David Harris has amazed and amused audiences with his physical comedy shows. Using a variety of unconventional props such as hand trucks, sheets of paper, bicycle wheels, and buckets, David blends acrobatics, comedy, and virtuosic object manipulation. He graduated from the University of Alaska, Fairbanks with a degree in English. David has performed his one-man shows and other collaborations at the John Hassler Theater, Walker Art Center, Red Eye Theatre, Dreamland Arts, and many other theaters across the Midwest. He has performed at libraries, schools, fairs, corporate events, comedy clubs, variety shows, cabarets, and in dozens of theatrical productions. His shows include the Portrait of the Artist as a Yo-yo Man, Everything Must Go (with Katie Kaufmann), Delivery Guy, The Paper Mover, BOOKcrobatics, and What I Want to Be When I Grow Up!
Experience:
- Aerial Dance Training 2006-2008, Wicked Sister Dance Theatre
- Clown Workshop 2002, Christopher Bayes, Instructor
- Field Play Performance Lab 2002, 3-Legged Race
- Spine: Reading the Bones 1999, Loft Literary Center, The Center for Performing arts, Vox Medusa, and Intermedia Arts
- University of Alaska, Fairbanks 1993-1997 Bachelor of Arts, Magna Cum Laude
Performance history:
- Portrait of the Artist as a Yo-yo Man, Audience Pick Winner 2012 MN Fringe Festival
- Everything Must Go, Co-created with Katie Kaufmann, Directed by Jessica Finney
- What I want to be! Dreamland Arts, Directed by Zaraawar Mistry
- Delivery Guy, Dreamland Arts, Directed by Zaraawar Mistry
- An Eminently Practical, Play Red Eye Theatre, Actor, Directed by Sara Richardson
- The Paper Mover C4IA, Directed by Carin Bratlie
Vaudeville/Live Performance
- Lili’s Burlesque Cabaret Ritz Theater
- Sample Night Live Bryant Lake Bowl
- MONDO Spectacular Mondo Jugglefest, 2007 & 2013
Dance
- Acromancia, Old Arizona Theater, Wicked Sister Dance Theatre
- Wee Beasties, Wicked Cricket Dance Theatre, Austin, Texas
- Musclescapes, Red Eye Theater, Wicked Sister Dance Theatre
- Phantasmagoria, Intermedia Arts, Wicked Sister Dance Theatre
Plays
David Harris performs new and unusual stories, stunts, and physical comedy. Why? Because it will be awesome! David always wanted to be awesome. In 1983, he tried to ride his Huffy bicycle up a tree. Had he made it to the top; it would have been awesome. In 1985, he took jazz dancing lessons at Colleen's School of Dance. Why? Because he thought he signed up for Break Dancing lessons and that would have been awesome! In 2014, he learned how to balance a knife on his tongue. Why, because the path toward awesome is easily confused with the path toward being reckless and weird.
Through juggling stunts, snow-shovel acrobatics, and comic dancing, David shares his embarrassments, failures, and advice in the pursuit of awesome.
At the age of 14, David Harris knew exactly what he wanted to be, a professional yo-yo player. This dream led to a 20-year pursuit of odd hobbies; seemingly impossible stunts with folding chairs, shopping bag dancing, juggling feats, and inspired paddleball moves. Along this unexpected, hilarious, and often embarrassing journey, David finds amazing yo-yo masters, paddleball kings, and wedding rings.
David Harris and Katie Kaufmann use broad physicality and wildly imaginative images to tell a story of two people who take jobs holding signs. As they struggle with private issues in a very public forum they are able to find meaning in the monotony and friendship in the shared humiliation.
A one-man, physical comedy show written and performed by David Harris Created in collaboration with and directed by Zaraawar Mistry After a series of boneheaded errors, a hapless delivery man needs a perfect day with 100% delivery accuracy to save his career from ruin. Matters only get worse when he fi nds himself alone on a theater stage with a script to Death of a Salesman. Physical comedy virtuoso David Harris blends acrobatics, dance, and comic trickery to help Delivery Guy take an alternate route–using hand trucks, cardboard boxes, briefcases, buckets, and a broken bicycle wheel.
Successes
I just finished the first half of my play "The pursuit of Awesome!"