Someone shared this quote with me the other day…
“We are never deceived; we deceive ourselves.” -Johann Wolfgang von Goethe
My first reaction: “Cool quote!” Then I started to process it on a deeper level and realized that it isn’t 100% true. READ ALL
I started 2011 by video blogging every single day. Every. Single. Day. I know, it seemed like a brilliant idea at the time. And my motives were actually somewhat unique. But that’s another story. I now haven’t blogged in quite a while, because I learned a huge lesson… READ ALL
One of the things I love most about what I do is the opportunity that I have to get tons of people out of the audience every night up on stage. That means that every single performance is unique. When you get a volunteer on stage, you just never have any idea what will happen, or how they’ll react to the illusion they’re participating in. This past weekend in Bradenton, FL was no different!
In my show, I often perform an illusion where an old, antique table floats mysteriously around the stage, without anyone touching it. It was inspired by an experience I had over 10 years ago in southeast Asia. While on a tour with another performer in Sri Lanka, we discovered a man in one of the communities we were performing in who was performing one of the same illusions we were. He had invested the same time, resources, and months of practice we had into creating the same illusion of levitation, but with one major difference: He was actually deceiving people. There were no spirits…it was all just an illusion.
This guy had convinced hundreds of people in his country that the levitation of the table was made possible by spirits, and that the spirits were manifesting their presence by making the table move. I learned more than one valuable lesson that day about how easily it is for our senses to be fooled, and how simply we are tricked and cleverly deceived into believing things that totally untrue. All because we “saw something with our own eyes,” and after all, “seeing is believing.”
You’ll have to check out our show to get the full story, as well as experience the illusion live, but for now, enjoy this clip of what was for me, a very unique presentation of my floating table illusion. I’ve never had anyone respond quite like this before, but it’s these kind of unexpected moments with audience volunteers that continue to make my job so much fun. Enjoy…
If you read the title of this post, and you’re reading this, then you and I probably have something in common. That is, we both believe in the ministry of Upward Unlimited. Over the past 12 years, I’ve had the opportunity to see literally tens of thousands of people who are hearing the truth found in the gospel because of this incredible program.
After meeting so many Upward league directors, I know that it takes a lot of commitment to pull off a successful season. I respect each of you for your willingness and desire to serve, using such an awesome tool. It’s always an exciting moment to see the final event…the Awards Night Celebration. Through my twelve years of experience with the Upward program, I’ve come to learn just how important this event is, in that your venue is filled with kids and their families, many who have no idea how much Jesus can radically change their lives.
With that in mind, I’ve written this post with the hopes that you too will be able to finish strong and well by making your Awards Celebration a huge success! At the same time, I also understand that writing something like this requires a great deal of credibility. That’s why it’s important for you to understand that in years of working with Upward Unlimited, I’ve had the opportunity to play a major role in almost 500 different awards nights with a combined attendance of over 250,000 people. I’ve had the privilege of being part of some of the most creative and successful Awards Nights in the country. Nonetheless, I’ve also been a part of some the least effective. Through that, I’ve come to learn through time and experience exactly what it takes to make an Awards Night a success. That’s why Upward Unlimited, including founder and president, Caz McCaslin, has continually endorsed our ministry and efforts through each of those past twelve years.
I encourage you to read through this post and learn from the experience I’ve gained. Not only do I believe that your Awards Night will be much more professional and organized, but also more effective. It’s a long post, but the results that will come from studying and learning from these mistakes is far greater than the moments it will take to read them. I really do believe it is that important! READ ALL
Merry Christmas, from my family to yours!
For fun, here’s a fresh look at what this holiday is all about…it’s a story about a child, told by children:
Cool, huh?
Okay, so maybe not everyone spends thousands of dollars a year on hotel rooms, but I’ve spent the last 15 years of my life traveling around the world for a living. When you travel that much, hotels begin to add up. It’s just part of the cost of doing what we do, but trust me, I LOVE saving money!
I’ve stayed in some of the nicest and most unique hotels in the world, as well as some pretty dumpy ones. I’ve also found a few ways to save a penny or two and get the best bang for my buck. Here are 3 totally random travel tips that you can use to save yourself some money when booking a hotel room. This is exactly what we do when making our own reservations. READ ALL
Anyone who has seen our live show has probably heard the story about how a little box of magic tricks changed my life forever. When my grandmother gave me a magic set for Christmas when I was nine years old, I never could have predicted what a huge impact it would have on my future.
Let’s face it…not every kid is going to be a professional magician and travel the world as a Master Illusionist. However, I do believe that there are at least 7 HUGE reasons why every kid on the planet should learn a few tricks, and get a little into magic, even if it’s only for a season… READ ALL
This past fall, we had an absolutely INCREDIBLE tour called, “The Mayhem & Misdirection Tour!” It was our most successful tour to date, and we had an amazing run of full, packed out venues at almost all shows! Well, it’s now back by popular demand…we’re making the tour available again for a limited run of dates.
And guess what else? We were able to catch some video footage at a couple of the shows this past fall…check out the new video below!
[Note: Facebook users click here to watch the video. Facebook doesn't not embed videos when automatically importing these posts from my blog.]
NOW would be the time to get in touch. Why not just go ahead and request more information right now while it’s already on your mind? The great folks at GOA will take great care of you. Contact us here.
Were you at one of the shows during our fall tour? We’d love to hear your comments below…please let others know what you thought, and play a role in their decision on whether or not to jump on board and be a part of our 2011 Mayhem & Misdirection Tour!
I love doing video blogs/interviews. I love talking to others and learning about people. But usually I’m interviewing music artists, high-profile speakers, authors, pastors…mainly leaders. I decided to sit down and talk to a kid, and I can’t wait to do it again. After all, even kids are leaders for some.
Meet my friend, Isaac. He’s one of our members on illusionism.TV. He talks about his Twitter profile, experience with Apple and AT&T, and plenty about his love for video games. If you’ve ever wondered what it might look like for a performing artist, (me), to get upstaged and outperformed during an interview by a 9 year old kid, this is what it looks like. Enjoy this 5 minutes of non-stop entertainment: READ ALL
A few weeks ago, a friend sent me this INCREDIBLE short film. It made me smile, wonder, and even gave me chills. It has a special quality to it that is hard to describe. It’s captivating, and enchanting. I hope you love it as much as I did… READ ALL
