Natural Magick performs in his hometown

Natural Magick performs in his hometown. Magician David Ben's upcoming show, Natural Magick, will be part of the 2011 Luminato festival at the Tarragon Theatre with shows at 8 p.m. from June 10 to 12 and 14 to 16. Photo/COURTESY

Ben, a veteran of more than 35 years on the magic scene, has travelled extensively, performing magic and hosting speaking gigs around the world.

His new show, Natural Magick, will feature a variety of illusions, sleight-of-hand techniques, mind games and other elements of deceit and derring-do. The show will also include an old 1930s film clip and original music scored to accompany the 90-minute set.

"As soon as the audience sees (the film clip,) I think they'll think, 'I haven't seen a show like this before,'" Ben said. "I want to take them on a journey and I hope they become almost emotionally exhausted on the journey and have their senses overloaded."

The downtown Toronto resident got his start in magic at a young age, when he saw famed illusionist Doug Henning on television. From that moment on, he was hooked.

"I've often thought some people think visually, some people think in musical terms and I think some people think magically," he said. "It's just the way my brain was wired; I liked the theatricality of magic and I learned to compose magic the way some people can pick out tunes on a guitar."

Ben studied under master magician Ross Bertram. While his teacher was a sleight-of-hand virtuoso, Ben has worked on all elements of performing magic both to continue challenging himself and to offer a breadth of styles.

"I'm sort of a G.P., a general practitioner," he said. "I'm obsessed with (all kinds of magic) and I try to incorporate sleight-of-hand, mental mind games and larger illusionary aspects into all my shows."

While his shows are varied, Ben's favourite pieces occur when members of the audience - particularly youngsters - are helping him out on stage. In those cases, he makes it look as though the volunteers are doing the work.

Ben gave up a career in law to pursue his passion for magic, a gamble that has more than paid off. Unlike many stage magicians, he wears many hats, working as a writer, producer and public speaker. His work has included consulting author Michael Ondaatje on the novel Divisadero and creating magic to complement Yes/No, a show based around the poetry of Dennis Lee.

"I definitely haven't been bored," he said.

His dedication to pushing boundaries has helped in that regard. While there are limits even within the world of magic, Ben always works to ensure his shows include a combination of elements that audiences would not see at any other show.

"There are only a certain number of effects in magic, just like there are a certain number of notes on a keyboard," he said. "It's how you put them together that creates the magic."

Ben has grown up - and still lives - in Toronto, but Natural Magick remains a homecoming show of sorts. For that reason alone, it will be a special show for the magician.

"I always hope that every show I do has better magic in it than ever before," he said. "This will be special for me, though, because I haven't performed a public show in Toronto since 2005."

In the meantime, Ben has also worked with Magicana, an organization dedicated to the exploration of magic as a performing art. As founder and artistic director, he oversees show production, the publication of magic-themed books and outreach programs.

Ben has lived in Toronto all his life, moving from Cabbagetown to his current Bloor Street and Spadina Avenue neighbourhood 15 years ago. Though he has seen much of the world, there is nowhere he would rather call home.

"This is definitely my city. That's for sure," he said. "For a livable inner city area, you can't do better than this."

Natural Magick will appear as part of Luminato at the Tarragon Theatre with shows at 8 p.m. from June 10 to 12 and 14 to 16. For tickets, visit www.luminato.com