American comedian, actor, writer, and singer
Larry Owens
Born Occupations
Actor
writer
singer
comedian
Years active 2015–present Known for A Strange Loop
Larry Owens is an American comedian, actor, writer, and singer. He received a Lucille Lortel Award and a Drama Desk Award for his leading performance in the off-Broadway musical A Strange Loop . He has acted on television shows including Search Party , High Maintenance , Modern Love and Abbott Elementary .
Early life and education
Owens was born and raised in East Baltimore , Maryland.[ 1] He named Hairspray as a musical he saw growing up that helped him see musical theater as a career path.[ 1] He loved the work of Stephen Sondheim and nurtured his interest at the performing arts camp Stagedoor Manor .[ 2]
He trained in acting and improvisational theater at the School at Steppenwolf , where Tarell Alvin McCraney , Amy Morton and K. Todd Freeman were some of his instructors.[ 3] [ 4]
Owens moved to New York in 2015 to pursue a professional career in the performance arts.[ 2] He was a volunteer at the Musical Theatre Factory and there connected with playwright Michael R. Jackson , who wrote A Strange Loop .[ 2]
Career
Theatre
Owens performed in the musical theater productions Spamilton and Gigantic .[ 5] He also performed for Catherine Cohen 's Cabernet Cabaret and hosted his own monthly show Decolonize Your Min d with Karen Chee .[ 6]
In 2019 he received critical acclaim for his performance in Michael R. Jackson 's A Strange Loop , performed off-Broadway at Playwrights Horizons and directed by Stephen Brackett.[ 5] [ 3] Vinson Cunningham write in The New Yorker : "Owens... performs Jackson’s songs with power, humor, and pathos, filling in the textual gaps in Usher’s characterization with an entire life’s worth of mannerism and style."[ 7] For his performance he won a Lucille Lortel Award and a Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Actor in a Musical , among other accolades.[ 8] [ 9]
In July 2021 he starred in the original solo show Sondheimia , performed at Feinstein's/54 Below .[ 5]
Television
Owens was a staff writer for the truTV game show Paid Off .[ 10] He acted on season four of High Maintenance as well as the television shows Search Party , Abbott Elementary , Dash & Lily , Life & Beth , and Modern Love .[ 1] [ 11] [ 12] [ 13] He is a voice actor in the Amazon animated series Fairfax .[ 14]
Personal life
Owens is gay .[ 6]
Filmography
Stage
Television
Film
Awards and nominations
2019
2020
References
^ a b c "Larry Owens: Sunday In The Park 6 Feet Away From George" . NPR . Retrieved 4 April 2022 .
^ a b c d e Brunner, Jeryl. "He Went From Being Uncastable To Playing The Role Of A Lifetime In 'A Strange Loop' " . Forbes . Retrieved 2022-04-04 .
^ a b Ferri, Josh. "Five Burning Questions with A Strange Loop Breakout Star Larry Owens" . Broadway Box . Retrieved 4 April 2022 .
^ Zinoman, Jason (2019-01-31). "Instead of Killer Punchlines, Killer Choruses" . The New York Times . ISSN 0362-4331 . Retrieved 2022-04-04 .
^ a b c d e f g Gans, Andrew. "Checking In With… A Strange Loop Star Larry Owens" . Playbill . Retrieved 4 April 2022 .
^ a b Goldberg, David (2019-08-02). "Larry Owens on Broadway's beauty standards as a queer black man of size" . Dazed . Retrieved 2022-04-04 .
^ Cunningham, Vinson (2019-06-21). "The Ecstatic Doubling of "A Strange Loop" " . The New Yorker . Retrieved 2022-04-04 .
^ "GMTWP Alum Michael R. Jackson Wins Pulitzer" . tisch.nyu.edu . Retrieved 2022-04-04 .
^ Variety Staff (2020-06-14). " 'The Inheritance,' 'Strange Loop,' 'Moulin Rouge' Among Drama Desk Award Winners" . Variety . Retrieved 2022-04-04 .
^ Chee, Karen (2018-03-02). "Larry Owens (@larryowenslive) Is Searching for a Twitter Bae" . Vulture . Retrieved 2022-04-04 .
^ a b Jones, Marcus (2022-03-29). " 'Abbott Elementary' star Chris Perfetti explains how Jacob is 'a total 180' from his usual roles" . EW.com . Retrieved 2022-04-04 .
^ a b Petski, Denise (2021-10-29). " 'Search Party': HBO Max Comedy Adds Seven To Season 5 Cast" . Deadline . Retrieved 2022-04-04 .
^ a b Porter, Rick (2021-02-22). "Amazon's 'Modern Love' Sets Star-Packed Cast for Season 2" . The Hollywood Reporter . Retrieved 2022-04-04 .
^ a b Zorilla, Monica Marie. "Kiersey Clemons, Jaboukie Young-White to Star in Amazon's Adult Animated Comedy 'Fairfax' " . ph.news.yahoo.com . Retrieved 2022-04-04 .
^ a b "Larry Owens Theatre Credits, News, Bio and Photos" . www.broadwayworld.com . Retrieved 2022-04-11 .
^ a b "Larry Owens theatre profile" . www.abouttheartists.com . Retrieved 2022-04-11 .
^ "Larry Owens, Performer" . www.theatricalindex.com . Retrieved 2022-04-11 .
^ Forbes, Harry. "Spamilton (47th Street Theater/The Puerto Rican Traveling Theater)" . Retrieved 2022-04-11 .
^ "Larry Owens' Sondheimia in Cabaret at Feinstein's/54 Below 2021" . BroadwayWorld.com . Retrieved 2022-04-13 .
^ Theater, New York (2020-10-09). "The Great Work Begins: Scenes from Angels in America" . New York Theater . Retrieved 2022-04-10 .
^ "Helpsters returns for more of the adorable same" . www.cultofmac.com . 2020-10-16. Retrieved 2022-04-11 .
^ Oats, A. E. (2022-03-21). "Meet The Cast Of "Life & Beth" " . TVOvermind . Retrieved 2022-04-11 .
^ a b "Larry Owens" . Metacritic . Retrieved 2022-04-10 .
^ "A CHEST OF DRAWERS by Maxwell Nalevansky @ Brooklyn Film Festival" . Retrieved 2022-04-11 .
^ "Puppet Me" . www.siff.net . Retrieved 2022-04-11 .
^ Grobar, Matt (November 11, 2021). "Greta Lee, Laith Nakli, Isabella Rossellini, RZA & More Board Julio Torres' Film For A24 And Emma Stone's Fruit Tree" . Deadline Hollywood . Retrieved January 22, 2023 .
^ White, Peter (2022-02-10). " 'Pitch Perfect': Todd Strauss-Schulson To Direct & EP Pilot Of Peacock Spinoff Series" . Deadline . Retrieved 2022-04-10 .
^ "Larry Owens" . www.iobdb.com . Retrieved 2022-04-04 .
^ Huston, Caitlin (2020-06-18). "Drama League announces 2020 winners" . Broadway News . Retrieved 2022-04-04 .
^ "Larry Owens, Christian Borle, and More Win 2020 Lucille Lortel Awards | TheaterMania" . www.theatermania.com . 4 May 2020. Retrieved 2022-04-04 .
^ "Everything you need to know about A Strange Loop on Broadway" . NewYorkTheatreGuide.com . Retrieved 4 April 2022 .
External links