Directing and Producing a Live Theatre Magic Show during COVID-19 - "Magic to me is..." at the Esplanade

“Magic to Me is…” is the first magic theatre production held in the Esplanade on 29th and 30th July since the COVID-19 pandemic. I am writing this to document the journey and steps (and side steps) we took to navigate through and in line with COVID19 regulations. Hopefully more live shows will take the step forward too

How It Began and Why, Especially during COVID19 where Restrictions are ever changing?

I took on the task of directing and producing an untitled theatre project for my team in End Feb 2021. The objective was to give the team a common goal to work towards, improve their morale and give them something to look forward to.

In the past year and a half, magic engagements within the team had been far and few because of the COVID-19 pandemic. While there are still strong support for virtual magic performances, these opportunities were fewer for the less experienced magicians in the team.

There was a strong need to encourage them to persevere and see the light at the end of the tunnel. However, without sufficient opportunities for performances, the light at the end was hard to see. Instead of waiting for opportunities to land on my lap, I took on the directorial task and initiated a theatre show for everyone in the team to work towards.

I was very encouraged by the enthusiasm of the team and the determination they had to make this a reality. The ground was set, the theatre was booked (and paid for) and we had to start. There was no turning back unless the government implemented new measures (more on that later!)

The Vision of “Magic to Me Is…”

While I had some experience in directing theatre shows with magic in it**, it was a different challenge to write and direct a show with 6 different performers with different skill set and theatrical experience. I took the task of explaining how Dinner and Dance magic shows were very different from a theatre-forward magic performance (in fact, I would go so far to call our show a theatre performance than a magic show).

As a director, I did not want the show to be a magic show where it was a montage of different performers showcasing random and different magic. I wanted it to be a collage of short stories with magic elements in them with storylines that cross each other and build towards a thesis of “What Magic is to you?”

**Past works include: (A Lack of Color (2020) - Supported by NAC; The Magic of Being Different (2020) - Supported by NAC; If You Can Imagine (2019) - commissioned by Esplanade , Elephant in the Room (2019)- commissioned by Esplanade, Virtual x Reality (2015)- commissioned by Esplanade)

The Process

I set up long Zoom calls with the cast to find out more about what magic truly meant to them. The conversations would span from an hour to 3 hours. The process was an enriching one for me as I learnt more about how the team got into magic, their goals and aspirations in magic (and in life) and how they are with and without magic.

I always begin the conversations by saying “Theatre requires honesty, your audiences can see through inauthenticity like a sore thumb”. And this was (and is) my fundamental approach to writing a production like this.

And I believe this very much especially for a small scale (read: Low Budget) production. I do not need (or want) special effects and extreme fireworks and CGI, but what I do demand is “Heart” and honesty. A show can only have “heart” if it is fuelled by authenticity, connecting with the audiences through genuine human struggles and overcoming them. People come to the theatres not to feel belittled, but to feel inspired and energised to overcome the next hurdle in their life. That is what separates a theatre performance from a magic show.

So after the lengthy Zoom calls, I started writing. I worked a theme for each of the performers and shared with them on how they can tell a great story with these themes in mind. Some stories were easier told than the others. In the process, I had to work extra hard to convince the performers to trust my vision as they too had a certain vision of their own which did not fit in the thesis of the show.

The performers were given specific key points of their theme and had to write their own script which I edited and improvised on thereafter.

The Rehearsals and Practice

We started our rehearsals in May, and they were all very smooth. I am very proud of the team especially the fact that they took the extra time to stay back and practiced further without any supervision.

We started with a session on the fundamentals of theatre, on voice projection, body language and communicating emotions. These practises were highly unorthodox in magic shows where the end goal was to create “wah wah wah!” (or “wow”) reactions from the audiences. My end goal was to touch the hearts of the audiences, to inspire and to make them feel more than just the feeling of amazement.

While the rehearsals were smooth, COVID-19 regulations implemented along the way made it very challenging for us to push the show forward (Spoiler alert, the show nearly had to be cancelled and a portion of our material had to be scrapped)

The Challenges

Picture by: Noah (@naozitio)

There is no project without its unique challenges, for us, there were several. The first challenge we faced was that our tickets were oversubscribed (which was a great problem to have). So we proceeded to book 2 nights at the Esplanade instead of 1. However, this was when things got messier with the implementation of Phase 2.

Wearing Mask and Performing

We were quite lucky to still be able to do the show but we had to wear our masks throughout. This was at best a minor inconvenience which did not affect the show very much. I had to reiterate to the team that now that their smiles and frowns cannot be seen, they had to communicate more engagingly with their bodies and their eyes.

It was a good lesson and training in non facial communication.

AB Shift

With the Phase 2 HA1, we were informed by Esplanade that they had an A/B shift falling both on Thursday and Friday. Hence we can only do 1 of the nights instead of 2. One of the solutions was to cancel the Friday show.

Ideally, we would want to proceed with 2 nights since the tickets for both nights were sold out already and the refund process was cumbersome. I then made the decision to wait and if need be, cancel one of the nights. After a week of frazzling over this, Esplanade came back to us with good news a change in their shift days and we will be able to do both shows. (Phew!)

Audience Participation

Prior to Phase 2 HA2, the guideline stated that there can be no audiences invited on stage to participate. And this was something that I was very clear on from the beginning. We were restricted in that we cannot get a participant to give a response into a microphone. But that was okay because my team and I developed web-applications to circumvent this problem. We had a QR code system where the audience would scan and input their answers. All was hunky dory and we were all set!

However, with Phase 2HA2, the definition was restricted to No Participation of any form. The apps we created were no allowed to be used even though there was no physical contact between us and the audiences. This was very frustrating as it was 2 weeks to the performance and about 25% of the acts had to be changed. Esplanade was also very strict (and rightfully so) on this, and we had to abide to the rules.

The good thing was that the affected performers rose to the task and changed their act. My act was affected as well.

While the original intended ending of the show was supposed to based on a premise of fate and destiny and choices made by an audience member, I had to take on a performative route instead. Scripts were rewritten and we all in line with the thesis of the show.

And a confession, it turned out better than I expected :D

Post Performance Thoughts

Going through the hurdles of COVID-19 to get back to the norm was certainly not an easy task for the performing arts.

I have the privilege of a great team and supportive audiences. It was truly a pleasure to be directing and leading this show. I had great support from Meta Illusions and its Alumnus who volunteered their time to help in the production of the show.

Picture by: Noah (@naozitio)

This show was very well received and the consistent feedback that I hear about the show was that it had heart, it does not aim to fool you or put the performers in an elevated magician-y status; it aims to connect, uplift and inspire. And it does so beautifully and poetically.

I certainly hope to play this show again locally and internationally when the borders open.

I hope live entertainment can resume smoothly and safely and we all can take the stage once again!

Picture by: Noah (@naozitio)

I hope to see you on stage the next time, be it a virtual one or one at a theatre.

Till the next time, take care and stay safe!

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Alexander Y. is Asia’s Top iPad Magician, who has been invited performing in several countries such as Hong Kong, Saudi Arabia, India. He is known for his storytelling and magic, allowing him to not just capture the eyes of the audience, but also their hearts. In his (little to negligible) free time, he enjoys films by Christopher Nolan, Spike Jones and Makoto Shinkai. The best feeling one can give is to give his/her audience the satisfaction of realization and everything is illuminated.

His recent favorite movie is Love and Monsters by Michael Matthews

Interested in working and collaborating with Alexander? Reach him at alexander@metaillusions.com

MICE Events from 1st October 2020 - How to ensure a safe event

Since the government’s announcement of the reopening of MICE events from 1st October, the team at Meta Illusions have worked out a safety protocol to ensure that all performances at a physical venue is handled with caution and safety.

We have devised a safety protocol with measures taken, Pre, During and Post event.

Take a look to find out how we are handling this COVID-19 crisis and getting performance ready as soon as possible.

A Magic Plateau: Taking a Different Step in the Same Direction

At some point in time, we all face burnouts in our career. It would feel like we have hit a point where things start to get stagnant; you come in to work, reply emails, send emails, wait for emails, craft proposals and then send more emails. This happens in all jobs, including mine. 

While the cycle for me to feel burnout is substantially longer, the last time I felt a burn out was in 2014, every time that it does hit me, I would take a step back to think, "What can I do differently, that will push me towards the end goal?". This question is important for me as an artist and a self employed entrepreneur. I cannot allow myself to detract too far from my artistic goals. The most common solution to a burnout is to take a long vacation, and that, I do not have the luxury of. 

In order to take a step back from the daily grind, (my routine largely consist of overdosing myself with coffee, replying a ton of emails, crafting a ton of proposals (in which most would be ignored or stolen by competition), coding my iPad Magic Apps (most of the time I am just pulling my hair trying to figure out that ONE thing) and the occasional meetings where I do enjoy), I had to make myself fall in love with the craft of magic again. 

I took on small directorial roles in creating magic shows. Last year, I designed a show consisting of 3 Magicians who performs together like a boyband: The Strangers. This show took over 8 months in terms of conceptualization, casting, rehearsing and troubleshooting. We had been very lucky to get the support of a large number of past clients and events partners for our show. 

While it is easier to coach and design a show for a team who sees you as their mentor, there were challenges to be faced. Overcoming these challenges prepared me for a project that I undertook in late 2017 [Cue Suspenseful Music]:

I took on a project to design and direct a magic show that cast the BOARD OF DIRECTORS of a company. 

I knew this was not going to be an easy feat since it would be different coaching a cast who were used to telling others what to do. Also, their interest in magic might not be as strong as the students under my wing. Another thing that hinted me that this was not going to be an easy task, was the fact that the main client (one of the director of the company), lamented that many other magicians had turned down this challenge (or opportunity).

The whole process began in November and the performance was to be in February. One of the challenges we faced was to find a suitable timing for rehearsal, since all of them have to allocate time outside of work for this, coming to a common time was tedious. Thankful, we were able to settle on a common regular timing. 

We utilized our studio space for our weekly rehearsals. With the help of my fellow trainers, the learning of the magic was one of the easiest part of the process. 

One of the biggest challenge we faced was to impart theatre techniques to them. Given that they were not in the performing arts, they were not well versed with movement, space and vocal effects. As a director, I had to balance between the drilling of these techniques while bearing in mind the limited time span and their capacity. At the end, everyone did exceptionally well and the show was very well received by their colleagues (If you don't believe me, see the video towards the end).

It was a tremendous joy to see the cast grow from shy individuals to charismatic performers on stage. Such skills are transferable to their careers when they are to do presentations or to meet clients. 

Here is one of the pieces performed that day which incorporates elements of their company's core values and magic:

Taking on this project also taught me the patience and given me the learning experience in crafting meaningful magic. Imparting performance skills to them, sharpened my own. They say that the best way to learn, is to teach; and that is definitely true.

Here is one of my favorite pieces of the show as it serves to inspire the audiences, motivate them to overcome adversity:

So to all that are feeling a little bit unmotivated at work, try something new, try something different. It might be harder at first, but at the end of the day, you will enjoy it!

After the event, we had a strong commendation letter from our client:

Hi, Alexander and Kim,

Sincerely, and on behalf of my colleagues, I thank Metaillusions team for the relentless coaching throughout the months of preparation.

It was a journey travelled with much challenges & frustrations at times from conceptualising to learning to the final moments, as we have members dropping out, we neglect and only to catch up with the practices at the 11th hour etc, and I witnessed how you and your team bore with us during this period and never stopped giving reminders again and again, only to make sure we succeed.

Thank you, Alexander, for the efforts in studying our personalities and customising the roles for us, I am impressed by this segment of the entire process.

There were a couple of genuine miscommunication and misunderstandings which I so appreciate our resolving them together.

Thank you, Kim, for patient guidance despite our constant forgetting of the lines and theatrical techniques.

There were just so many of us with different gaps during the training sessions, I really don’t know how you did it, but you did it.

Thank you, Anderson, Yuqi & Douglas for accommodating our rehearsal, and seeing to stage preparation.

Not easy, but you all made it work.

I am not sure if you still remember I once shared with you that another company actually gave us up after understanding our performing needs and diversified profiles.  Metaillusions took up this mission (which I thought was almost impossible) and made it a success.  Besides the concrete leadership, Metaillusions has a great team.  The young men are disciplined, humble and embrace accountability; as a HR practitioner it has been a long time since I last encountered such professional young generation from this new era.

Honestly, there were some slips during the actual performance, and I personally wished it could be better.  But well that was the best we ever could be at that very moment and I am 100% sure my team gave it all.

So once again, thank you, gentlemen.  On a personal capacity, you helped me see the other side and real side of magic, just like how the sun rises in the morning which is one magical moment that we all take for granted.  Indeed I appreciate magic is all around us so long we can see it.

Metaillusions, you create magic!

Here's wishing Metaillusions a fabulous 2018 & beyond!

Regards

Director, Corporate Services

Woohoo, and very touched!

Watch how the pieces are seamlessly and beautifully crafted into a performance, here!

Keen to learn magic? Want to have a show designed for your company's special night? Or even incorporating magic into your presentations? Look for the professionals, drop us a line!

HERE!

Signing Off 

Alexander Y 

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Alexander Y. is Asia’s Top iPad Magician, who has been invited performing in several countries such as Hong Kong, Saudi Arabia, India. He is often sought after by clients who wants their brand stories to be told in a fun, engaging and memorable way. He enjoys watching artsy movies, his favorite directors include, Christopher Nolan, Spike Jonze, Michael Gondry.

For any enquiries, do contact him at alexander@ipadmagician.org