Kat Stewart
| Kat Stewart | |
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Kat Stewart (with Gyton Grantley) at the AFI Awards, December 2008
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| Born |
30 November 1972 Bairnsdale, Victoria |
| Spouse(s) | David Whiteley (2008 – present) |
| Children | Archie Nicholas Whiteley (2012), Georgia (Gigi) Kitty Whiteley (2016) |
Katherine Louise "Kat" Stewart (born 30 November 1972) is an AACTA and Logie Award-winning Australian actress who has made numerous appearances in television series, movies and on-stage.
Stewart was born and raised in Bairnsdale, Victoria. When she was 8 years old she, her parents and two older brothers lived and travelled in Europe for a year and Kat says that time "opened my eyes to the world and gave me a lot of confidence." Stewart began acting in primary school and remembers: "Since Year 2 I had been getting a thrill out of doing school drama. I was on the quiet side, but I felt light in my bones when I was onstage. At university I studied marketing and arts, and joined the theatre society, which quickly became my passion. After graduation, I worked in publicity, but I couldn't shake my love of acting, so I enrolled at the National Theatre, hoping I'd outgrow it. Now I understand you need to do what you love to be happy." Stewart made the decision to leave her PR career behind to pursue acting full-time and recalls: "After I finished drama school, I had a couple of acting gigs straightaway, but then I was unemployed fairly consistently over a couple of years. I don't take anything for granted now though, so it wasn't such a bad thing. But I wouldn't want to go back there if I can avoid it."
Stewart is best known for her role as Roberta Williams (wife of the late Melbourne gangland figure Carl Williams) in the first series of the Channel 9 TV production Underbelly and as Billie Proudman in the popular comedy/drama, Offspring on the Ten Network.
It was her award-winning performance in Underbelly in 2008 that first made Stewart a household name. The portrayal of Roberta Williams drew praise from critics including Marcus Casey of ‘The Daily Telegraph’, who described it as 'one of the most compelling performances by an Australian actress in memory.' Casey expanded that it was ‘a brutally brave, ugly and compelling performance...She held nothing back, and was an emotional but controlled and screeching tornado who dominated the screen whenever the camera peered her way.' The authenticity of Stewart’s performance was praised by Michael Lallo in ‘The Age’, ‘By any measure, it's the role of a lifetime. Stewart has ensured it's the standout performance of the series. Despite quality performances by all, critics say she owns every frame she's in. It's not that she delivers a superb depiction of a suburban gangster moll; it's that you really believe she is a suburban gangster moll.’ Although her performance was popular with critics and audiences, the real life Roberta was not a fan but Stewart was sympathetic, "Obviously, I would have preferred her to like it," she said. "But I can't control that. And if someone was playing me, I couldn't imagine I'd be happy…I have a lot of empathy for Roberta and what she's been through.” Stewart acknowledges the show was a key moment in her career, "Underbelly opened a lot of doors and gave me access to better opportunities and more opportunities. I am very grateful for it.” Despite her positive experience in Underbelly, Kat Stewart chose not to reprise the role in Fat Tony & Co in 2014. Stewart told David Knox of 'TV Tonight': “..Seven years ago when I did it we didn’t know much about Roberta Williams. So I did as much research as I could...Now we know how she walks and talks and so much more about her...I don’t like turning down work. It goes against every actor instinct. But it just didn’t feel right.”
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