Cutting her teeth in NYC in the early ’90s—at fabled clubs like Caroline’s and the Comic Strip—Josie Leavitt moved to Vermont in 1996 and has made an indelible stamp on the local scene. Her comedy has flourished here; she’s mentored countless comics and soaked up accolades (including five Seven Daysies awards).
Her new show, Eating While Fat, addresses fat shaming, hilarious attempts at exercising, dieting, and the struggle for body acceptance in a society that is not as accepting of different bodies as it could be. There is that constant sense that our bodies are not good enough. They're not thin enough, ripped enough, strong enough, shredded enough, fit enough, and the list goes on. And, if we don’t feel that way by ourselves, all it takes is being the fattest one at a dinner party to feel that way. People regard the heaviest one at the table with some curiosity and disdain: what are they eating (what have they been eating?)? Will they have a heart attack after dinner?