Obsessed with Magic

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Photo Credit: Brett Daniels/brettdaniels.com

Brett Daniels grew up in New Berlin, Wis., and at the age 15 he became obsessed with magic, frequenting a local joke shop in Waukesha. After a year of working at a grocery store, he started performing magic professionally, first at amusement parks, then on cruise ships, then at casinos in Las Vegas and Lake Tahoe. Eventually, he got his big break on television performing magic specials on NBC in his early 30s. Before long, he was performing arena shows and was leading one of the largest magic acts in the world.

Daniels topped this off in 2012 when he co-produced the highly regarded and wildly successful ensemble magic show “The Illusionists.” However, after disputes and a legal battle with the other producer, Simon Painter, he left the production, and has been out of the magic scene for several years. Now, he is back with a new ensemble magic show that he says will be bigger than “The Illusionists.” The first performance of his new show, “Abracadabra,” will be held 7:30 p.m. Saturday, Oct. 5, at the South Milwaukee Performing Arts Center. Daniels spoke to Off the Cuff about magic.

What is central to any great illusion?

You need to have a before and after, and the after must be different; you must have a change, a surprise and a mystery. But the way you get there has to be inexplicable. So, it also must be pleasing, mysterious and fun, or not. It could also be funny, scary, depressing—anything. A central element of an illusion is that, even though the viewer might suspect how it’s done, they still can enjoy the cleverness of the illusionist’s technique.

You mentioned to me earlier about your interest in film. Do you think that film has had an impact on your magic? Is there a particular genre that has had an impact?

It has! The style that I have, I would call cinematic. Even though my performances are theatrical, my mind always goes to the cinematic approach, and I try to incorporate that into the theatrics. I really like gangster movies, mysteries, whodunnits. I took a few years and watched every movie I could find with a twist. I even had a magic show at one point that I put a little twist at the end with some wordplay and callbacks.

Why did you decide to come back to Wisconsin for the first date on the tour of Abracadabra?

I was traveling all over the world, as I do, and I had bought my mother a house in Waukesha; then, she got Alzheimer’s about five years ago, so I came back here to take care of her. She passed away two years ago, and I had moved all my stuff back here, so I thought, “why not just start from here again?”

Who all are in the ensemble cast for “Abracadabra,” and what kind of tricks and illusions can audiences expect from them, and from the show in general?

First, there’s Dan Sperry, the anti-conjurer. He is a gothic guy, he created quite a sensation when he came up. His specialty is a little hard to describe because there’s nobody else like him. He’s gothic but he’s not scary, he’s whimsical, clever, sardonic and irreverent.

Then, there is Matthew Teague, who does primarily sleight of hand and thought-based magic, where he gets into your mind. He’s really hip and contemporary.

Erika Weiss is our escape artist who will be doing a recreation of the water torture cell, unlike anything that’s ever been done before. Normally, a water torture cell is just when you have someone upside-down and they’re locked in under water. When they get out, they’re triumphant and strong, but this will be completely different: It is soft, lyrical, poignant, haunting and... she might not get out.

Then, we have Machiavelli from Serbia, and this is his first commercial appearance in America. He will be performing a very unusual act with birds, but his main thing will be performing sleight of hand with silver dollars. He’ll be rolling them over his fingers while he plays Beethoven on a grand concert piano, and then something magical is going to happen from there.

Where else will the tour for Abracadabra go, and what are the plans for the show after its conclusion?

We’ll be going to Canton, Ohio, Marion and Joliet, Ill., Sheboygan here in Wisconsin, as well as a couple other places; seven cities altogether. We’re trying this tour to see how it goes, so if the show is well received and if the business end works out, the plan is to turn this into a full-time touring production. It could possibly get to Broadway eventually. Right now, this is sort of testing the waters. We’re not just tipping our toes in the water; I dove in. It's not safe at all. What we’re doing, this is rolling the dice, not only on a business level but on a theatrical and magical level, too.

Is there anything else you’d like to tell our readers?

It’s going to be a very cool and bold show, but it's also going to be a good show for families and kids. There are moments that are going to be a little bit sexy, but there’s nothing that's going to bother young kids or families. We’re really trying to walk that line. It’s a modern contemporary show, so please come see it for yourself!