Ricky Paul
Founder

Age-negotiable

My birthday is October 1st -- Day of the Top Dog. Jimmy Carter was born on this day! I am a Libra through and through, always trying to balance the room.

The Dumpsta Players just sort of evolved over a period of months. So many of us spent so much time at the local clubs making fun of people, that we thought we should use that energy on stage. The early years of the Dumpsta Players were wacky, chaotic and silly. The shows progressed and became more pronounced. Players came and went, but the energy remains. There's nothing like putting on a wig and a dress and making an ass out of yourself in front of a bunch of strangers!

My special thanks to Jack, the owner of Bob and Barbara's for letting us create just about anything we want. His loose leash has allowed The Dumpsta Players to really breathe.

Over the years, I have been able to fulfill many onstage fantasies. "Darkeye Shadows" brought Barnabas Collins to life. Being a fan of the 60's gothic soap opera as a child, Barnabas was a huge childhood fear.

Also, "Poseidon Misadventures" brought the Shelley Winters disaster flick to the stage by flipping over the boat at midnight on New Year's Eve 1997. Belle Rosen, played by Jim, went on to be hugely popular and spawn other fav characters such as Jackie Kuntzmann and Chardonna Jenkins played by Ian and Freddy respectively.

The desire to bring the music of the Eurovision Song Contest (www.eurosong.net) and Finnish band Ultra Bra was also realized through "Octoberfist" and "Octoberfist II", among many other shows. What a thrill to watch Americans lipsynching to foreign languages and really enjoying themselves!

Many humble thanks to film greats John Waters, Woody Allen, and Alfred Hitchcock as well as celebrities Divine, Madonna, Sandra Bernhard, Roseanne, Charles Nelson Riley, Karen Carpenter, Rip Taylor and The Space Giants.

Favorite Characters portrayed include:

Rocco Rigatoni in Miss Tony's XMAS Throwdown
Hairry Kuntzmann through all the tales of the Kuntzmann clan
Football team quarterback in Chardonna Attacks!
Joey of "Run, Joey Run" in I Know Who You Did Last Summer
Head warlock in Rosemary's Baby
and Finga McHunt in Trucker Mudflap.