Trade of Tricks
MANILA, Philippines - Internationally acclaimed magician and illusionist, Cyril Takayama was caught drinking out of the paper cup of coke he was supposed to “magically” empty while on top of his head.
“You cheated!” Mike, his unusually observant volunteer from the audience cried, also holding a cup over his head. “And my cup is still full!”
The room was filled with awkward laughter. What happens when a magician is caught in the act? “You move on to a new trick,” Cyril said, shaking it off and moving on with good humor. He asked Mike to flip the cup over his hair. This time he managed to dry it out while a very skeptical Mike stared at him. He also took the deflated soda can he had emptied into the cups, re-inflated and resealed it with his bare hands, and popped it open so that he and his uncooperative volunteer could share a toast.
This has been the essence of Cyril’s reality street magic shows. He goes in with a plan on how the trick should turn out, but he never knows when point A, B, C, D has to jump to F or Z. “Don’t panic,” he says. “Go with it in case something better comes out. It’s a dance.”
Cyril’s Family Vacation: Hawaii Edition adds a storytelling twist to the usual format of street magic shows, along with the use of hidden cameras to elicit more raw and genuine reactions from unwitting participants. This time he brings his “family”: Uncle Richard, the Casanova with a penchant for golf, good cigars and beautiful women; Grandma Magi, the matriarch of the family who has a taste for mischief; and Cousin Tiny, whose love for food and road block of a body will scare the carbs out of figure conscious viewers. Upon closer inspection, though, one will notice that they all bear an uncanny resemblance to Cyril. “We’d love to see your dog next time,” quipped someone in the audience.
Cyril was first discovered by AXN through his burger trick on Youtube, where he pulls out an actual burger from a display menu, takes a bite, and puts the burger back into the picture that now has a bite out of it. “I want people to watch with open eyes,” he says. “I’m not trying to fool them. I just want to tell the story. It’s like watching a movie. When Tom Cruise leaps from one building to another you don’t bother to think about how he pulled off that stunt. You just go along with it and allow yourself to be entertained. That’s the trick.”
“Magic changes people’s lives,” Cyril continued. “It’s about creating joy, awe and giving wonderment to others.” He recalled how he got a kid on a train to stop crying when he pulled out a handkerchief and made it disappear. Another fan sent him a present with a card to let him know that watching his then running street show, Cyril: Simply Magic saved her from depression. “It made me realize that you can’t take life too seriously,” she said.
“Have you ever used magic tricks to pick up chicks?” someone asked the exotic-looking half Japanese, half French magician, who then broke into a naughty, guilty grin. “I used to, but I try not to anymore. If I really like someone I want them to like me for who I am.”
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