{"id":24788,"date":"2015-02-19T10:40:27","date_gmt":"2015-02-19T15:40:27","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.unionvilletimes.com\/?p=24788"},"modified":"2015-02-19T10:40:40","modified_gmt":"2015-02-19T15:40:40","slug":"on-stage-thrill-to-the-illusionists","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.unionvilletimes.com\/?p=24788","title":{"rendered":"On Stage: thrill to ‘The Illusionists’"},"content":{"rendered":"

Also: Midge Ure, Above & Beyond, The Mavericks and more\u00a0<\/strong><\/em><\/span><\/p>\n

By Denny Dyroff<\/span>,<\/strong>\u00a0Staff Writer, The Times\u00a0<\/em><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

\"illusion-3\"<\/a>

The Illusionists — Witness the Impossible will have a six day run at the Academy of Music in Philadelphia.<\/p><\/div>\n

There are magicians everywhere and magic shows pop up on entertainment calendars on a regular basis. But, it\u2019s safe to say that they all pale in comparison to \u201cThe Illusionists — Witness the Impossible.\u201d<\/p>\n

The show, which has smashed box office records around the world, amazed audiences with a powerful mix of the most outrageous and astonishing acts ever to be seen on stage.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe Illusionists — Witness the Impossible\u201d will have a six-day run from February 24-March 1 at the Academy of Music (Broad and Locust streets, Philadelphia, 215-731-3333,\u00a0www.kimmelcenter.org<\/a>).\u00a0The show\u00a0is part of Broadway Philadelphia, which is presented by the Kimmel Center for the Performing Arts and the Shubert Organization.<\/p>\n

This non-stop show, fresh from a Broadway run, is packed with thrilling and sophisticated magic of\u00a0unprecedented\u00a0proportions. Audiences will witness awe-inspiring acts of grand illusion, levitation, mind-reading, disappearance and, for the first time ever in history, a full view water torture escape.<\/p>\n

Escapologist Andrew Basso replicates the great Harry Houdini\u2019s trademark acts by escaping upside-down\u00a0while immersed in a locked tank of cold water. He is the only person in the world to perform Houdini\u2019s famous Water Torture Cell with absolutely no covers.<\/p>\n

Basso, Italy\u2019s star escape artist, considers Houdini his hero and is fast becoming one of the world\u2019s most popular illusionists. In this show, Basso also replicates Houdini’s straight-jacket escape trick.<\/p>\n

\u201cThis is our first big tour of the United States,\u201d said Basso, during a phone interview last week. \u201cPhiladelphia is one of our first dates after Broadway. We first started the tour at the Sydney Opoera House in Australia in 2012.\u201d<\/p>\n

The show ran on Broadway from November 12, 2014 until January 4, 2015. The National Tour kicked off in Schenectady, New York this week.<\/p>\n

Basso was born in Trento, Italy in 1985. He developed an interest in performing at a very early age.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhen I was a little kid in a little town in northern Italy, I saw a circus and wanted to do it in the future,\u201d said Basso. \u201cThen, I saw a magician. I couldn\u2019t figure out how he did what he was doing and it intrigued me. At that moment, I felt the power of magic.<\/p>\n

\u201cI thought — if a magician can do it, so can I. I looked around for books and was reading a lot about magic.\u00a0\u00a0I got my first magic set at age 12. Then, I met a magician named Sergio who gave me lessons.\u201d<\/p>\n

That encounter was the start of something great.<\/p>\n

\u201cSergio is still a good friend of mine,\u201d said Basso. \u201cHe taught me the principles of magic. He also taught me about creating relationships with the audience. It\u2019s not only what you do but also how you do it. Onstage, you have to learn how to exchange with audiences. Cards were the first weapons I had in my hand.<\/p>\n

\u201cThen, he taught me all areas of escapology because it was too dangerous to try to learn on my own. I started escapology when I was 13. I was looking for something mischievous. I escaped a jail in Italy. I escaped a hanging and escaped from the vault of a bank. They all were dangerous escapes.\u201d<\/p>\n

Eventually, Basso\u2019s path led to Houdini\u2019s Water Torture Cell.<\/p>\n

\u201cWith this touring show, the feature piece is the water,\u201d said Basso. \u201cI\u2019m the first in history to do it in full view. A lot of people have died trying to do this — 18 people drowned in the last 100 years.<\/p>\n

\u201cI practiced for a year learning to hold my breath. I have a trainer. It\u2019s a very physical act. My feet are shackled and my hands are placed in handcuffs. Then, I\u2019m submerged head first into a tank of water. I have to escape using a bobby pin to unlock the handcuffs. Then, I have to get my feet free from the shackles and pick another lock with the bobby pin.\u201d<\/p>\n

Basso has to meditate and use yoga methods in the time before he goes onstage for the water act.<\/p>\n

\u201cPart of it is being in control of your heartbeat,\u201d said Basso. \u201cIn the dressing room, I go in another planet with my head. I work on my breathing and I slowdown my heartbeat. But, when I\u2019m in the water, it\u2019s difficult to block out the audience.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe first time I tried it in front of an audience, I had to stop because of the adrenalin. Eventually, familiarity with the situation brought the adrenalin down. It\u2019s all about the mental aspect. I just think I\u2019m with a friend.\u201d<\/p>\n

Actually, the act requires a lot both mentally and physically.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhen I\u2019m training in the pool, I can hold my breath for over six minutes if I\u2019m not moving,\u201d said Basso. \u201cWith handcuffs on in cold water, it goes down to about two-and-one-half minutes. Also, there is a lot of intensity with having to twist my ankles to the limit of dislocation.<\/p>\n

\u201cHoudini was the father of it. He did the upside-down straight jacket in record time. I take inspiration from what he did 100 years ago.<\/p>\n

\u201cI remember the first time I did the straight jacket. I had my father timing it. After two-and-a-half hours, I called him to take me out. I remember the feeling of incapacity. It motivated me to practice and practice. Now, I feel like I\u2019m born to escape.\u201d<\/p>\n

The show\u2019s other acts are The Manipulator — Yu Ho-Jin, The Anti-Conjuror — Dan Sperry, The Trickster — Jeff Hobson,\u00a0\u00a0The Inventor — Kevin James, The Warrior — Aaron Crow and The Futurist — Adam Trent.<\/p>\n

Video for \u201cThe Illusionists\u201d show —\u00a0http:\/\/www.theillusionistslive.com\/videos<\/a>.<\/p>\n

\"above-&-beyond-3\"<\/a>

Above & Beyond<\/p><\/div>\n

Performances are February 24-26 at 7:30 p.m.; February 25 at 8 p.m.; February 26 at 2 and 8 p.m.; and March 1 at 1 and 6:30 p.m. Tickets range in price from $20-$105.50.<\/p>\n

Westminster, a borough of London (England), is known world-wide for a number of things including Buckingham Palace, Westminster Abbey, Big Ben, the Houses of Parliament, Hyde Park and 10 Downing Street.<\/p>\n

It is also home to Westminster Cathedral, which was the title of a song by the New Vaudeville Band that was a Number One hit in 1966. In the song, which was considered to be a novelty song, the protagonist blames the cathedral for not ringing its bell when his girlfriend packed up and left town.<\/p>\n

Westminster\u2019s latest contribution to the world of rock music is much more musically solid — and much more interesting.\u00a0\u00a0The University of Westminster is where the founding members of Above & Beyond met and began their musical career together.<\/p>\n

Above & Beyond , which is one of the more melodic groups in the world of electronic music, will visit the area on February 21 for a show at the Susquehanna Bank Center (Waterfront Drive, Camden, New Jersey, 856-365-1300,\u00a0http:\/\/www.susquehannabankcenter.org<\/a>)<\/p>\n

The trio features Jono Grant, Tony McGuinness and Paavo Siljam\u00e4ki. The three are also owners of electronic dance music labels Anjunabeats and Anjunadeep, and the hosts of a weekly radio show in England.\u00a0\u00a0Above & Beyond has been consistently ranked among\u00a0DJ Magazine\u2019s\u00a0Top 100 DJs Poll since 2008.<\/p>\n

\u201cI graduated from Sibelius-lukio, a music high school in Helsinki and moved to England to study the music business,\u201d said Siljam\u00e4ki, during a recent phone interview from his home in London. \u201cI was making music in Finland already but it was commercial pop music and that wasn\u2019t my thing.<\/p>\n

\u201cSo, I went to the University of Westminster to study music business. That\u2019s where I met Jono. Starting a record label was part of the studies. I was also making music — U.K. garage music. The major thing was finding out how the music industry works. That\u2019s where Anjunabeats started.\u201d<\/p>\n

In 1999, Graham and Siljam\u00e4ki released their first single \u201cVolume One\u201d under the alias Anjunabeats. They also started to release music under different names, including \u201cDirt Devils\u201d and \u201cFree State.\u201d A little while later, McGuinness came on board to complete the trio.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhat I\u2019ve realized after 18 years in the business is that the music business changes all the time,\u201d said Siljam\u00e4ki. \u201cThe core of it all is great songs — music that really connects. How do you make a song that really connects? I\u2019ll be chasing that answer until the day I die.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe asked ourselves — how do we write music that stands the test of time — 25 years or more? The Beatles were in front of the movement in the 1960s. These days, it\u2019s deejays. There are 200-300 deejays and deejay groups that came down from the thousands.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m also a consumer of music like everybody else. Every once in awhile, a song hits me and something happens. I attach a piece of my life with that music and it\u2019s with me for the rest of my life. I want to be able to do that with our music. The world is moving fast but people are still people and emotions are there.\u201d<\/p>\n

Above & Beyond have already accomplished a lot.<\/p>\n

The trio\u2019s song \u201cNo One On Earth,\u201d featuring the vocals of Zo\u00eb Johnston was voted \u201cTune of the Year\u201d for 2004 in Armin van Buuren\u2019s trance radio show \u201cA State of Trance.\u201d Above & Beyond received similar honors in 2005 for \u201cAir for Life\u201d and 2006 for \u201cGood for Me.\u201d<\/p>\n

In 2009, Above & Beyond performed at the official launch of Virgin Galactic\u2019s SpaceShipTwo. The event took place in the Mojave Desert and was hosted by Sir Richard Branson. The performance was secured after the trio\u2019s Buzz Aldrin-sampling club track \u201cBuzz\u201d was picked by Virgin to soundtrack the unveiling of the spaceship itself.<\/p>\n

On their current tour, over half the shows are sold out. Fortunately, tickets are still available for the area show this weekend.<\/p>\n

The trio has released five albums — \u201cTri-State\u201d\u00a0(2006), \u201cSirens of the Sea\u201d\u00a0(2008), \u201cGroup Therapy\u201d\u00a0(2011), \u201cAcoustic\u201d\u00a0(2014) and \u201cWe Are All We Need\u00a0(January 2015).<\/p>\n

\u201cThe purpose of an album — it allows musicians to write many different kinds of things,\u201d said Siljam\u00e4ki. \u201cWith us, we look at albums and concentrate on writing good songs. It gives us a lot of freedom to write a lot of different kinds of things that complement each other. There is really a reason for them to exist — and we have a fan base that accepts them.<\/p>\n

\u201cEDM (electronic dance music) has become \u2018the\u2019 party music. The main genres — hip-hop, R&B, house — that\u2019s where we started. Now, there are a lot of people trying to write commercial electronic music for top hits. Are people going to get into more underground forms of dance music?<\/p>\n

\u201cSome of our music is more commercial and some is more underground. Fortunately, we don\u2019t have to focus very much on the charts. I\u2019d love to think that our popularity is because of the songs. We\u2019ve tried to write songs about real things — songs that connect with people.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe started as mixers. Our whole thing is focused on how do you make a great song better. I feel like the sonic things move on but the great songs are always great songs. Our songs have endured. In our live show now, we do about 40 per cent old, 40 per cent new and 20 per cent other things from our record label.\u201d<\/p>\n