Broadway Baby

Performed with tools as simple as a deck of cards, a glass and a book, Magiko invites us to ponder our belief in what is considered 'supernatural'. Do we believe in luck? Fate? How can someone influence us, without us even realising it? Magiko doesn't provide answers, instead it tests the answers upon which we had already decided.

The magical illusions of this show would seem to be simple but only in the sense that they are performed with a sparse range of tools. However the effect done and the wonder that is inspired is anything but ordinary. To reactions of utter bafflement, Tieber proves repeatedly that our eyes (and certainly his hands) cannot be trusted. Even after achieving this response, he magnifies it by slowly leading the audience through some of his tricks, telling us exactly how they happen yet, even when ferociously focused, it is impossible to actually see the trick. One moment things are as they appear, the next the unexpected has occurred at the very tips of his fingers. Despite this obvious technical skill in sleight of hand, the most captivating part of Magiko is the passion of the magician. Tieber has a sense of personal marvel that is absolutely infectious and irresistible. This eager energy is the reason hardly one minute of his show lags. When waxing poetic about the whims of fate and occasionally reminding us of stories that we have not forgotten, Tieber's enthusiasm ensures that his audience stays at rapt attention.

An important part of Magiko invites the audience to ponder whether, if given the chance, we would choose information or mystery. Regardless of what you may answer in that situation, it is advisable that you do not leave this show a mystery to yourself.

http://thesickofthefringe.com

This close-up magic show is spectacular without containing any spectacle, with Siegfried Tieber’s storytelling engaging an audience in not only the individual tricks, but in our society’s broader understanding of mystery, illusion, and what it means to live with curiosity. Tieber’s mindreading and sleight of hand tricks challenge our confidence – if we see something, it must be real, mustn’t it? Similar to Complicite’s The Encounter (currently part of the Edinburgh International Festival, which cleverly reveals the mechanism in the binaural sound design), Magiko seemingly shows how the trick is made and then quickly, and astoundingly, expands the magic into a place where your mind wasn’t looking. These tricks of perception which have been used for ages by magicians and illusionists, are increasingly relevant to science, and scientific research work on phantom limbs, synaesthesia, neurological disorders, etc. While many successful magicians, such as Penn & Teller (who have engaged with the neuroscience behind their work) use illusions to wow their audiences, Tieber uses the set up to the illusion, as well as the denouement, to make us reconsider why we want to know how it works. Turning scientific and rational inquiry on its head, Tieber encourages us to live in a world that is not fully understood, and seek mystery and magic in our own lives.