Fat Joke
By Cheyenne Rouleau
Produced by Neworld Theatre
An unfiltered, hilarious interrogation of fatphobia.
Coming to Digital Stage June 1st.
Available June 1st
Content Warning:
This show contains sensitive themes including depictions of child predators and mentions of abortions, cannibalism, misogyny, genocide, slavery, eugenics, racism, systemic oppression, sexual assault and mental illness. Additionally, there is significant discussion on fatphobia, diet culture, and eating disorders. Audience discretion is advised.
About
Description
A mixture of stand-up comedy, storytelling, and fact-blasting, Fat Joke puts fatphobia under the spotlight. Drawing upon personal experience and research, comedian, actor, and writer Cheyenne Rouleau dissects this often-untalked-about topic with eviscerating wit. Think: Nanette by Hannah Gadsby meets Inside by Bo Burnham. This one-person show invites us to confront assumptions. It’s all the stuff people don’t feel comfortable talking about turned into a comedy show!
“As a fat person, I never thought of myself as ‘sexy.’ Society never allowed me to be. So I got funny.”—Cheyenne Rouleau
Coming to Digital Stage June 1st.
Catch the in-person performance at The Cultch, April 25—May 05, 2024, as part of Femme Festival 2024
Credits
Written and performed by Cheyenne Rouleau
Directed by Chelsea Haberlin
Dramaturged by Jiv Parasram
Set Design by Jenn Stewart
Assistant to the Set Designer Naju Ururahy
Sound Design by Mary Jane Coomber
Lighting & Projection Design by Andie Lloyd
Costume Design by Jessie Jade Churchill
Stage Managed by Jasmin Sandhu
Community Development Consultant Layla Cameron
Accessibility Consultant Siobhan Barker
Community Outreach Coordinator Alexa Fraser
Production Manager Raes Calvert
Technical Director Jamie Sweeney
Assistant Technical Director Brianna Bernard
Neworld Theatre
Artistic Director Chelsea Haberlin
Managing Director Alen Dominguez
Producer Raes Calvert
Community Engagement Manager Angelica Schwartz
Artistic Associate Christine Quintana
Resident Technician Brianna Bernard
Playwright's Notes
I’m not funny because I’m fat, I’m funny because my parents got divorced. That’s just science.
What started as a 10 minute PowerPoint presentation on Fatphobia meant to educate some shitty coworkers at my shitty office job has somehow turned into this. I’m so grateful to Chelsea for encouraging me to go down the rabbit hole of stories, facts, and introspection that has become Fat Joke, made possible by an enthusiastic producing team at Neworld, and made comprehensible by a hilarious and astute dramaturg, Jiv.
If there is one thing I’ve figured out from writing this play it’s that fatness is simultaneously incredibly important and completely irrelevant. And comedy is simultaneously incredibly unimportant and completely relevant.
– Cheyenne Rouleau
Awards
Over our 28-year history, we have produced, presented and toured multiple works annually at festivals and theatres in over 40 cities and 10 countries worldwide. Major awards include several Jessie Richardson Theatre Awards including the Sydney J Risk prize and Ray Michal prize as well as three Critics’ Choice Innovation Awards, two Arts Club Silver Commissions, the Seattle Times Footlight Award, multiple Jessie Richardson Awards, the Rio-Tinto Alcan Performing Arts Award, the Canada Council Staunch-Lynton Award and the Siminovitch Prize.
Acknowledgements
We would love to thank the Heavy Hitters, Melanie Yeats, Dani Fecko, GNW (Leigh, Kyle and John), Rokko Fabrics, The Cultch, Rumble Theatre, Isobel Bemrose-Fetter, Heather Glasgow, Janice Morris (KDocsFF), Mikenzie Page, Jesse Ray, and Christine Quintana.
Fat Joke was made possible with the support of the PuSh International Performing Arts Festival, the Province of British Columbia, and the Canada Council for the Arts.
Language Guide
Why do we use the word ‘fat’? Read our Language Guide
About Neworld Theatre
We create, produce and tour plays and performances that explore who we are through different perspectives, privileges, and lived experiences. We challenge existing systems of oppression by telling stories that are as complicated and contradictory as the world we live in.
Land Acknowledgement
Neworld is grateful to create our work on the unceded and traditional territories of the Coast Salish peoples, specifically the xʷməθkwəy̓əm (Musqueam), Skwxwú7mesh (Squamish), and Səl̓ílwətaʔ/Selilwitulh (Tsleil-Waututh) Nations.
