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Check Out Austin Laine Walker’s Story

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Today we’d like to introduce you to Austin Laine Walker

Hi Austin Laine, thanks for joining us today. We’d love for you to start by introducing yourself.
I’m a southern-fried Florida Man who was born and raised in Polk County, where I came into this world with an old soul and big stars in my eyes. There wasn’t a time in my life when I didn’t want to entertain an audience, however, having grown up in a small southern town, I didn’t have the slightest clue as to how I could achieve that, nor the resources to attempt to. Finding my way onto television or movie screens seemed unattainable. Live theater had never even occurred to me at that time…oh, if I had only known!

In August 2016, I was on one of my daily walks through the swamp, just about to turn 22, when it suddenly dawned on me that the entertainment industry would never find me there. If I wanted to achieve my dreams, I’d have to go somewhere dreams are made, like my longtime beloved New York City, or clear across the country in a place I had never given any consideration to living in, Los Angeles. Knowing I would probably have to live in my car for a while and needed the weather on my side, I quit my day job at Disney World, packed up my trusty Kia Optima, and left Florida for sunshiny Tinseltown two weeks later.

I spent the first few years of my journey working as many background gigs as I could through Central Casting (or attending free film school, as I refer to it). After that I worked with comedians, produced a podcast at The World Famous Comedy Store, and carved out a role for myself as the parodying pianist on the pandemic-era podcast, “Calta and Kelly.” I went from portraying the 45th president out on Hollywood Boulevard in 2017 to starring as him in a play at Hollywood Fringe Fest in 2024. I got to play the villain in a musical called “For the Love of A Glove: An Unauthorized Musical About Michael Jackson’s Life As Told By His Bloodsucking Alien Glove”. It’s been a busy journey to say the least! Years and years of gigging while trying to find a way to capitalize on my strengths as a performer finally led me to creating my own artistic outlet: my own live show that would be an homage to yesteryear’s most revered television variety shows, while serving as a platform for peculiar performers of every genre, much like the vaudeville days of old.

“Varietyville” was born in August 2023 and became my playground for characters, sketch ideas, silly songs, and all the wacky ideas I had never been able to bring to life. With the collaboration of some of my very funny friends and fellow students from The Groundlings, a couple unexpected mentors like character actor M.C. Gainey (of “Con Air” and “Lost” fame), and dozens of uniquely talented performers, this show grew from a little pop-up comedy show at a video store to a monthly spectacle with beloved characters, musical numbers, and themed storylines. We just celebrated our first anniversary with a completely sold-out show, a surprise appearance from my mom, and some legendary special guests, including Ronnie Schell from “Gomer Pyle, U.S.M.C.” that a kid from the Central Florida swamps never dreamed he could meet, let alone become pals with. And we’re just getting started!

Can you talk to us a bit about the challenges and lessons you’ve learned along the way. Looking back would you say it’s been easy or smooth in retrospect?
When I first moved to Los Angeles, I didn’t have a plan or know what to expect other than knowing I would be sleeping in my car for a while. A few months in, I bought an old van so I could have a comfortable place to sleep at night, and ended up doing that for nearly three years. That came with some of the obvious perils, but it allowed me to pursue my dreams freely.

Since then, there’s been good days and bad. One day I’d be jumping from set to set, rubbing shoulders with A-list actors and seeing myself on TV in the glamorous role of The Stink King on “Superstore,” thinking my big break will be any day now. The next day, I’m eating hot sauce packets and convincing myself I can go another day without a meal. I’ve written, starred in, and wrapped my own short film, only to find that significant technical flubs would prevent its completion. Even though all other paid industry work has come to what feels like a perpetual halt, I have finally created my dream show with a loyal audience and it’s made everything worth it. It’s been a long 8 years and I can’t say that any part of it has been easy, but I have never once questioned that this is the path I’m meant to be on.

As a proud Florida Man, it was a difficult choice to move so far from home. My entire family is in Central Florida and, unlike so many people who come to Los Angeles, I didn’t move here to escape them. I love my hometown of Auburndale, Florida and for 22 years I thought I’d never uproot from home. But I want to make a name for them too. I want to find my own success so I can bring a piece of the entertainment industry back to them. When I was a kid, Florida’s film industry was booming. Even in little ol’ Polk County! Somehow over the last two decades, they’ve let that slip away. I want to play my part in bringing it back and inspiring homegrown kids like myself to chase after whatever dream may be on their heart with relentless effort, even if they can’t make the trek to a big city. That’s what drives me to work and to push through the hard times – the desire to not only make the folks from my neck of the woods proud, but to give back to the community that I love and miss so dearly.

Appreciate you sharing that. What else should we know about what you do?
The strike last year changed my life. For the first time since I’d been living in LA, actors of every caliber were on the same level. I had the privilege of meeting so many of my heroes out on the line, most of whom took the time to impart serious wisdom on me. An eloquent piece of advice that changed my brain chemistry was from Jack Black who said “make your own s***.” Coincidentally, unbeknownst to Jack, I had just been fleshing out Varietyville. In fact, we had our debut at Be Kind Video exactly one month after that chance meeting.

I’m so proud of what we’ve built since then. As I write, curate, and host every aspect of Varietyville, be it through sketch or character or song, my mission will always be to create moments that unite a community full of unique performers, artists, and audiences who just love to laugh. It’s not only a show – our goal is to make Varietyville feel like your favorite small town, and I think we’re achieving that. Every month is almost like a family reunion, or a big homecoming, if you will, at our little “city hall” in the L.A. Connection Comedy Theatre in Burbank. In that regard, I like to consider myself the mayor of Varietyville! When folks visit Varietyville, I want them to feel like they’ve stepped back in time and into their television sets during “The Dean Martin Show” or “Hee Haw” or “The Muppet Show,” to experience firsthand the nostalgic wholesomeness that came along with those iconic programs. It’s a magical feeling that I aim to capture every time we take the stage.

My family and friends have always known me to have an old man’s soul in a young man’s body. My deep, lifetime love and appreciation for the rich history of entertainment drives not only my creative spirit, but the way I build my community and experience the world around me. You won’t find me on TikTok, but you will find me watching forgotten films on VHS, catching a street corner puppet show in Koreatown, or trying to keep up with the wit of a few 90-year-old comedy legends at the Original Farmer’s Market every Friday morning. I want to stay present and soak in every bit of wisdom I can, and I’ve been fortunate to meet some incredible mentors through my philosophy of walking through every open door I see. I love meeting interesting people and hearing their interesting life stories – as a character actor, writer, director, and professional storyteller myself, these exchanges fuel me more than anything.

So, before we go, how can our readers or others connect or collaborate with you? How can they support you?
Varietyville is ALWAYS looking for unique performers to join our show, especially as special guests! Magicians, comedians, character performers, ventriloquists, puppeteers, musicians, singers, you name it. If you’re funny, you’re for us! We’re also looking to put together a small house band with an old school big band sound, as well as a troupe of dancing drag queens called The Varietyvixens. If that interests anybody out there, please stop on by the next show and introduce yourself. We hope to continue growing our little town and we’d be honored to have you be part of it. In the meantime, folks can follow our Instagram, @visitvarietyville, and show support for the rest of our cast of hardworking actors. Don’t forget to head to VisitVarietyville.com where you can find more information about our kind of fun, plus photos and a video archive of all our past shows. Oh!! And if you’re looking to cast a funny fat guy with an authentic Southern accent in your next award-winning film or tv show, I’m ready to roll, baby!

Pricing:

  • Tickets to Varietyville are $15, but as a gig-based creative in this economy, nobody understands financial hardship better than me. If you’re interested in seeing a show and money is an issue, please reach out. It’ll stay absolutely private, just don’t let money be the only thing that keeps you from laughing. We’d be proud to have you there!
  • Alternatively, if you’re a local business or generous person who wants to support our shows as a sponsor, we are looking for unwriting sponsors for our 2025 season. For a $300 sponsorship, we’ll include your logo on our poster, feature your brand or product in a sketch, and more. Sponsorships ensure that ticket sales can be distributed amongst our talented performers, so this kind of support is huge for us.

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Image Credits
William Koonce

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