Christopher Wayne and Mike Tyler have brought an enticing twist to traditional magic with their creation, The Naked Magicians. In recent times much has been made of the likes of illusionist Criss Angel, (Mindfreak TV series) or David Blaine, known for high-profile feats of endurance and street magic. Sensationalist acts always draw a crowd. However, one rarely thinks of magic and nudity as fitting bed-fellows; yet Christopher Wayne & Mike Tyler challenge this viewpoint and bring us an intriguing new concept in The Naked Magicians, described as “…the love child of David Copperfield and Puppetry of the Penis!”
How do two seemingly ordinary guys come up with the idea to join forces and perform magic, naked? Mike explains, “We’ve both made our livings as magicians. I’ve performed all over the world and Christopher’s had a TV series shown in three countries. When the movie Magic Mike came out, we started getting women making stripper/magic jokes. That got us thinking, ‘What if Magic Mike actually had magic?’ And here we are…”
I imagine that performing curious acts whose secrets have been closely guarded for centuries presents its own unique problems when performed in the ‘buff’. Indeed, one such event proved mighty tricky when a close call nearly resulted in shortening a certain appendage belonging to Christopher – “We were about half an inch off a mistake that would have made me officially Jewish.” Ouch! Luckily, the audience was spared an unexpected addition to the show and Christopher lived to tell the tale.
For some reason, the only magical exploits that have entertained me in the past have been those of Harry Potter and Gandalf. I never really warmed to the onstage antics of men pulling rabbits out of hats, but I can freely admit that the pairing of magical feats and taut, tantalising male flesh does give one an idea to conjure with, and much more captivating than an illusionist hanging off a 30 storey building!
Do yourself a favour; give yourself permission to go and have a ‘peep’ at Christopher & Mike’s… ah… show. I, for one, am looking forward to the season. Immensely. Abracadabra, boys!
We are blessed to have an extended Fringe season here in Adelaide, 4th – 15th March, at The Peacock, Gluttony.
Written by Catharine Watson
