More than anybody else, actors and theatre performers are most likely to experience anxiety and depression due to long work hours, inconsistent schedules, and stringent competition in the industry. Many artists have reported high levels of stress and strain arising from work-related pressures, mainly; unpredictable dry spells and the impact of character being played. However, despite some of these hurdles, there are actors who prove that there are no substitutes and shortcuts for the dedication and hard work to the craft. And one of them is Kate Katzman for sure.
The Irish-American actor has had a great many parts over the past several years. Some are big, and some are small. In 2015’s Walt Before Mickey, the biopic of Walt Disney’s formative years, she played none other than Disney’s wife (and prolific ink artist in her own right), Lillian.
“Acting fills me emotionally,” says Katzman. “I think I’m just one of many who would call themselves curious souls, in that if I’m not always exploring and asking questions about what drives another human being, then I feel I’m not getting as much out of my own life. There’re a few professions that can accommodate this, and one of them is acting.”
Perhaps it’s this that keeps Katzman and others like her working through the lean times, through parts that potentially might get little to no recognition from the industry. Katzman is one of those lucky enough to have been cast in some roles that challenge her and show off her chops.
Those chops are, to be sure, pretty extensive. Katzman trained under Burt Reynolds, an actor who, during his long career, was able to pull off a variety of very memorable parts. And though Katzman is frank about her hope that she’ll be able to be as well-known as Reynolds for a wide array of roles, her main hope is that she just keeps getting to do exciting work.
“I think, in the end, that’s all any real actor wants,” says Katzman. “Fame, fortune, all that comes well after being able to sink into a role. Any actor who is in this for the right reasons will likely agree with that.”