David Copperfield will perform tonight at the Place Theater, Broadway at the Beach. by Steve Palisin for the Myrtle Beach Sun News
David Copperfield's life embodies one illusion after another, on stage and at places such as the Statue of Liberty and Great Wall of China.
It's just his kind of pace that has never vanished since the 53-year-old from New Jersey found the mystique of magic so captivating almost 45 years ago.
Copperfield will perform "An Evening of Grand Illusion" Tuesday for two shows at the Palace Theatre in Myrtle Beach. The acts might range from some sleight of hand with a scorpion to floating through solid steel to play with 13 lucky audience members.
After his show Monday in Kalamazoo, Mich., Copperfield answered questions in an e-mail interview, still with insight up his sleeve so late in the evening.
Question | Is magic equal parts art and science, especially with all the physical elements involved, or is it more one than the other, or is one mastered first to conquer the other?
Answer | Good question! Science and technology have often been used by the magician before they came into the marketplace on a mass basis. For example, prior to the moving picture going into theater, magicians were using the technique of images in motion as illusions in their shows. At that time, the process was so new, an audience perceived it as magic. Also, in the early stages in the development of holograms, magicians would use these images to baffle and mystify their fans. Hence, you always need to stay one step ahead [in the] technology game to "wow" the audience.
Q. | Is your specialty, your trademark on magic - if illusionism is the best description - part of a bigger umbrella of magic that we see overall from the outside, and if so, what other types of magic would be in that amazing family? Do your interests extend to the "paranormal," or even the supernatural?
A. | Nothing I do is supernatural; it's an illusion pure and simple, though I would hope some very good illusions. But, I'll let my successors be the final judge of that. I did watch the film "Paranormal Activity" on my tour bus one very late night/early morning after a performance - does that count?
Q. | With your having picked up magic before your teen years, when you look at audiences, at what age level do you really see magic really engage a child, when it truly leaves a youngster awestruck? Has that age level changed through all your years of performing, and does that demographic change outside the United States?
A. | Magic is a universal art form with no age or race barrier. The ability to amaze and create a sense of childlike wonder in an audience, no matter what the age, is to me, the basic tenet of the "art of magic," and this, I believe, is still very much in existence. I would hope that children still want to be magicians. I still have young kids in my audiences at my shows that meet with me after the show and tell me their dream is to someday perform on stage like "David Copperfield." I tell them: Practice, practice and practice some more! When you see three generations of fans at a show, you realize each night the universal appeal of the art of magic.
Q. | How does performing magic in an indoor venue such as the Palace Theatre here in Myrtle Beach present different challenges/limitations/advantages vs. say, outdoors, at the Grand Canyon?
A. | Well, there are those who love the large and grand illusions and those who prefer the close-up sleight of hand. I think my audiences are 50/50 on their preferences, so I try to please both within the confines of a theater.
Q. | Has a fellow magician ever stumped you with a trick? And if so, does anything from such an experience influence how you develop your next dream project?
A. | Unfortunately, doing what I do since the age of 9, the downside is you're aware of the techniques behind all illusions, and nothing is a mystery. As far as developing other future illusions, the key to it all is to consider nothing is impossible in crafting an illusion, and then work your way backward from the final reveal. Of course, this sounds easier than it is, otherwise everyone would be doing it.
Q. | Any special memories of Myrtle Beach or activities you savor the most on every visit to our part of the East Coast?
A. | When I do have some free time - it's all about the beach! I love the sea; that's why I bought my own island in the Caribbean.
http://www.thesunnews.com/2010/05/14/1471545/the-many-facets-of-copperfield.html
