Hazardous Material

I think it is important that we rule our tools and not let our tools rule over us. This is my hesitation with the release of the iPhone 4s and Siri. We are a society that has slowly been socially crippled by our enjoyment of technology. The appearance of the iPod allowed us to shut out other humans and invoke a state of musical intoxication whenever and wherever we wanted. The grocery store, the post office, and even walking with friends and family. This serves as a wall of separation and offers something similar to what we call “creative hiding” in the world of acting. Creative hiding is the use of a hat or hair to close off the expressions of our face. When you use the brim of a baseball cap to obstruct the full openness of your face you are masking your emotions and expressions to others around you. When you use an iPod with friends or family present you are employing an even deeper separation than that which is provided by a hat or long bangs in your face. The wall of music is comp...

Divination. What’s your favorite? Like donuts, they are all so beautiful in different ways. Tarot is the major contender, of course, because it has stood the test of time as a stronghold of reliability and depth. Also people like a book with pictures and The Book “T” has that in spades, I mean disks. There are also a wide variety of spreads for using tarot cards which make it adaptable for your personality. Unfortunately, I have a chronic habit of losing one card, just one card, from every tarot deck I have ever owned. (My current deck has to be sealed in a bag immediately after using.) But everyone knows I don’t play with a full deck! As Tigger the Tarot reader used to sing while attending a tarot convention with Winnie the Seer, “The wonderful thing about tarot, tarot are wonderful things. There tops are spun out of DE-signs. There bottoms are made out of dreams.” You can use a deck of tarot cards to work the paths of the Tree of Life or to do dream invocation work, attracting the in...

Two days away from the big fundraiser for Variety.org and I’m still polishing material. No surprise there! You don’t hire a creative director who uses improvisational methods and expect any less. Variety provides modified bicycles and other equipment to developmentally challenged kids to help them stay mobile and live normal lives. Every year they have an annual fundraiser to get money to help the children and this year they brought me on as event designer to help pull of the largest fundraiser they have attempted yet. Variety is an international charity and the Pittsburgh office is the original of a now global organization. This year’s event is scheduled for July 14th which falls on “Bastille Day”. The event organizer, Marilyn Caye, decided to pull out all the stops and make it a full on French themed extravaganza. The fundraiser takes place in a spacious mansion over looking the famous three rivers of Pittsburgh, high above, from atop the hill of Mt. Washington. The event is presente...

The unedited Joe Gaiter interview! HE contacted me for an interview knowing my work in "Sister Act 2". What is your view on life right now? If you want to create the dream that you see for yourself you need to block out all other distracting or disempowering influences. You will not make it unless you are vigilantly self-confident and keep one leg in the real world and the other leg in your dreams. Even constructive criticism can chip away at your belief in yourself and lessen your ability to affect the change you see possible in the world. Where did you grow up? Tell me about your childhood. I was born in Bar Harbor, Maine, but I grew up in Santa Clara, California. I was the only comedian in the microchip generation out of the Silicon Valley. All of my friends and family were computer programmers and I.T people and I was the class clown. I started entertaining at the age of six performing for family and friends of the family. I would dress up in a suit with glasses and a can...

"...on bad days I have only dead words, and they are so corpse-heavy that I cannot write with them, not even a letter. Is that bad, weak? And yet God wills it so with me..."- Rilke

"...all emotions are pure which gather you and lift you up; that emotion is impure which seizes only one side of your being and so distorts you. Everything that you can think in the face of your childhood, is right. Everything that makes more of you than you have heretofore been in your best hours, is right. Every heightening is good if it is in your whole blood, if it is not intoxication, not turbidity, but joy which one can see clear to the bottom. Do you understand what I mean?" -Rainer Maria Rilke, "Letters to a Young Poet"

"I believe that artists often do not know what they can do best: they are too vain. They are intent on something prouder than these small plants seem to be which grow on their soil, new, strange and beautiful, in real perfection. What is ultimately good in their own garden and vineyard they esteem lightly, and their love and insight are not equal." FRIEDRICH NIETZSCHE-" Gay Science"- "WHERE I ADMIRE"

"Dreams into Action: Getting what you want" by Milton Kateselas Copyright 1996 This book was referred to me by my close friend and mentor,Robert Urich. We used to read aloud in his study from "Letters to a young Poet" by Rainer Maria Rilke. It was a very unique experience hearing Robert's mellifluous baritone read these great artistic words of encouragement. He would read awhile and then pass a particular section over to me to read aloud. Eventually we moved on to "Dreams into Action" by Milton Katselas, who held Master Classes at The Beverly Hills Playhouse. Robert and his wife Heather were adamant about how much I would benefit from attending classes with Milton. They really thought I could gain a lot from going to The Playhouse and plied me with wine and encouragement from the living room of their family vacation home outside of Toronto, Canada. I decided to give it a try and Robert made the request for me to be accepted into The Beverly Hills Playh...

I must've been asked to pose in thousands, even tens of thousands of pictures over my many years performing in shows all over the world. People want to capture memories and moments and lock them in technology to be relived later in a different location of geography and time. You may not even be in a "show" and are still asked to be in pictures with guests at your work place. A lively conversation with the couple at the table next to yours may turn into a quick picture and plans to meet again in the future. If you work in the food service industry you are often included in photos with the birthday boy or girl or even their parents and grandparents. But you never know where these pictures end up. Sure most of them sit on hard drives or in undeveloped film canisters at the bottom of a drawer or box, but a few are chosen to be incarnated and sealed within the records in a family room or on a homemade calendar on a senior family members refrigerator. Others are lost in boxes ...

I want to thank everyone in Cirque du Soleil's "Totem" for having me as a guest today to teach my "Clown and Movement" class in the Artistic tent. I was surprised how many people came in to work early to take part in the class. Thank you so much! We had a lot of fun and crammed a lot of material into an hour and a half. Everyone was so attentive and committed to doing the exercises and I really appreciated that. What a fantastic group of people! Thank you so much, Melanie for having me. And thank you cast members who gave me your energy and personalities so freely today. I really had a great time and I hope you gained a lot as well. All the best! Christian

Rapper "Common" being invited to the White House. A dicey zig zag of a line. Everyone is laying the responsibility upon "Common", but the mistake and lack of forethought is the fault of the White House. I like "Common". His personality and music is pretty tame in comparison to the rest of the hip hop world. (But we shouldn't measure success against lack of failure either.) "Common" has some lyrics that advocate violence against the police, but I doubt he has been in a police abuse case. Yet. I listen to heavy metal, crazy screaming murder music, and quiet relaxing music as well. I think music is a release and gives the listener a safe way to rebel and throw off pent up emotions by becoming the subject of the music they are listening to. It is fantasy. Music should you take you to another place real or imagined. We listen for entertainment. Period. There is a very clear distinction between taking responsibility for your words as an artist and ...

If you would like to check out my You Tube videos go here: http://www.youtube.com/user/ChristianFitzharris I usually post new comedy pieces or magic routines at this link as well. The world's a stage...don't waste the audiences time! Cheers!

After writing the previous blog I contacted Nacho to tell him how much I enjoyed his work on this piece he calls, "I Miss You!" portraying a real life version of "Bert" from Sesame Street. He got back to me with this friendly e-mail. (He communicates in English well. He is from Spain.) "Hi christian, Thank you very very much for your kind of words and compliments, that is too much for me. It means a lot for me coming from such a great artist like you; i t is really a pleasure to read your words because you´ve understood what I want to show in my piece. It is always confortable to see such a good reactions of people about the piece, that´s because we are working on it, is it?. It has been a great surprise you are an artist of Cirque d Soleil, and a really great artist ( I heve been seeing your youtube videos) Please when you are in Spain , let me know..(redacted) Thanks again for your words and continue making the people happy with your art. Nacho" Thanks...

Look into the face of childhoods fancy turned surreal. Way too real. Truth. Artist, Nacho Diaz recently lit up the internet with his incredible depiction of what "Bert" from Sesame Street would look like if he were an actual person. This work of art takes one of our childhood archetypes and places him squarely inches from our nose to reconsider what we've laughed at all of these years.Ourselves. Seriously though, I can't help laughing at this disturbing creature.This piece exemplifies all of my favorite things in comedy. Real. Creepy. Childlike. Unblinking unapologetic dead pan bizarity. Hats off to you, Nacho, for a masterpiece of pop culture phenomenon. Thank you.

I was asked to write a piece to encourage the high school students at Santa Clara High which I graduated from in 1992. Here's what I wrote. School is more than just a place you are required by law to be. Sure the main purpose of going to school is to get an education that will make you a more capable human being and lead to a career that will feed you and possibly those you attach yourself to or create later in life. But high school is also a place where a lot of your likes and dislikes are cemented in your personality and you learn social lessons that educate you, culturally, for the rest of your life. I was asked to write something for you because I am one of many graduates from Santa Clara High School who went on to experience success after graduating. The truth is that every inch of success I achieved in life began at Santa Clara High. I have toured North America with Cirque du Soleil performing for millions of people. I have entertained audiences throughout the entire Caribbea...

Needless to say those who know me already know I am a perfect fit for the role of "Curly" in the upcoming film by The Farrelly Brothers, but allow me to strengthen this case with a few points. I grew up watching the Stooges at a young age (like most of us) and knew I wanted to be a comedian since second grade. I have been an improv and physical comedian professionally since the age of fifteen. The comedy I have written through the span of my career has always balanced between "edgy" physical comedy and classic. The work I did co-creating the clown trio acts of Cirque du Soleil's "KOOZA" represents this well. Classic and ridiculous. An homage to old and the sense of new. I am now the same age as Curly Howard was when he was making these classic films. Of similar build, I also have the comedic "chops" to honor this great bald comedian with the utmost respect. I have sent e-mail submissions and physical packages , but I am continuing to find new...

I never thought I’d be wearing leg warmers when I met gangster rapper/actor Ice Cube. I was headed to a rehearsal for an independent film I was shooting. In the movie I was portraying a bounty hunter alien who is zapped by a laser and transformed into a member of a boy band. I had a rehearsal to go to in Hollywood where I was going to be instructed by an ex-“Solid Gold” dancer, I was told. To truly center myself in the part of boy band member I put on orange leg warmers, yellow shorts, white t-shirt, sneakers, and big orange sunglasses with a yellow headband on my bald white head. I looked horrible, but felt funny so it should work out. I drove to a dance studio in Hollywood located next to Gold’s Gym. I parked my car a few blocks away and was walking to the studio behind four black guys when I realized the shortest one was “Ice Cube” from the gangsta rap group “N.W.A”. I grew up listening to N.W.A’s “Fuck the Police!”, but I would omit the curse word and end up only saying,”…the polic...

On my international flight from Pittsburgh to Paris, I was overwhelmed by the hospitality. They served a good dinner complete with pasta, salad, bread, crackers cheese, and a brownie for desert. The wine and beer was complimentary and the staff was very accommodating. I thought to myself, “This is one of the best flights I’ve ever been on.” As I documented my experience in my journal and analyzed the situation it reminded of a theory I posited a few years ago. “Christian’s Prison Theory” has been an oral tradition passed on for hundreds upon hundreds of…days. “Christian’s Theory” states that life becomes more pleasurable when you are given back enjoyments or rights that were at one time taken away. To explain more clearly allow me to recess back to rudimentary arithmetic. Yes, I know “I hate math.” Me too. I’m not very good at it. I still count on my fingers secretly while working out the tip at a restaurant while the waitress hovers over the table waiting to take back the check. But t...

1-1-11 huh? Too binary for me, but maybe there's a surprise ending. I'll stick around. "Buy the ticket, take the ride"-HST So 2010 is in the pooper and we have a clean trestle board to make our new plans upon. I have a lot of homework to catch up on with this blog from the winter of 2010. It will come in small bursts. My time in Paris was incredibly artistically inspiring while at the same time being relentless in everyday challenges. Even my escape from Charles de Gaulle was a learning experience, to say the least. I am in the middle of producing some collaboration tracks with various artists. It's always fun to combine talents and styles in a semi-freeform art form. I was interviewed on "The Bob Show" last night. More on that in the next day or so. Much to look forward to in 2011 and I couldn't have made it this far without my kick ass soul warrior, Pristine. I love you , my girl. Now let's make this year regret its birth only hours after its a...