Here’s a look into Carbonaro’s life, how his world


has been affected by his experiences and how he effects ours because of them.


The first question that popped into my head when I was prepping for this interview was, “How do you ask a magician how they do what they do?” It feels like I’d be breaking some sort of code around revealing the inner workings of the mysteries of the craft. Well, it is true, there is definitely a code of ethics


in magic. Yet, there are always some secrets to be revealed, but the really good ones remain a secret. It’s still the number one rule in magic, you don’t give away a secret. Once someone knows something or you’ve told even one person, is it really a secret anymore? I guess it is, because magicians share secrets, but they’re still considered secrets. There are trade secrets, personal secrets, but we won’t go into those. (Laughs). You know what a good personal secret to have is though? Random acts of kindness. Just do something nice and not tell anyone about it. The other question that came into my head around this was, “Did he come into the world with a cape on?” Is that an accurate picture? You absolutely nailed it, in a way no one has


before as far as coming into the world with a magic cape, on. (Laughs) The cape was one of the first most fascinating things as a kid growing up. I had to have one, just from watchingSuperman, from Dracula and from magicians…It had such power to me. It’s funny I even show it in my live show, I have a picture of me as a kid with my Dracula cape and my magic cape, it was one that I used for both. That was kind of like… I didn’t really know what I wanted to be when


I was growing up, I really loved Halloween and monsters, so I really wanted to be a makeup artist. That was kind of my way into magic, my first magic book was really a special effects makeup book by a man named Tom Savini. He did all of the effects forCreep Show and Friday the 13th and it was a wonderful book on practical effects and how to make them and how to create these little illusions and boy, I was really into it. Who didn’t want a cape when they were little? I was fascinated by them too and making them out of my mother’s sheets or whatever else was handy, much to her chagrin. And it had nothing to do with being gay or that I liked pretty flowy things… (laughs).


Oh yeah, my brother and I would use panels of my grandma’s curtains, they were these yellow sheer translucent capes! (Laughs) Thank you. You can say what you want, but they were yellow chiffon… Okay? (Laughs) I knew this would be a fun interview. (Laughs) When and who did you perform your first magic act for? Me and the kid across the street put on a little


magic show. Then I put on a magic show with some of my cousins, too…We did that for family and friends. But it was really through buying special effects kits at the magic shop, this is back in the day when there were actually shops you could walk into, hang out in and see tricks right in front of your face, versus finding stuff online. I would just chill out there and through that discovered that I loved performing. I loved the thrill that I got out of showing people the special effects and having them go “Whoa!” That is much more a magician’s task, to be the master of ceremonies. It’s funny though, on my TV show,TheCarbonaro Effect, I’m actually the master of ceremonies so to speak, but all I do is pretend…to not be a magician. It’s pretty fascinating watching you, how you obfuscate that you’re a magician. It’s part of the fun of it, though I often wonder how you manage to keep a straight face. I think the same thing when I watch, but when


I’m doing it, I don’t think that at all. There have been very few moments when I’ve wanted to crack up. Then I watch later and am literally scratching my head thinking, “Oh my gosh, how did you not laugh?” I’m curious, was there anyone in particular you modeled yourself after, someone that inspired you? David Copperfield for sure. He still remains the


last of the great showmen for magicians. I learned from David how to play with an audience, to goof around, then to be serious and follow that with something dramatic. He manages to weave in and out of a broken Fourth Wall (a theatrical term for the imaginary “wall” between actors on stage and the audience), which is technically what it really is. A magician, like a television host gets to kind of have an evening that’s like a theatre show, yet you’re breaking that wall by always talking to the crowd and we’re all here in the moment together…It’s a really special thing to get to do. It’s also very different because it requires a unique focus on your part. To keep the audience fixated specifically on what it is you’re doing,


OCTOBER 2017 | RAGE monthly 37


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