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American Repertory Theater (A.R.T.) at Harvard University

Return Engagement of The Conjurors’ Club

By: - Apr 27, 2021

American Repertory Theater (A.R.T.) at Harvard University announces today the ensemble of magicians to perform in the return engagement of The Conjurors’ Club created by Vinny DePonto and Geoff Kanick. Back by popular demand, the live interactive multi-magician experience that “dazzles” (On Boston Stages) and “delivers in spades” (The Theater Mirror) runs online April 28 - May 16, 2021.

 

The upcoming engagement will be hosted by co-creator Geoff Kanick and features an ensemble that includes Jeanette Andrews, Kayla Lee Drescher, Mahdi Gilbert, Eric Jones, Noah Levine, Daniel Martin, Francis Menotti, Lindsey Noel, Naathan Phan, Ran’D Shine, and Noah Sonie. 

 

Each visit to The Conjurors’ Club features intimate performances from four magicians. Learn more the members of the ensemble below. 

 

  

A ticket to The Conjurors' Club includes both admission and a secret package containing artifacts that expand and extend the live experience.

 

PERFORMANCE SCHEDULE

 

  • Wednesdays, April 28, May 5 and 12 at 8PM ET
  • Thursdays, April 29, May 6 and 13 at 8PM ET
  • Fridays, April 30, May 7 and 14 at 8PM ET
  • Saturdays, May 1, 8, and 15 at 4PM ET and 8PM ET
  • Sunday, May 2, 9, and 18 at 4PM ET 

 

The Conjurors’ Club runs approximately 80 minutes and is recommended for ages 12+. 

 

 

ABOUT THE MAGICIAN-CREATORS

 

Vinny DePonto 

Vinny DePonto is a theatermaker and mentalist who uses a combination of psychological tricks, illusion, visual art, and immersive storytelling. His work was featured in the most recent production of Angels in America on Broadway, in Lincoln Center’s Ghostlight, and in hit television shows on The Discovery Channel, NBC, and Netflix. He is also a member of the Bessie Award-winning immersive theatre group Third Rail Projects. VinnyDePonto.com

 

Geoff Kanick 

Geoff Kanick is a performer-magician-theatermaker. Blending improvisation, physical theater, and illusion, he creates immersive, poetic work that locates the awe-inspiring in the everyday. Selected credits: Drama Desk Award-winning Queen Of The Night (Original Cast/Resident Creative Team), Seeing You (Resident Director), and original, one-man shows toured nationally. Kanick is Founding Co-Artistic Director of LubDub Theatre Company and an alumnus of SDCF’s Observership Program, The Orchard Project Greenhouse, and Lincoln Center Theater Directors Lab. GeoffKanick.com

 

ABOUT THE MAGICIANS

 

Jeanette Andrews

Jeanette Andrews is hailed as one of the most innovative illusionists in the world today. She has presented commissioned and site-specific works for The Smithsonian's Cooper Hewitt, the International Museum of Surgical Science, and the Museum of Contemporary Art Chicago. Andrews has staged hundreds of sold-out and standing-room-only performances for Fortune 500 companies, theaters, and universities across the United States, including Infiniti, Kraft, Thermo Fisher Scientific, Lyric Opera & Chicago Ideas Week. Her work explores how illusions construct reality and highlights astonishing aspects of everyday life via moments of the seemingly impossible. She is a prior artist in residence for High Concept Labs and The Institute for Art and Olfaction. Illusion is Andrews’ life’s work, and her performances have been praised by the Chicago Tribune, PBS and The New York Times. 

 

Kayla Drescher

Kayla Drescher, from Los Angeles, has performed all over the world for clients like Microsoft, IBM, Wells Fargo, and many more. You may have seen her on shows like Access Hollywood, Penn & Teller: Fool Us, and NBC’s TODAY Show, where she was crowned “The Next Great Magician” by David Copperfield.  Currently, she can be seen in the world-touring show, Champions of Magic, as the close-up magic expert.

 

Mahdi Gilbert

Mahdi Gilbert has traveled the four corners of the Earth. He has been forced to reinvent magic for himself. Literally redefining how a deck of cards can be handled. He is a man who shuffles without fingers, palms without palms, and is living proof that nothing is impossible.

 

Noah Levine

Since the tender age of 9, Noah Levine has studied the art of magic. Today, he is world-renowned as one of the leading scholars and performers in the field. His sleight-of-hand expertise has been on display at the Metropolitan Museum of Art, Carnegie Hall, and Lincoln Center, as well as in several television commercials and films. He has helped develop programming for the Conjuring Arts Research Center, a non-profit library that preserves historical texts and brings magic-based therapy to hospitals and schools. As a technical advisor, he has been called upon to train actors including Bryan Cranston, Rachel Weisz, Giovanni Ribisi, Ben Vereen, and James Earl Jones. His virtual show Backstage with a Magician takes place every Friday night.

 

Daniel Martin

Daniel Martin has quickly become one of the most in-demand magicians in the nation. His high-energy performances are a thrilling fusion of incredible sleight of hand and playful sleight of mind that have been breaking box office attendance records at theaters, universities, and Fortune 500 events worldwide. He has been awarded “Best Variety Artist” and “Best Male Performer” after winning the award for “Entertainer of the Year.” In addition, he has been recognized as the highest-rated/best-reviewed touring artist in the nation! His awarding-winning magic has been seen on the BBC’s “Now You See It,” Netflix, CBS, NBC, Discovery, and by millions of people live and online.

 

Francis Menotti

Professional magician, consultant, and inspirer Francis Menotti has been impressing audiences internationally since 2000. With highly innovative, intelligent presentations he is sought by prestigious clientele from the sound stages of Hollywood for the ABC prime time show Deception to the Oval Office, performing at both the 2008 and 2012 U.S. Presidential Inaugurations. With that list of accomplishments, it’s no surprise that Francis fooled Penn & Teller on their hit show Fool Us when he made his appearance in 2015. A performance they enjoyed so much, they had him return for a subsequent season in 2020.

 

Lindsey Noel

All with a wink, a nod, and a surprising amount of weird body poses resembling human, Lindsey Noel brought her whirlwind energy to today's leading magic venues (pre-covid, of course). Gracing stages the likes of the Chicago Magic Lounge, NYC's Monday Night Magic, and Marvyn's Magic Theater to name a few, this glamorous and strange babe with the power delights and astounds all she encounters. Coming to the art of magic with a background in film and television as a costume designer and stylist and over a decade of producing grand live events, Lindsey Noel brings production value to her performances with beautiful costumes she has designed, multiple costume changes, and detailed elaborate props. Each effect she performs is either completely original or tailored with custom props to be unlike anything else out there in the world of professional whimsy. Reading minds and confusing hearts (is she hot? is she a goblin? is she behind me right now? Oh god. she is, isn't she?) this magical mentalist has taken the virtual world by storm. You can catch her at all the hottest clubs, like Zoom, Facebook, Youtube, Instagram, Twitch, and even Streamyard, where she finds ways to create human connection and spark joy, breaking the barrier of the screen. Tune in and witness with your own eyes and mind why Lindsey Noel is #MindReadingWithMoxie. 

 

Eric Jones

Eric Jones has made a name for himself in the world of magic.  Armed with sleight-of-hand, Eric dazzles his audiences with his digital dexterity. He uses these tools to deceive, entertain and astonish his audiences with his mind-blowing illusions. Ordinary, everyday items become objects of fancy as Jones delicately handles them.  Coins multiply, cards fly, and audiences stunned. An award-winning performer, Jones’s magic has been showcased at Magic Castle in Hollywood, CA, New York City's Monday Night Magic, the longest-running Off-Broadway magic show in NYC, Masters of Illusion, and on Comedy Central. Jones has appeared on television in 19 countries spanning 5 continents and has wowed dozens of A-List celebrities all over the globe with his breathtaking close-up magic. As an author, performer, consultant, magician, and corporate entertainer, his expertise is sought out by Fortune 500 companies such as Merrill Lynch, State Farm, and Coca-Cola. As a corporate entertainer, Jones performs some of the most spellbinding illusions imaginable that leaves the audience mystified. Jones was a contestant on Season Two of Penn & Teller: Fool Us, where he successfully fooled the duo and managed to trick the two masters of magic. He was also a semi-finalist on Season 12 of NBC’s America's Got Talent.

 

Naathan Phan

Sharply dressed, ebullient, and dynamic, Naathan creates memories for those seeking wonder by combining his talents for comedy, magic, acting, improv, singing, writing, impressions, and storytelling into one unforgettable performance. He is a proud Eagle Scout and member of SAG-AFTRA, the International Brotherhood of Magicians, Global League of Magicians and Mentalists, and the Academy of Magical Arts (better known as The Magic Castle in Hollywood), where he is a frequent performer and strolling magic champion. His multitude of talents have been featured on Penn & Teller: Fool Us, Celebrity Name Game, Tosh.0, Superbad, the Hollywood Christmas Parade, Wizard Wars, America’s Got Talent, and more. He also holds the distinction of being one of only four magicians in the world who have appeared in the Masters of Illusion national tour, recent Las Vegas residency at Bally’s, and international television series (returning to The CW this summer).

 

Ran’D Shine

For over a decade, Philadelphia native Ran’D Shine has been presenting “real magic for real people” to audiences in hundreds of American cities and over 27 countries worldwide. He has been featured at the South African Arts Festival, Presidential Inauguration in Washington, DC, and Guantanamo Military Base. He has also made television appearances on the CW Network’s Penn and Teller: Fool Us as well as BET Network’s Man on the Street. Additionally, Shine was the subject of the 2015 short film “Three Quarters” by Guggenheim Fellow Kevin Everson, and was featured in the documentaries The Art and Soul of Magic: The Stories of African American Magicians (2004) and Quiet Masters of Magic (2018). In addition to his passion for live performance, Shine has also served as producer for The Heart and Soul of Magic, a magic show featuring an entirely African American cast of magicians. He is also the co-founder and past president of the International Association of Black Magical Artists, an organization dedicated to the history, cultural legacy, and fostering community among magicians of color.

 

Noah Sonie

Noah Sonie is a magician and mentalist from Minneapolis, Minnesota. He has been described as a modern mindreader and has a show that blends mentalism, comedy, hypnosis, and other creative elements to deliver a fresh and new experience focused on authentic interactions that live entirely in the moment. In 2021, Noah appeared on the season premiere of Penn & Teller: Fool Us on The CW.

 

ABOUT AMERICAN REPERTORY THEATER

American Repertory Theater (A.R.T.) at Harvard University is a leading force in the American theater, producing groundbreaking work that is driven by risk-taking and passionate inquiry. A.R.T. was founded in 1980 by Robert Brustein, who served as Artistic Director until 2002, when he was succeeded by Robert Woodruff. Diane Paulus began her tenure as Artistic Director in 2008. Under the leadership of Paulus as the Terrie and Bradley Bloom Artistic Director and Executive Producer Diane Borger, A.R.T. seeks to expand the boundaries of theater by programming transformative theatrical experiences, always including the audience as a central partner. A.R.T. is committed to a long-term process of centering anti-racism in its practice, policies, culture, pedagogy, governance and organizational structure. 

 

Throughout its history, A.R.T. has been honored with many distinguished awards including the Tony Award for Best New Play for All the Way (2014); consecutive Tony Awards for Best Revival of a Musical for Pippin (2013) and The Gershwins’ Porgy and Bess (2012), both of which Paulus directed, and sixteen other Tony Awards since 2012; a Pulitzer Prize; a Jujamcyn Prize for outstanding contribution to the development of creative talent; the Regional Theater Tony Award; and more than 100 Elliot Norton and IRNE Awards. Additional Broadway productions include Jagged Little Pill; Waitress (also US National Tour and in London’s West End); Natasha, Pierre & The Great Comet of 1812; and Finding Neverland. Under Paulus’s leadership, A.R.T.’s club theater, OBERON, has been recognized annually as a top performance venue in the Boston area, and has attracted national attention for its innovative programming and business models.

 

As the professional theater on the campus of Harvard University, A.R.T. is committed to playing a central role in the cognitive life of the University, catalyzing discourse, interdisciplinary collaboration, and creative exchange among a wide range of academic departments, institutions, students, and faculty members. A.R.T. is engaged in a number of multi-year initiatives with partners at Harvard that explore some of the most pressing issues of our day, including collaborations with the Harvard University Center for the Environment to develop new work that addresses climate change and with the Healthy Buildings Program at the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health to develop a Roadmap for Recovery and Resilience for Theater that prioritizes a commitment to ethics, equity, and anti-racism as a guiding principle. A.R.T. plays a central role in Harvard’s undergraduate Theater, Dance & Media concentration, teaching courses in directing, dramatic literature, acting, voice, design, and dramaturgy. A.R.T. staff also mentors students in the Harvard Radcliffe Dramatic Club working at the Loeb Drama Center and OBERON.

 

Dedicated to making great theater accessible, A.R.T. actively engages more than 5,000 community members and local students annually in project-based partnerships, workshops, conversations with artists, and other enrichment activities both at the theater and across the Greater Boston area.

 

A.R.T. acknowledges that its theaters are situated on the traditional and ancestral homelands of the Massachusett Tribe.

 

 

 

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