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Description
WARNING: Fatphobia

~~~~~~~~~~

She’d always dreamed of getting to this point but it never fully occurred to her that it could actually happen. At long last, Triple Threat finally landed a role on Bridleway! The Equine King was one of the most popular and long-running shows so this was a huge deal. This would finally be her big break!

But when she actually got the cast list, what was once the most exciting moment of her life quickly became the most crushing.

She’d auditioned for Neighla. The love interest. One of the leads! The assistant director AND the choreographer said she was a shoe-in, she heard. TT was sure she’d get the role. But that wasn’t what she got.

The warthog. The fat, farting, fat, FAT comedic relief. That was the role she got. TT was seeing red. She’d given her all but no matter how hard she worked, she was always reduced to her size. Like her talent didn’t matter.

“Mr. Overture?”

TT knocked on the director’s office door, struggling to swallow down the nervous lump in her throat. She had to talk to him, she had to know why…well, she already knew. But still, she couldn’t just let it slide. Not this time.

“Come in.”

The young mare walked in slowly at his beckoning, trying not to spill her coffee in her shaking magical grasp. It was frowned upon to challenge a director about their casting choices, especially a Bridleway director of all ponies. This was her first role too, so who knew what this could do to what little reputation she had.

“What did you want to speak with me about?”

Overcast Overture was staring her down from across the table which did nothing to help her nerves.

“Oh! Um, I just wanted to, well, talk about the cast. I…I just have a few questions about it.”

“Such as?”

The director withdrew the cast list from a folder, but he hardly needed it. He knew exactly which part he’d given her.

“I guess I’d like to know, uh, why you gave me this part? I mean, comedic roles really aren’t my strong suit at all. I auditioned for Neighla which is, like, the opposite kind of role, so I was wondering what you saw—“

“Are you saying the mare who got Neighla doesn’t deserve the role?”

“No, no!”

TT became defensive, but she meant it. Some of the other cast members said that the mare who played Neighla underperformed at her audition, but she didn’t like to think like that at all. She was probably just having an off day, surely she was just as talented and deserving.

“You know you can’t bribe your way into the lead. Lots have tried it, they never succeed.”

“No sir, I would never. I just…”

She gripped her coffee hard between her hooves, mustering up the courage to say what she really wanted to.

“I can’t help but wonder if I got this role because…because of my size. I’ve tried but I honestly can’t think of any other reason why. I’ve gotten a lot of roles like this in past shows, and well…”

TT was about to take a huge risk with what she was about to ask next.

“Is it possible…if there’s an opening, I mean, if I could get another role? Even just an understudy, or a backup singer, or a really really minor role…”

“I gave you this role because I thought you were the best fit for it. I will not change it just because you asked. If you were truly professional you wouldn’t even think of it.”

TT wanted to absolutely melt in shame as the director stared her down sternly. She tried to hard to be a gracious actress but now she felt like the most ungrateful pony in the world. Even if she had good reason to be.

Then the director chuckled.

“Frankly, you should be happy you even got a role at all. But the choice is yours, take it or leave it. You’d better decide before rehearsals.”

“Well…in that case…”

TT was fighting back tears as she prepared to make the hardest decision of her career so far. But she needed to put her hoof down.

“I don’t want it. I’m not gonna take another fat role like this! I can’t let ponies keep ignoring everything else I could bring to a role just because you think I’m the wrong size! I…I quit!”

With that, she left the director’s office before he could get another word in.

This would be the last time she set hoof on Bridleway for awhile.

~~~~~~~~~~

Previous: Pork
Next: Nothing Tastes As Good

~~~~~~~~~~

[Image Description: Triple Threat, a pale pink unicorn with a curly orange mane, clutches a cup of coffee with a shameful frown as she sits across from Overcast Overture, a gray stallion with a darker gray mustache. His position in the foreground almost makes him look as if he is towering over her, and most of body is concealed off camera, with his eyes not visible. He is holding a list with mostly-unintelligible writing except for the word “CAST” in the heading. End Description.]

Description
WARNING: Fatphobia

~~~~~~~~~~

She’d always dreamed of getting to this point but it never fully occurred to her that it could actually happen. At long last, Triple Threat finally landed a role on Bridleway! The Equine King was one of the most popular and long-running shows so this was a huge deal. This would finally be her big break!

But when she actually got the cast list, what was once the most exciting moment of her life quickly became the most crushing.

She’d auditioned for Neighla. The love interest. One of the leads! The assistant director AND the choreographer said she was a shoe-in, she heard. TT was sure she’d get the role. But that wasn’t what she got.

The warthog. The fat, farting, fat, FAT comedic relief. That was the role she got. TT was seeing red. She’d given her all but no matter how hard she worked, she was always reduced to her size. Like her talent didn’t matter.

“Mr. Overture?”

TT knocked on the director’s office door, struggling to swallow down the nervous lump in her throat. She had to talk to him, she had to know why…well, she already knew. But still, she couldn’t just let it slide. Not this time.

“Come in.”

The young mare walked in slowly at his beckoning, trying not to spill her coffee in her shaking magical grasp. It was frowned upon to challenge a director about their casting choices, especially a Bridleway director of all ponies. This was her first role too, so who knew what this could do to what little reputation she had.

“What did you want to speak with me about?”

Overcast Overture was staring her down from across the table which did nothing to help her nerves.

“Oh! Um, I just wanted to, well, talk about the cast. I…I just have a few questions about it.”

“Such as?”

The director withdrew the cast list from a folder, but he hardly needed it. He knew exactly which part he’d given her.

“I guess I’d like to know, uh, why you gave me this part? I mean, comedic roles really aren’t my strong suit at all. I auditioned for Neighla which is, like, the opposite kind of role, so I was wondering what you saw—“

“Are you saying the mare who got Neighla doesn’t deserve the role?”

“No, no!”

TT became defensive, but she meant it. Some of the other cast members said that the mare who played Neighla underperformed at her audition, but she didn’t like to think like that at all. She was probably just having an off day, surely she was just as talented and deserving.

“You know you can’t bribe your way into the lead. Lots have tried it, they never succeed.”

“No sir, I would never. I just…”

She gripped her coffee hard between her hooves, mustering up the courage to say what she really wanted to.

“I can’t help but wonder if I got this role because…because of my size. I’ve tried but I honestly can’t think of any other reason why. I’ve gotten a lot of roles like this in past shows, and well…”

TT was about to take a huge risk with what she was about to ask next.

“Is it possible…if there’s an opening, I mean, if I could get another role? Even just an understudy, or a backup singer, or a really really minor role…”

“I gave you this role because I thought you were the best fit for it. I will not change it just because you asked. If you were truly professional you wouldn’t even think of it.”

TT wanted to absolutely melt in shame as the director stared her down sternly. She tried to hard to be a gracious actress but now she felt like the most ungrateful pony in the world. Even if she had good reason to be.

Then the director chuckled.

“Frankly, you should be happy you even got a role at all. But the choice is yours, take it or leave it. You’d better decide before rehearsals.”

“Well…in that case…”

TT was fighting back tears as she prepared to make the hardest decision of her career so far. But she needed to put her hoof down.

“I don’t want it. I’m not gonna take another fat role like this! I can’t let ponies keep ignoring everything else I could bring to a role just because you think I’m the wrong size! I…I quit!”

With that, she left the director’s office before he could get another word in.

This would be the last time she set hoof on Bridleway for awhile.

~~~~~~~~~~

Previous: Pork
Next: Nothing Tastes As Good

~~~~~~~~~~

[Image Description: Triple Threat, a pale pink unicorn with a curly orange mane, clutches a cup of coffee with a shameful frown as she sits across from Overcast Overture, a gray stallion with a darker gray mustache. His position in the foreground almost makes him look as if he is towering over her, and most of body is concealed off camera, with his eyes not visible. He is holding a list with mostly-unintelligible writing except for the word “CAST” in the heading. End Description.]