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For this post, I went with the simple title of "Family, friends and incidents" because that looked better than the more accurate title of "Family, friends, and injury"! We've had lots of visitors from our home town lately. Paula's Mother, Father, Stepfather, Brother, and cousin all came to see the show at various times this week. In addition, some friends came all the way out here for a visit. Next weekend, it will be my side of the family that arrives in town. So, that's the "Family and friends" part. What about the 'incidents'? Well, in the last blog post, I wrote about seeing Garry and Janine Carson's show. Since then, they've come to see our show- and both of us had a nice little glitch in our shows! Here we are with them:  As we were watching their show, they had a technical issue where their sound stopped working. Garry handled it just fine and they kept right on going, but I know he hated it. Every performer wants a seamless show. Well, when they came to see us, we had an issue with our opening illusion. We, too, kept on going, but it was not what I wanted the opening of the show to look like- and definitely not with other magicians in the audience! I joked afterward with Garry that perhaps we're bad luck for each other! He laughed, and so did we. Just gotta make it better next show! What about 'injury'? Well (ugly picture warning)... check this out:  This happened yesterday when we arrived at the theater. I was walking backstage, through an area I pass through every day, and it was pitch black. I ended up walking full speed into a square steel guardrail. Have you ever run so forcefully into something that you're sure you heard your bones crack? Well, this was one of those. That's a deep cut! Anything on the head is sure to bleed a lot and this one had me leaving a blood trail through the hallway. Once we got the bleeding under control (sort of), the concern was how to get through the show. There's an upside down underwater escape in this show and I wasn't sure what would happen. With less than 30 minutes until show time, I was finally able to do the old super glue trick. Did you know that it's totally safe to use regular super glue on a cut? It's true! I confirmed it years ago with several doctors and one of them told me it's basically the same thing they use in the operating room. So, we got through the show and everything went great. When the show was finished, our friend Katie (who just happened to be in the audience, and just happens to be a nurse) advised that it didn't look like stitches would do any good, so super glue it is. The only thing we're still trying to decide now is which one I resemble more- Chucky, or Scar from The Lion King! This was Saturday, and our next show is Wednesday morning. We have that 3 day break every week and it's a good thing because we always have a lot to catch up on. There's prop maintenance, costume repair, and a zillion other things. Paula, Faith, and Clay made a quick trip back to Cincinnati for an orthodontist appointment. There's also the business of doing everything we can to let more people know about our show, and last night, we had a chance to do a big radio interview. Here are Silas and I backstage with "102.9 the Z":  Silas is a natural when it comes to things like this. He's sharp, quick witted, VERY outgoing, and totally comfortable in front of an audience. Seriously, this kid could be introducing the President to the rest of the world's leaders, and he wouldn't break a sweat. One other really cool thing happened this week. There's a guy named Brian Clarke who, along with guitarist Mark Boyd, does an acoustic show on Wednesday evenings. Brian plays popular songs but he also tells the stories behind them- and it's very entertaining. Well, here he is after his show this week:  That's him with Paula's mother, Valerie- after he had just given her the guitar that he used in the show! Seriously, who does that? How cool!
So, I say this all the time but it's true- you really should come visit Branson! There's a lot to see and do here. Plus, with this being Fall, the Ozark mountains are SO beautiful! Come on out and say hi!
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Seems impossible that we're already well into October! We've been here for 5 weeks now. The show is going great- it's reached that point where we're really comfortable with everything we're doing, so now we can work on fine tuning each element. As for the audiences, they have been lots of fun, and have been leaving AMAZING reviews on tripadvisor (they're too nice!). You can see everything at www.tripadvisor.com - search for "Phil Dalton Theater of Illusion". We're also meeting more and more great entertainers here in town. Two days ago, our show didn't exactly have the largest audience, but one of the attendees was a guy named Dave Hamner. Don't recognize that name? Every magician knows who that is. Dave and Denise Hamner are known worldwide for their magic act with big parrots. I used to watch them on TV when I was younger- I literally memorized their entire act, move for move. So, two days ago, our lighting technician walks backstage right before the show and says "Hey, Dave Hamner is out there". Wow, no pressure, right? I'm happy to say that the show went off without a hitch. Dave had a great time and was awesome to talk to afterwards. He runs his own theater here in Branson and kindly invited us to see his show as soon as we can. Here's another magic couple in town: That's us with Garry and Janine Carson. Garry invited us to see their show tonight. In a word, it was INCREDIBLE! I highly recommend it if you're in the area. I don't remember the last time I saw a show that was as fast paced as theirs- Garry packed an amazing amount of magic into the performance. Garry and Janine will see our show next week. I hope they like it! Here's Silas on stage with Garry:  ...and here's Lydia being levitated in that same show:  Here are Faith and Clay onstage with Banachek (performer from the theater next to ours):  And of course, Silas is learning more and more from Chris McDaniel, master of the Western arts:
So, we're all having a great time. I'm literally watching the kids grow up before my eyes. Eli has become a fierce Uno player:  He'll laugh out loud when he throws a "Draw 4" your way! If you have the opportunity, you really should come visit Branson this Fall. It's family friendly, there's a ton of world class entertainment here, and it's a beautiful place. We're living right alongside Table Rock lake and I've gotta say, these Ozark mountains are quite a picturesque scene to wake up to every morning. Hope to see everyone soon! So- we've officially been in Branson for just under a month. We're having a blast! Our show takes place at the Branson Star Theater. This is an amazing (and historic) building. This stage was once the long time home of stars like Willie Nelson, Mel Tillis, Loretta Lynn, and Yakov Smirnov. Every time we take the stage, it's crazy to think of the talented folks who have performed in that very same spot. What I love most, though, is how available the stage is. Our show is featured here so we have complete free run of the theater any time we want. Literally, if I have an idea at 4 AM, I can go into the theater, turn on the lights, and work on that idea. We're really not used to having a spot where our show is always set up and ready- but we are loving it! The audiences so far have been amazing. When we perform in a new spot, we never really know which part of the show the audience will respond best to (and it really is different depending on the geographical area of the country). In Branson, though, the people are great. This is a show town and people seem to really get into that. Here's something else that's crazy. Lots of performers know each other, given that our paths tend to cross quite often. We love to meet new folks who have a passion for what they do on stage. Here in Branson, we've made quite a few new friends- singers, dancers, and a lot of very talented musicians (this has always been a country music town, so the musicians here are amazing). Here's one guy who's really cool, though:  That's me with a guy named Banachek (we both had the day off so we got together for a barbeque because, well, why not). Banachek is part of a variety show here in town called "Masters of the Unusual". If he looks familiar, it might be because you've seen him with Criss Angel on the show "MindFreak". Banachek is considered to be the best mentalist in the world- and by mentalist, I mean an illusionist who specializes in mind reading and related stunts. BUT- Banachek is quick to point out that he makes NO claims of psychic abilities. He is the first to tell you that what he does is accomplished purely by natural means. When he was a teenager, he was part of a now famous secret experiment called "Project Alpha", in which he convinced a lot of scientists that he was psychic and could bend metal using his mind. After being studied for two whole years, the project was finally exposed as nothing more than trickery. The whole point was to prove that psychic abilities aren't real, and that even a leading scientist can be fooled. Look up info on Project Alpha if you want a fascinating read. Here's another great guy. This is Chris McDaniel:  Chris is a Western Arts performer. He does amazing things with whips and ropes, and he holds a world record in whip cracking. Silas wanted to learn the art of bullwhip, so here's Chris graciously giving him his first lesson. It's not every day that you get to learn from a world champion! And... here's one more very talented individual:  See the lady on the left? That's Anna from America's Got Talent. Here's what she does: Have you ever held an orange for someone to shoot from your hand with a crossbow? Until yesterday, neither had I. There are no tricks here- that's a very real arrow and a very skilled performer. To be honest, this wasn't scary because this is what she does. It wasn't even a thought in my mind that she could miss, so at that point, it's just a really amazing thing to be part of. So cool!
So... if you're anywhere near Branson Missouri, you really need to come see all the amazing things in this town- and let us know you're coming so we can say hi! |
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