Randy Paints The Town Purple This Spring In New Off-broadway Comedy Show, Randy Writes A Novel

Limited 8-week Engagement Through June 10

by Russ White
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“Randy constantly comes out with material far better than most of his human counterparts.” - Time Out 

“Within minutes, we are complicit in the idea that this is a form of art genuinely come to life… takes the audience in a ride through suspension of belief and has us laughing the whole way.” - TheaterBubble

Randy, the bald, purple puppet with a quick wit and a sharp tongue is storming the globe with his unique brand of stand up comedy. He’s headlined with Neil Patrick Harris in Montreal, starred on his own Netflix show in the UK, and has been nominated for the Australian equivalent of an Emmy.  Now the felt-faced performance sensation is setting his sights on conquering New York City with the Off-Broadway premiere of RANDY WRITES A NOVEL.  Written, performed and directed by Randy, the show is now playing at Theatre Row's Clurman Theatre.

They say everyone has at least one novel in them. Well, after being married, divorced, arrested, kidnapped and thrown from a moving hovercraft, the occasionally sober Randy has finally decided to pen his own. The problem is he has no idea if it’s any good. In RANDY WRITES A NOVEL, our hero valiantly attempts a public reading but is repeatedly detoured by his own philosophical musings and vitriolic ramblings. No one is safe, nothing is sacred. 

“Imagine a book tour hosted by a sociopathic Buddhist monk with a foul-mouth and a Hemingway complex and you’re in the ballpark of this show,” Randy explains. “It’s a real existential humdinger.”

Billed as the literary puppet, Randy is unpredictable, quirky and prone to outbursts. His delivery is ridiculously funny.  Yet, he also has a deeper, more contemplative side, as shown in his musings about artistic motivation and the notion of legacy.  Randy welcomes audience interaction in his show and responds with lightning-quick humor to hecklers, turning comments into opportunities for even more funny stories and remarks. 

RANDY WRITES A NOVEL is produced by Emerging Artists Theater and Red Spear Productions. It features lighting by Roger Cooper and sound by Adam Weinstock.

In the past thirteen years, Randy has given birth to half a dozen critically acclaimed solo shows.  He has appeared at Fringe and Comedy festivals from Edinburgh to Hong Kong, Galway to Montreal, Singapore to Sydney and almost everywhere in between. Semi-regular television appearances in his native Australia have earned him great respect and an average income. He has hosted galas, recorded specials, performed a few times at The Sydney Opera House, released an album and a couple of DVDs, and has been nominated for two ARIAs (Australian Grammy).

In 2010 Randy joined forces with an underweight musical comedian by the name of Sammy J to create Ricketts Lane, which won Best Show at the Melbourne International Comedy Festival and went on to become a television series of the same name, airing on ABC TV in Australia, Seeso in the US and Netflix in the UK. Randy's role in Sammy J & Randy in Ricketts Lane earned him an ACTAA (Australian Emmy) nomination for best performer in a comedy series in 2015 - a first for a puppet. 

In 2016 RANDY WRITES A NOVEL was nominated for best comedy at The Edinburgh Fringe Festival and went on to a season at the Soho Theatre in London as well as the 2017 Montreal Just For Laughs Festival, where Randy also appeared on the Jane Krakowski Television Gala. 

Randy is thrilled to make his Off-Broadway debut this spring. Speaking at a recent press conference he said, “The city that never sleeps will need a nap after I’m done with it.”

RANDY WRITES A NOVEL has been nominated for an Off Broadway Alliance Award for MOST UNIQUE THEATRICAL EXPERIENCE!

RANDY WRITES A NOVEL runs through June 10 at Theatre Row's Clurman Theatre (410 West 42nd Street, between 9th and 10th Avenues). Performances are Tuesday - Thursday at 7pm, Friday at 8pm, Saturday at 2pm and 8pm, and Sunday at 3pm. Running time is 75 minutes. Tickets are $81.25, available at 212-239-6200 or visit telecharge.com.

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