The Illusionists to Headline Arts Centre Melbourne's Summer Season, 3-12 Jan

Headlining Arts Centre Melbourne's summer season is The Illusionists, a grand and spectacular celebration of the art of magic by the most innovative illusionists working today, which will be leaving State Theatre audiences speechless from 3 to 12 January 2014.

With each illusionist specialising in a different area of magic, audiences of the mesmerizing performance will witness a nail-biting Russian roulette, jaw dropping acts of levitation, mind-reading, disappearance and escapes for Melbourne's first comprehensive exploration of the genre of magic.

Cutting edge and contemporary with not a rabbit or top hat in sight, The Illusionists is revolutionary, bringing the age old art of magic into the 21st century. The Vegas-style production has played to sold out crowds in Australia, Asia, South America, the Middle East, where they left Dubai royalty spellbound, and across the UK and will be heading to Broadway in late 2014.

The hand-picked cast of international illusionists, including Dan Sperry, Kevin James, Brett Daniels, James Dimmare, David Williamson and Philip Escoffey, will transform any outdated notion of what a magic show is. With over 25 million YouTube hits between them, their solo shows alone sell hundreds of thousands of tickets at sold out arenas around the world.

This group of world-class performers is taking their cue from the showmanship of the great illusionists of the past - such as Harry Houdini - and are pairing it with a new and updated contemporary aesthetic and 'steampunk' costume design, lending the genre a theatricality and artistry that has rarely been seen before.

Dan Sperry (The Anti-Conjuror) - He's been described as Marilyn Manson meets David Copperfield and his motto is 'Magic no longer sucks'. He's performed at private parties for celebrities such as Johnny Depp, has over 15 million YouTube hits to his name, and a social network fan base of over 100K+ followers world-wide. He was in the top ten most Googled people after his legendary America's Got Talent appearance and has starred in his own award-winning off-Broadway show in Times Square, New York.

Andrew Basso (The Escapologist) - He is Italy's star escape artist and is fast becoming one of the world's favourite illusionists. His hero is Harry Houdini and his thrilling escapes take place under water, 150 feet in the air and everywhere in between. Explosives, water boxes, handcuffs, chains, padlocks, straightjackets, cars bursting into flames... his escapes place him within seconds of life and death and have had audiences all over Europe and North America frozen in suspense and disbelief.

Kevin James (The Inventor) - He is one of today's most ground breaking and innovative illusionists. His illusions and magic acts are also performed by other stars from David Copperfield to Nicholas Cage in the Hollywood film Adaptation. He is an inventor, comedian and collector of the strange and unusual...

Philip Escoffey (The Mentalist) - He has enjoyed sell-out audiences with critically acclaimed shows 6 Impossible Things Before Dinner and 6 More Impossible Things Before Dinner during month-long seasons at Sydney Opera House, the Edinburgh Fringe and the Melbourne International Comedy Festivals. Philip Escoffey was an expert on Britain's Psychic Challenge and presented, as well as co-wrote, the magic game show Impossible? for Channel 5 in the UK.

Mark Kalin (The Gentleman) and Jinger Leigh (The Enchantress) - Mark Kalin has been one of the most influential magicians of the past decade, bringing his fantastic illusions to casinos, performing arts centres, television shows and his own experimental theatre in Reno, Nevada, The Magic Underground.

Kalin & Jinger have made numerous television appearances including NBC's World's Greatest Magicians, Hidden Secrets of Magic, Fox Family's Magic on The Edge as well as appearances on Entertainment Tonight, CBS and ABC. The duo even achieved the largest stage illusion of all time, making an American Airlines Jumbo Jet disappear at the Hilton Reno. In 1998 Kalin & Jinger were voted magic's highest honour, Magicians of the Year, by the prestigious Academy of Magical Arts--Hollywood's Magic Castle.

David Williamson (The Trickster) - David has been featured on ABC's Champions of Magic, where he appeared with Princess Stephanie of Monaco as he performed his miracles at different locations in and around Monaco. David has also co-starred in several top-rated prime-time network specials including CBS' Magicians' Favorite Magicians, NBC's Houdini: Unlocking His Mysteries and NBC's World's Greatest Magic III.

As host of the UK's acclaimed television series The Magic Comedy Strip, David's irresistible mix of humour and skill helped make it one of the highest rated shows in the US. He has developed TV shows for Walt Disney Productions and ABC, as well as consulting for illusionists David Copperfield's and David Blaine's TV specials. Most recently, David appeared on Masters Of Illusion and PAX TV's World Magic Awards special where he was awarded comedy magician of the year.

The Illusionists is presented as part of Arts Centre Melbourne's summer season of performances and activities, including Angelina Ballerina The Mousical, Erth's Dinosaur Zoo, Play Me, I'm Yours, Ludovico Einaudi and the LA-based Diavolo Dance Theatre. The summer season pre-sale for Arts Centre Melbourne members begins Friday 3 October with tickets on sale to the general public at 9:00am, Monday 7 October.