Interview: The Daredevil Talks About the Astonishing THE ILLUSIONISTS – MAGIC OF THE HOLIDAYS at The Fox Theatre!

The Illusionists are coming back to Detroit and ready to celebrate the holidays with the entire family with their all new, mind-blowing show at the Fox Theatre this weekend. The Illusionists - Magic Of The Holidays will have three incredible performances on November 29th and 30th featuring the jaw-dropping talents of some the most incredible illusionists on earth including The Elusive, The Trickster, The Transformationalists, The Daredevil, The Manipulator, The Showman, and The Mentalist. The Illusionists have shattered box office records across the globe and dazzle audiences of all ages with a powerful mix of the most outrageous and astonishing acts ever seen on stage. This non-stop show is packed with thrilling and sophisticated magic of unprecedented proportions. This year's family-friendly show promises even more illusions, close-up magic, mentalism, daring escapes, and technological spectacle performed by master entertainers who've captivated audiences worldwide. BroadwayWorld Detroit was lucky enough to speak with Jonathan Goodwin aka The Daredevil for a few moments during tech rehearsals for the show and he teased us about the exciting things that The Illusionists are bringing to Detroit!

BroadwayWorld Detroit: Can you explain a little bit to our readers of how you got started into the life of magic?

Jonathan Goodwin aka The Daredevil: I'm from Pembrokeshire in South West Wales. I grew up in quite sort of outdoors and a rural kind of community. I was sort of brought up jumping off cliffs into the ocean and doing all sorts of things like that. I read a book about Harry Houdini when I was 7 and I guess like any kid I was fascinated with the character like he was a superhero. The thing that really was fascinating for me and resonating about him was that he was real and really did the things that I read about. Once I realized that I could do it for a living, I didn't want to anything else.

What was the first trick or stunt that you ever performed?

Well it sort of really blends, but I would basically practice all of the things that I thought I would need to know in order to do that for a living. I would practice holding my breath in the bath and I would have my dad would sort of my tie me up. He would get rope and it would be a challenge for me to escape, which I guess was great for him because he always knew where I was - it was like free babysitting. (Laughs.) Over time, I just practiced all of those skills. I didn't really get to doing stunts with it until much later. I made a television show in the early 2000s called Dirty Tricks and then The Seven Stupidest Things to Escape From and that's the first time that it actually was when all of those skills were put to good use from the point of view of creating stunts.

What would you say you are most proud of performing or the highlight so far?

Oh well, I mean all sorts of things. Hanged, buried alive, locked inside a box with thousands of bees put into it, hung from my toes from helicopters, and all sorts of different things for different projects. Usually the thing that I'm most proud of is the thing I'm doing now - whatever that might be. At this minute, I'm doing a version of buried alive, but I'm doing it on stage, which has never been done before. It was actually one of the things that Houdini failed to do and when he failed, he did it outside. It was actually a bit of a chimera for him. He wanted to get it right eventually and he had designed a way to do it on stage, but then he died before he ever performed it. It's one of those things that have never been done. So, it's one those things that I'm doing in the show when we come to Detroit, it's brand new, and one of the biggest things that I've ever done on the stage. I'm really excited about that one.

What can the audiences in Detroit expect in The Illusionists - Magic Of The Holidays?

The unexpected. This is one of the biggest touring shows that I have ever been a part of. I'm sort of now one of the old hands of this show and certainly one of the only people in the cast that is coming to Detroit has been in the show before. It is exciting and, also, daunting that I'm, like I said, the old hand, but it is the biggest show that we have brought together and the most collaborative as well. We all appear and work together in each other's act, which is really lovely. Magicians tend to be quite solitary, except for a the few famous double acts, but for the most part, they tend not to share very well, and that hasn't been the case in this production. It's bigger, more collaborative, brand new material, and new things that people will have never seen before. It's magic tricks, illusions, and stunts that people will have never seen or that have never been seen on a stage before. It's brand new and, also, it's the magic of the holidays. So, it's not just the traditional sort of dark, gothic magic show, it's a family show and a lot of the stuff in it is very fun. That doesn't mean that it will only appeal to kids. There are some truly amazing and really hilarious magic which will appeal to grown-ups as well.

Like many others, I saw The Illusionists when they were last here in Detroit. What would you say to someone who saw the show here in Detroit or even when it was on Broadway to get them to come back and see The Illusionists - Magic Of The Holidays?

Well, it's a completely different show, as I said to you. It's completely different in content, but, also, in tone, I think. I don't want to ruin the surprise of the show from the point of view of what exactly is in it. While I don't want to tell you what I'm doing or spoil other people's surprises, but it is very holiday spirited. It's a little lighter. Magic sometimes can be a little dark and a little macabre and it isn't that at all. I think it really does evoke the spirit of the time of year. It is new. We are actually in the process of a teching the show right now. We actually haven't done our first performance of this show yet so I'm in the process of it. It's one of my favorite times when we do these rehearsals, this process of creation, which is what we are doing right now and getting into a theatre space, putting it all together, and seeing what the other people are doing. It's fascinating and so much fun. I've seen some of the things that we are going to do, but I haven't seen everything yet. It does feel very different and I think audiences in Detroit are going to get a kick out of it.

If you had to describe the show in five words, what would you say?

I think it's amazing. I think it's hilarious. I think it can be breathtaking. Sometimes magic can be considered an old art form. People say 'oh I've seen this from people before,' but I guarantee you in the show that the moment you think you know how something is going to go or you think you know what's going to happen, you are going to be surprised. So definitely the unexpected. I think there is a whole lot of the unexpected in the show.

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The Illusionists - Magic Of The Holidays has three performances November 29th (7:30pm) and November 30th (3:00pm and 7:30pm) at the Fox Theatre in Detroit as part of the 2019-20 Fifth Third Bank Fox Theatre Series. Tickets start at $35 and can be purchased at 313Presents.com, Little Caesars Arena XFINITY box office, and ticketmaster.com.

Purchase three or more Fox Theatre Series titles and save up to 20% as "Select-Your-Shows" packages are available now by calling the Group Sales Department at 313-471-3099. Discounts are also available for groups of 10 or more. To learn more, visit 313Presents.com/Ticket-Special-Offers/Groups.

Connect with The Daredevil - Jonathan Goodwin on Twitter at @TheDaredevil, on Instagram at @JonathanGoodwinOfficial, on Facebook at facebook.com/JonathanGoodwinOfficial, and www.TheDaredevil.com.

Connect with The Illusionists on Twitter at @Illusionists7, on Instagram at @theillusionistslive, on Facebook at facebook.com/TheIllusionistsLive, and www.theillusionistslive.com.

Connect with The Fox Theatre on Twitter at @FoxTheatreDet, on Instagram at @thefoxtheatredetroit, and on Facebook at facebook.com/FoxTheatreDetroit. #TheFox

Connect with 313 Presents on Twitter at @313Presents and on Facebook at facebook.com/313Presents.

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