Rodney Marks bio

Rodney has a growing repertoire of over 350 characters, with numerous accents and dialects, from hundreds of professions. One character appears at each event.
His joke-name, double-talking characters have had over 30 international tours to the UK, the US, India, Malaysia, Mauritius, Vanuatu, Fiji, the Solomon Islands, and New Zealand.
In Australia, he performs frequently:
- in Sydney (his home town), Melbourne, Hobart, Adelaide, Perth, Darwin, Brisbane and Canberra
- on the Gold Coast and the Sunshine Coast
- and in other regional locations, especially conference and business events destinations.

Experience

Rodney has had more than 3,500 live comedy performances.
He has scores of media roles under his braces.
He is a corporate impostor – a comic hoax speaker in a business suit.
His comedy is usually in the form of fake keynote speeches at conferences, conventions, seminars, awards nights, cocktail parties and other business events.
Sometimes Rodney is a comedy emcee / MC / master of ceremonies … almost always in character.
He is infamous as the perpetrator of Hoaxes and Jokeses.
He has been a full-time professional comedian since 1991. Prior to that time, he served the traditional, part-time apprenticeship for several years – until he created enough material and developed an audience, and a voice: a comic attitude.
He’s in demand now more than ever. You’ll be in safe hands with Rodney. He won’t accidentally insult anybody. It’ll be on purpose.
He’s an Australian, but his characters often aren’t … you get an international performer for no extra charge.
If you’re looking for a comedian, but only have a budget line for a speaker … look no further! Rodney is a comedy speaker, a deadpan comedian pretending to be a speaker, a speaker whose credibility deteriorates and degenerates into hilarity as your people realise they’ve been had.

Education

Rodney has degrees from Harvard University (1988), AGSM @ UNSW Business School (1982) and UNE (1980).

Appointments and recognition

Rodney has been visiting professor-at-large at UNSW 2007, and artist-in-residence at the Macquarie Dictionary 2002-03, UNE 2001-02, the AGSM 2000-01 and Harvard University 1995.
Rodney has been listed in Who’s Who in Australia since 2000 (ongoing), and in the Concise Companion to Theatre in Australia.

Awards

Australasian Humour Studies Network (AHSN)
- Fellow in the Order of the “Jessters”, for distinguished service to humour studies and the AHSN, 2020
Australian Order of Comedians: The Echidnas
- Fellowship Award, 2015
Professional Speakers Australia (formerly the National Speakers Association of Australia)
- CSP Sage, 2022
- CSP Emeritus, 2018
- Nevin Award, for service, 2013
- Keynote Speaker of the Year, 2011
- National President, 2007-08
- CSP (Certified Speaking Professional), 2004
Green Room Award nominee, Melbourne International Comedy Festival, 1998
One of three lead actors in Final Cut, which won many comedy and film awards, 1996