc. The most rewarding experiences for me in my career have been the ones that allowed me to do as many of those things as possible at one time. My one-woman show that I performed at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival, for example, was a comedic musical that I wrote and performed. It was a vehicle that allowed me to express myself in multiple mediums and my overall career goal is to be able to continue doing exactly that in the future.

In addition to trying to combine these mediums any chance I get, I’m also trying to integrate my love of fantasy and historical romance into my current writing projects. I would love nothing more than to be in a comedic period piece or genre mashup (like Dickinson or The Great) or be the comic relief in an epic fantasy show. So, I thought… why not create these things myself!? The two projects I am in development on right now are both fantasy-comedies, and I think it’s becoming a bit of a trademark.

I think my brand at the moment is ‘the funny girl who loves fantasy, romance, and musicals.’ And ya know what? I’m okay with that.

It was a long, kind of all over the place journey to figuring out what ‘my thing’ was. For a long time I was hopping aboard other people’s ‘thing’ and hoping I could commondere it and make it my own. I’d see a broadway musical and think ‘I shouldn’t be pursuing comedy, I should be on broadway’ or I’d see a solo clown show and say ‘No, what I should really be doing is clown! Only clown!’ All that trying on of different personas was kind of exhausting but also super crucial to me finding my own voice and figuring out who I was, separate from other people. I guess that is the benefit of being in your 30’s instead of your 20’s. I’ve already tried out all the stuff that isn’t right for me, so now I can just focus on what I know I love and know that I excel at.

In this way I’m a bit of a late bloomer, I needed to try on all the different hats to figure out I don’t even like hats in the first place.

Any places to eat or things to do that you can share with our readers? If they have a friend visiting town, what are some spots they could take them to?
If we weren’t in a world-wide pandemic, nothing would excite me more than getting to introduce someone to the comedy scenes I’ve had the privilege of being apart of. The Lyric Hyperion Theatre in Silver Lake is one of my absolute favorite places. The shows there were always wild, experimental, and kind of life changing. Not only that, but it’s home to a community of some of the nicest, most inclusive people. I could say the same of The Second City in Hollywood as well! So those are both must visits!

My other favorite places in LA include: The Huntington Botanical Gardens (Pasadena), Burgers Never Die (Silver Lake), The Tea Master (Downtown LA), La Colombe (Frog Town), Jinya Ramen (Studio City), and Plat Food + Wine (Venice Beach.)

Shoutout is all about shouting out others who you feel deserve additional recognition and exposure. Who would you like to shoutout?
It is no exaggeration to say that the comedy community I’m apart of helped build who I am and greatly informed the style of comedy and writing I do. I met all my closest friends through The Second City comedy theatre here in LA. I met the love of my life, John, at Upright Citizens Brigade in an improv class, and I’ve received countless career opportunities through the years I invested at The Groundlings Theatre. Most recently, my interest and investment in more fringe style comedy is in thanks to all the amazing performers I’ve witnessed at The Lyric Hyperion Theatre, most of whom are apart of LA’s clown community (The Idiot Workshop, Wet The Hippo, Etc.)

Literally every single performer, teacher, and director from these different communities helped to push me, inspire me, and build me into the actor and writer I am today!

Website: www.katiewilbert.com

Instagram: @katiewilbert

Twitter: @katiewilbert

Youtube: www.youtube.com/katiewilbert

Image Credits
Christopher Sheffield,