‘American Idol’ Audience Member Claims She Was Denied Front-Row Seat Due to Her Weight

'American Idol' is surging during its 10th season, winning in the ratings as if it were Charlie Sheen and stirring up pop culture conversation with its variety of contestants, judges, performances and eliminations. However, the drama is spilling off the stage this week, as a 19-year-old studio audience member from Riverside, California is making a serious accusation against the show, saying she told she could not sit in the front row because of her weight. The company that produces the show has denied her claims.

According to Billboard, Ashley Kauffman complained to an audience coordinator at last Thursday's show when she was separated from five of her friends who did get front-row seats, according to Manfred Westphal, a spokesman for producer FremantleMedia North America. Kauffman and her friends had arrived early and had attended previous telecasts of the series and were told that good seats were available for two groups of three but that they would be in separate rows.

FremantleMedia North America says that Kauffman was not seated solo or all the way in the back and that she was in fact seated four rows behind her pals and directly in view of the camera, which are "some of the best seats in the house." However, Kauffman claims a male studio employee told her she was moved back because she was fat and couldn't sit up front with the skinny girls.

Hannah Solarzano -- part of Kauffman’s group but had not met her previously -- claims that she was not allowed to sit in the front row because she was wearing shorts, so she sat next to Kauffman but did not hear any insults about Kauffman’s weight. "Nobody started talking about the comment that was supposedly made to Ashley until she brought it up," Solarzano says. "I never heard those words except from her."

Kauffman took to the web to voice her disappointment with how her situation was handled. She was contacted by the group that booked her seats to discuss the matter.

Representatives for the production company avow that the 'Idol' studio audience remains diverse as always. Kauffman could not be reached for comment.