UNION — Once again, the American Theater Group (ATG) presents “The Unwitting Magician.” This time, it will be at the DMK Black Box Theater at the Union Arts Center. There will be two performances: Saturday, May 16, at 7 p.m., and Sunday, May 17, at 2 p.m. Saturday’s performance will feature Eric William Morris, whose Broadway credits include, “King Kong,” “Coram Boy” and “Mamma Mia!” Sunday’s performance will feature Stephanie Kurtzuba, best known for her roles in Martin Scorsese’s “The Wolf of Wall Street” and “The Irishman,” as well as “Fly Me to the Moon,” opposite Channing Tatum.
“The Unwitting Magician” is a unique theatrical and magical experience. An actor is onstage with just a music stand and a sealed script that they haven’t seen before. Its contents are a mystery. The actor has no idea what to expect, becoming an unwitting magician.
The piece was developed by Jeremy Dobrish, a director, playwright, artistic leader, creative director and teacher, whose focus has been developing and directing new plays and musicals, He has directed at Second Stage, MCC, Joe’s Pub, The Promenade, The Variety Arts, The Century and Actor’s Playhouse, to name a few.
He successfully presented “The Unwitting Magician” in December as part of ATG’s Free Monday Night Play Reading Series at Hamilton Stage.
“The audience loved it,” said Dobrish. “The actor had a fabulous time. Now we’re off and running.”
What Dobrish is trying in “The Unwitting Magician” is something that hasn’t been done before. “Having a magician not know what tricks or how they are done, it’s nerve wrecking. This works on paper, but will it work live on stage?” he said.
The one-person show can be done by any type of actor. The only requirement is they have not read one word of the script – no rehearsal. They read the script live in front of an audience only once.
“The actor and audience go on a journey together, discovering what the play is and what it feels like getting up in front of people you don’t know,” said Dobrish. “Magic happens. The magic is good. It’s really fun. Both the audience and the actor go, ‘What just happened?’’’
After the first run at Hamilton Stage, there was a question-and-answer session at the end of the show. Dobrish said that the audience was really struck by the premise of the presentation. “It’s a difficult piece to explain,” he said. “You’ve never seen it put together quite this way. The audience had such empathy for the actor.”
While the actor never had a script, Dobrish feels that, if they’re a good actor, their job is to bring the script to life in real time. “The audience feels almost tricked,” he said. “The show itself is interesting. It deals with a lot of questions about free will and the ways in which we are manipulated. There are ways a magician manipulates the audience and takes away their free will. And there are ways society manipulates us. The piece is not emotionally heavy, but it’s made to make you think. You see some cool magic, think a little bit and have a good time. The energy is electric in the room, the way it isn’t for a traditional play.”
Every night the show runs, there’s a different actor, which is part of the fun of seeing it each time and being completely unique to the particular night. “The Unwitting Magician” was also picked up by Luna Stage and there will be different actors performing.
Dobrish said he was into magic since he was a little boy. He got into directing and playwriting, but magic never gave up on him. “Everything I wrote and directed, it always had a magic sensibility,” he said. “This is a principle that comes from magic.”
To purchase tickets to “The Unwitting Magician” visit: https://www.americantheatergroup.org/tickets.
Photo Courtesy of Ben Hider
