{"id":7916,"date":"2022-07-18T18:14:03","date_gmt":"2022-07-18T18:14:03","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/9thstreetjournal.org\/?p=7916"},"modified":"2023-03-27T15:59:54","modified_gmt":"2023-03-27T15:59:54","slug":"the-poetry-fox-speaks-chris-vitiello-on-costumes-street-poetry-and-shared-humanity","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/9thstreetjournal.org\/2022\/07\/18\/the-poetry-fox-speaks-chris-vitiello-on-costumes-street-poetry-and-shared-humanity\/","title":{"rendered":"The Poetry Fox speaks: Chris Vitiello on costumes, street poetry and shared humanity"},"content":{"rendered":"
Since before he knew what a typewriter was, Chris Vitiello had a way with words. As a child, the poet and communications strategist dictated poems to his parents aloud. Perhaps it was destiny that he would stumble upon a giant fox suit and grapple with the question posed by a 2013 viral video: W<\/span>hat does the fox say?<\/span><\/i>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n Apparently, quite a lot. Vitiello handed out his 35,000th poem as the Poetry Fox this April. When he dons the vulpine costume\u2014 a gift from a relative, who gave it to him as a joke 11 years ago instead of tossing it into a dumpster\u2014 he tackles themes of love, change, politics and even mortality.<\/span><\/p>\n On a recent Saturday, Vitiello sat behind a typewriter at the Durham Farmers\u2019 Market. Barefoot in the <\/span>dewy morning grass, perhaps to cool down from the heat of the fuzzy fox suit, he waited expectantly for poetry-seekers.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n Within a few minutes, curiosity had drawn a father and his two young sons to the stand. The sons pr<\/span>esented the Fox with a single word. After chatting with the patrons, Vitiello pulled the costume over his head, entering what he calls \u201cthe smallest studio space in the world.\u201d\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n <\/p>\n The keys clattered loudly beneath the Fox\u2019s fingers, which poked out from amber-colored sleeves. Roughly forty-five seconds later, he presented a complete poem. In his trademark style, the lines were \u201ccut up all over the page,\u201d deviating from standard structures such as sonnets or limericks. The brothers beamed as their father dropped a donation into his jar (labeled \u201cTIPS in $$$ or live chickens\u201d).<\/span><\/p>\n In his years as the Fox, Vitiello has heard prompts ranging from \u201cpickle\u201d and \u201csunrise\u201d to \u201cgun\u201d and \u201cchange.\u201d Though the words he receives vary, his role as the Fox is the same whether he\u2019s booked at a charity event, a birthday party or a wedding. With a vintage typewriter by his side, he creates custom poetry on demand that has reached people from all walks of life.<\/span><\/p>\n When he\u2019s not in costume, the only thing that gives away Vitiello\u2019s alter ego is the fox tattoo inked on his left forearm. The D.C. native is a published author and editor (\u201cI have three books as a human, not as a fox,\u201d he clarified). He has also ventured into other forms of street poetry, and most recently, screenwriting and filmmaking. He\u2019s a father of two young adult children. <\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s always fun when you have a family member who does something kind of weird,\u201d he said with a smile. \u201cMy kids have grown up with me being the Poetry Fox. So this is just what we do.\u201d\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n Vitiello, 53, had been an active member of Durham\u2019s arts community for several years when the idea came to him. It was a weekend night at The Space, a downtown gathering place for creatives including writers, performers and filmmakers.<\/span><\/p>\n \u201cWe’d have somebody playing some music and we’d be screening a film and we’d have some kind of activity. And this was just a night of several strange things going on,\u201d he said.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n \u201cAnd I thought, \u2018Oh, well, I’ll write and I can put [the fox costume] on and do it.\u2019 You know, it was just sort of a very just spur of the moment, spontaneous kind of decision.\u201d The Poetry Fox was born.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n As early shows gained traction, audience members began asking him to perform at other gatherings. He now appears at upwards of 150 community events per year.<\/span><\/p>\n Chris Tonelli, author and founding editor of the independent poetry press Birds LLC, attended some of the Fox\u2019s first gigs without knowing the identity of the larger-than-life canine at the typewriter. He was excited to find out that the Fox was also the author of <\/span>Irresponsibility<\/span><\/i>, a book he\u2019d recently devoured.<\/span><\/p>\n The two connected through the Triangle\u2019s poetry community and now work alongside one another in the library department at North Carolina State University. Tonelli described his colleague as \u201cthe model arts community citizen.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n \u201c[Vitiello is] always saying yes, always trying new collaborations, always open to crazy ideas that will really be interesting to the community and will help the community. Very, very selfless in that way,\u201d he said.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n For instance, Vitiello created \u201cThe Cabinet\u201d last year in the midst of the pandemic,\u00a0 inspired by Victorian fortune-telling cabinets. When he sits inside the seven-foot mahogany wardrobe, he is concealed completely from view. This sense of anonymity, he says, can foster meaningful connection. Passersby fill out cards with their fears, hopes, memories, or secrets and enter them into a slot. From inside, Vitiello types and returns a poetic, personal response.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n The Fox is selfless, Tonelli noted. He gives away his work rather than adding to his own repertoire. And then there\u2019s the sheer volume of poetry Vitiello has written as the Fox. An average poetry book, Tonelli said, is around 100 poems; the Fox has produced the equivalent of 350 books.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n Some of his poems confront contemporary political issues, such as climate change, gun control and abortion rights. When he gives them away, he hopes that those who don\u2019t see eye-to-eye find them thought-provoking, \u201cboth fulfilling and undermining expectations.\u201d Though he has received some criticism for his political writing, he doesn\u2019t take it to heart.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n \u201cI usually just write back saying, \u2018It looks like we disagree on this.\u2019 I\u2019m not going to attack somebody as the Fox,\u201d he laughed.<\/span><\/p>\n To Vitiello, the most memorable moments as the Fox are when he\u2019s able to connect with his patrons beyond the surface level. He recalled a recent event where an attendee shared a deeply personal experience.<\/span><\/p>\n \u201c<\/b>He sat down and told me that his father had just recently passed away and he didn’t have anything else to say,\u201d Vitiello said. \u201cSo I wrote him the poem and it was\u2026I couldn’t tell you exactly what the poem was, but it was a really moving experience.\u201d\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n He paused. \u201cThat’s a poem that connects me and him now for a long period of time. So, those are the memorable ones. It’s the interaction that’s memorable, not the poem.\u201d <\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n Vitiello plans on continuing his work as the Fox indefinitely, illuminating his patrons\u2019 most defining moments. He composes lines about births and deaths, weddings and divorces, hopeful beginnings and bittersweet endings.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n Vitiello sees certain common threads running through the human experience. It\u2019s of no importance to him whether the recipient of his poems is a kindergartener or a grandmother.<\/span><\/p>\n \u201cEverybody eats, everybody puts on clothes,\u201d he said. \u201cEverybody goes to sleep and wakes up. Everybody likes trees and birds. Everybody looks at the sky. There’s a huge number of shared experiences and…the Fox\u2019s writings draw upon that strongly.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n At the market on Saturday, he was presented with the word \u201creflection.\u201d He wrote:<\/span><\/p>\n <\/p>\n \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0choppy waters<\/span><\/p>\n \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 don\u2019t show you\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 your face<\/span><\/p>\n <\/p>\n \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0waves whipped<\/span><\/p>\n \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0into froth<\/span><\/p>\n by storms<\/span><\/p>\n \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0overpower<\/span><\/p>\n \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 your name<\/span><\/p>\n \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 and your thoughts<\/span><\/p>\n <\/p>\n \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0but soon<\/span><\/p>\n the winds die down<\/span><\/p>\n \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 the sky\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n clears<\/span><\/p>\n \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 and the water<\/span><\/p>\n \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 becomes a mirror<\/span><\/p>\n <\/p>\n so you can see<\/span><\/p>\n \u00a0 your reflection at last<\/span><\/p>\n <\/p>\n \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 and know more\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 about who you are<\/span><\/p>\n <\/p>\n \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0wait\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n all night<\/span><\/p>\n \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 until the calm\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n \u00a0 of morning<\/span><\/p>\n <\/p>\n \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 and then<\/span><\/p>\n \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0look long<\/span><\/p>\n \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 into the water<\/span><\/p>\n <\/p>\n<\/div>\n Above (from top): Chris Vitiello, aka the Poetry Fox, spins poems on demand at the Durham Farmers’ Market. Photos by Ana Young \u2014 The 9th Street Journal<\/strong><\/p>\n <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Since before he knew what a typewriter was, Chris Vitiello had a way with words. As a child, the poet and communications strategist dictated poems…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":7924,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"om_disable_all_campaigns":false,"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[11],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-7916","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-life-in-durham","entry"],"yoast_head":"\n