INTERVIEW: Lewis Le Val

Interviewed by Tom Denton.

MRB: Lewis, just to get us going, maybe you could give us a bit of your background. How long have you been in magic now? Are you a full-time pro? And who were your influences to get into magic seriously?

Lewis: I started out around the age of five with a kid's magic set. My interest grew and I spent so much of my parent's money on magic tricks, I also became a member of the MJMC, the Merseyside Junior Magic Club. At the age of six I passed an audition to appear on the TV show 'Kids Say the Funniest Things', where I, along with three other young magicians, cut Michael Barrymore in half! A few years passed and I completely lost interest in magic. At the age of 13 I discovered modern magic websites such as Ellusionist. All of a sudden, magic was cool again! During the summer I work six nights a week performing in bars and nightclubs in Ayia Napa, Cyprus. I was heavily influenced by David Blaine and especially Derren Brown. 


MRB: I've seen some performances from you on YouTube, combining mentalism and card work, as you do on your DVD. What's your thinking on performing these two kinds of material together? Do you think it requires a certain kind of presentation and character to pull it off?

L: I believe that it is important to not let the mentalism look like card tricks, even though you are still using cards. For example, if I do an ambitious card routine, then I want to do a mind reading routine, I make it clear to my audience that I am going to do something different. I even sometimes tell them about fictional mind readers and mentalists from history, and that I am going to try something similar to what they used to perform. That way I can build up an image in their head, which stops them from thinking 'magic tricks'. Also when I do mentalism with cards, I like to make it seem as if it is something I hardly ever do. I stutter, pause for long periods of time and improvise. The whole thing is a well-rehearsed act. It makes it appear real and stops it from looking like just another routine that I am going to perform again at the next table. 


MRB: What comes first for you when creating magic? Do you think of the effect first and then work out a method, or do you start with a technique that you want to use and build a routine around it? Have you got a set process for your creation of a trick?

L: I think it just depends really. Most of the time I will think of the effect first, and then work out a method to produce a close enough version of my original idea. I never sit down and create an effect from start to finish, I will just keep the effect in the back of my mind and every so often, think of possible methods. My favourite effect on my DVD 'Harmony', started out as a daft idea that was going nowhere. Now, three years later it is fooling some of the best minds in magic. 


MRB: In your performances, you seem to take on the role of what I think of as “the mysterious stranger”, an ordinary person who dresses, talks and acts like anyone else, but has amazing abilities. Is that the image you're trying to convey, and is that a conscious decision? How much of your performance character is planned, and how much just comes out as a natural consequence of interacting with audiences?

L: I guess I try to relate to my audience in some way. I do like the mysterious stranger character, I just try to do or wear something to make me stand out a bit more, such as painting my nails black or wearing eye-liner. Even sometimes wearing unusual hats, wide brimmed fedoras etc. I'd say forty-percent of my performance character is planned, the rest is a natural consequence of interacting with different audiences. With some people I may need to be a calm, serious guy. With others I may need to be a loud, cocky guy. I try to adapt to the 'theme' of the group. In the past few months I have discovered a more surreal side to myself. Taking inspiration from the likes of Tim Burton and Alice in Wonderland, so now I aim to build that into my character. A sort of darker mad hatter style. Subtly of course! 


MRB: Finally, now you've got this DVD under your belt, what's next? Do you have more Le Val creations ready to release, or will we have to wait a while for that?

L: As I have not really thought about teaching magic before, I cannot say I will be releasing product after product, but I do have a few ideas for the future! I also aim to release a hypnosis DVD with The 1914. I love hypnosis and I have some great techniques and methods. It's about time I shared them!


Lewis Le Val's debut DVD, 'Paint the Roses Red', is out now atwww.the1914.com.

LCD6DL, Yoann

Reviewed by Tom Denton.


I should probably start off by telling you that this is a collection of flourishy double-lifts. I mention that, because I know there are a lot of people who will be instantly turned off by that idea, feeling as they do that a multiple-lift should always look as natural as humanly possible. If you can bear with me a moment, though, let me explain why I think you might be mistaken.

For one thing, I've seen very few performances of double-lifts which look completely natural. The strange finger-tip action of the instantaneous or strike double, the tendon tension inherent in a thumb or pinky count, and the hesitation seen in many push-offs mean that achieving a double with truly natural handling is not quite as simple as it first appears. Of course, we could counter this with hours of assiduous practice until every slight twitch of the fingers is overcome. Or, we could make the unnatural movement look deliberate. This is where flourish doubles come in. The question of the duality of the apparent single is obfuscated by the elegant and flashy movement.

Anyway, having got that out of the way, let's move on to what you actually get with this product. Yoann teaches six double-lifts using the teaching style that has become the standard for flourishy move instruction. In other words, he teaches silently, using multiple camera angles and on-screen captions to highlight the necessary steps for execution. I found this exceptionally clear and easy-to-follow, although I have to admit, having watched the whole download in one sitting, the grinding repetition of the soundtrack forced me to deploy the mute control. Fortunately, though, given the silent nature of the instruction, that didn't detract from the learning experience. If you go down the route of just watching one move at a time, this shouldn't be a problem anyway.

There were some nice, unexpected extra bits and pieces included in the teaching, too. For one thing, Yoann goes over some double-lift fundamentals like the Stuart Gordon (yes, I know, I'm ignoring the crediting dispute for now) turnover, the pinky count and the pinky pulldown. If this is your first excursion into more advanced lifts then this section will be indispensable. Additionally, we get a snap change variation called “Damisnap”, and an ambitious card idea called “Ambistart”.

The moves taught are certainly interesting and will spice up your card work if they suit your style. However, I think that what's really great about this download is that, for less that seven dollars, you get all the tools you need to start creating your own flourish doubles. If you just learned the material on this, sure, you could make yourself look like a high-end card twirler, but with the fundamental techniques and the variety of moves taught, this should really get your creativity going.

Great stuff!

Available at http://www.magicalsleight.com/index.php?page=downloads&trick=LCD6DL

The Spiral Principle & Beyond, Stephen Leathwaite

Reviewed by Sam Fitton.

https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=420832613577&set=t.734515393&type=3&theater

Available at http://www.leathalweapons.co.uk/

Solitary, Cameron Francis

When two of my favourite forces share superpowers, I know I'm not going to be disappointed & fortunately I wasn't!

The plot: object to impossible location, specifically a coin to coin holder. It's a direct, visual & baffling effect which perfectly fits the Vernon 'one sentence' criteria - if you agree with that..

The 'behind the scenes' for Solitary are simple, easy to do & practical - definitely a worker! What I particularly like about the effect/method is that there's a vast amount of variations/presentations you can do, many of which Cameron offers but I'm convinced he's just scratching the surface. I think this is a concept that were likely to see a lot more of & I'm sure this will inspire your own Solitary-esque creations.

For me the best item on the release is what Cameron himself calls a 'mega routine'! It takes a pinch of almost every item, combines a card trick (always a win) and leaves the spectator with an impossible souvenir, this is the one you'll be using, a real show piece.

As usual I think it's pointless reviewing Papercrane's production as their consistently flawless in this department - very nicely shot, clearly structured, detailed, credits, you get the idea..

Overall I think is a cool trick which you won't just find yourself performing in Solitary (I know.. I do try). Recommended.

Available at http://www.papercranemagic.com/solitary.htm