Chrysa Katsarini in “A” / Every laugh takes a piece of my sadness

We met with Chrysa Katsarini on the pedestrian street of Ermou in Thisio, where our conversation and his photo clicks Pavlou Paraskeva she was constantly interrupted by hugs from passers-by who love her, follow her and admire her for what she does and who she is. With more than 150,000 followers on Instagram and with constantly sold out shows, Chrysa Katsarini, with a smile that never left her face, welcomes us to the world of stand-up comedy. She is a story teller and exorcises the ugly and tragic things of her life on stage, through her texts, her performances and her meetings with the public. She went through the television with her humor always present and returns every now and then to the paper to build her new show surrendered to the inspirations that her own life has in store for her. How does she write her stories? Where does she get her inspirations from and why? How did he manage to make a living and how does he avoid the most clichéd and problematic jokes? All these questions were eager to find answers from a creature honest, clean, bright and with a source of humor, which acts as a blanket against everything tragic. This is the stand-up world we want. This is Chrysa Katsarini

Interview with Christos Tzifa

Photos for AVGI: Pavlos Paraskevas

With stand-up do you have the burden of having to make the other person laugh?

Obviously I want them to laugh. Otherwise I have failed. But I don’t carry it like a burden. I just want to be good at my job. So I consider it my obligation, not a burden.

Do you still lack confidence?

What do you mean; Of course I lack confidence. Would I be a comedian if I hadn’t? (laughs).

How does insecurity relate to being a comedian?

Insecurity stems from our experiences in some way. A comedian is a person who has a need to be the center of attention. I, personally, have been in a constant search for love, attention and affirmation through laughter. So you understand that there is a pathology there, which you manage with specialists. The laughter and love I get from people is vital to me. To be myself, I absolutely need the world’s love and laughter. I can’t even fathom how I would be without it.

What inspires you?

I am a story teller. Which means I’m basically telling stories from my life. I am inspired by my fears, my thoughts, my insecurities. Obviously unpleasant things, because nobody laughs at other people’s happiness (laughs). We usually laugh at something wrong that happens to you, because if you approach it in the right way, it can become very funny indeed. Comedy equals tragedy plus time, as they say.

And how do you avoid the “problematic” jokes that the genre can throw at you?

Try. We have all grown up with stereotypes, stereotypes and racist ideologies. These remnants existed and apparently exist within us. We manage them, grow with them, evolve through them and become better people. Obviously there will be times when I’ll think of a joke and say no, that’s not to be said and so it goes. Like you have a thought you’re ashamed of and don’t externalize it. Obviously you can’t rule out the possibility that someone will be disturbed. I was talking about my alcoholic father and a guy came up and said, I’m an alcoholic and I have a daughter and I don’t like what you’re saying. What should we do now; (laughs). Someone will be annoyed. I am in favor of political correctness. I don’t want people who come to my show to be shot wherever they belong. I want people at my shows to be calm and feel safe. But it needs moderation. They shouldn’t wait for you in the corner until they find your mistake. Sometimes finding the fault becomes an end in itself. But also look at the intention. I have been doing this job for 12 years. Could it be that I haven’t made any mistakes? Boundaries change and we adapt. But you can’t judge and make me apologize now for a joke that was written then. This fury of error puts me on the defensive while I’m an ally. I want to do no harm but don’t put me through the process of constantly apologizing and defending myself.

Have you told any jokes you wouldn’t tell today?

Yes. I have a joke in my first solo show called “My Most Valuable Thing” written in ’13. It’s sexist, slut shaming basically. I wouldn’t say it now and from many videos I have cut parts that can be traumatic. But not the show. Because you will also see my evolution from this. You’ll see that I don’t do that anymore. It’s like going to a 50’s movie and saying let’s cut it. It can not be done. It’s something that happened and it’s there. Obviously there are mistakes but I evolve and change.

When did you start making a living from this job?

With what I started. I was a black dog. I started at the end of 2011 and played in all the shops in Thessaloniki that accepted me. To everything. And then I say: now what do I do? So I went down to Athens, I started writing texts from scratch. I started with 5 minutes and then I started making shows that other comedians were doing. I was looking for shops and found 30 and played every day. I was making 25-30 euros per show. It was my living wage. I worked every day to make the rent. Then everything started to change. I was very difficult financially in the beginning, I won’t hide it from you. Very violent. Then the fact that I went to breakfast at Koo Koo’s also helped a lot. It was the first time in my life that I wasn’t worried about getting my period. It had never happened to me before. It was comforting.

Did TV help you?

Only financially. Nothing else. Don’t tell you that they were marginally damaging in some cases. Because the people who follow me and watch stand-up don’t appreciate television. I am not absolute.

Did the TV force you?

He forced me. I woke up at 5 in the morning and had to be there at 7 rather than on the other side by means. I collected 2,000 and got a car. It was exhausting, I was leaving at noon, I had outside filming and I was going to a show. Exhaustion and fatigue were driving me to grief. I had no time for myself. And on TV there are vices underneath, strange behaviors. Me, if we don’t like someone, there’s no way I’m going to like them. My psyche can’t take it. So I struggled a lot in this area. Luckily on both shows I happened to work with good people so I had a base to fall back on when I was desperate. I am very grateful to both Star and the production. And the show with Arnaoutoglou was quarantined and I had no other options. I made a living out of it. So I’m grateful.

Did something go wrong there?

Yeap. There was an incident, you know. There was this talk that all three of us were being kicked out. I also found out that I was being fired when I was in the village for Christmas and I heard from the broadcasts that I lost my job. I called and I say: guys, did I lose my job? And we ended up doing the whole season, it just wasn’t getting into us. From one point on we didn’t shoot, but we got paid normally. Which didn’t cost me much (laughs). Okay, we didn’t match. I knew this wasn’t going to work. When you replace an existing product with a new product, which is still unworked, it will not go well.

Where are all these thousands of followers from?

It’s just from stand-up. Three months ago I had half of them. I was around 60,000 and I started uploading videos of my performance and those caught on. They came from stand-up again. I didn’t get anything from the TV. In quarantine, if I didn’t have Instagram to communicate with people, I don’t know how I would have coped mentally. It was one of my most difficult moments and people kept me going. They needed it too. It was a two-way street. I have followers, they love me and they show me in practice. They come to the shows. I didn’t get followers with a give away. I never offered them anything. I just show my work and it’s there. And because I position myself very strongly politically and socially, people know very well who they follow and who I am.

You have paid for this, what are you talking about?

Yes. I knew I would lose an audience for my views. Why are you now leaving the realm of the comedian? You get a social entity. And many people cannot tell the artist from the work. In my show I do not make political references. OK, I’m bashing the fascists, but I don’t think this is a political statement. Every man should cry for them. I knew I would lose an audience. But I can’t close it. I will place myself in a gross injustice. Otherwise I won’t be able to stand myself. It’s not a choice. If I could sleep at night and feel good about myself, I might not have done it. Because the price is high. On the other hand, I’m happy because when I post I choose my audience and it chooses me. It’s another bond. I feel that they love me faithfully, fanatically and more completely. And for what I do and for who I am.

You’re preparing a new show, right?

Yes – again it draws from my own stories. I had been through an abusive relationship, which I elaborate on quite a bit in the show along with various fears and thoughts and insecurities, as always.

How can you make fun of something as heavy as your abusive relationship?

In the previous show I talked about my mother’s cancer. Fortunately, she is now healthy. I find that my most traumatic moments are the ones I want to work into the texts. I make fun of them and thus exorcise them. Every laugh takes a piece of my sadness. This is my process. There is always something comic behind something tragic. It’s the way it lets me handle a bad situation. This is the way I have it and fortunately it is also my job.

What is your relationship with Athens?

I loved this city from the beginning, since 2012 when I came. Because it enables me to do what I love. It is a city that has life and good qualities of people. Just look for them. And you have to look for its beautiful points. There are parts of it that are awful. But, when I’m not well, there are places in the city where I go and calm down. There I balance my emotions. I kind of learned to love this city. I no longer feel that it is a city I have come to work in but that it is my city. Although my heart beats in northern Greece, if I live another five years here will be the city where I have spent most of my life.