Today’s edition of The Sun gives well-deserved coverage to Inside Magic Favorite Andrew Mayne and his new show Don’t Trust Andrew Mayne,
Mr. Mayne is an accomplished performer and prolific inventor of great effects. The Sun gives us some insight into the self-effacing magician that is rarely the fodder of a typical feature piece about a network star. It is refreshing to read.
But what about the show’s title? Shouldn’t all magicians be beloved and trusted without question? Why would a magician want to begin with the premise that he is untrustworthy?
“I liked the idea of using magic to do something different. In this case, instead of just watching me do something really cool, you get to see me use magic to help people get revenge on someone they love or to convey a pertinent message.”
We admit that our recent search of the internets shows there are no other “revenge magicians.”
(Here is a tip from your family-friendly editor, do not do a search using the words “revenge” and “trick” or “perform” if you are at work or have any concern that humanity is quickly sliding down a well-oiled slope towards a society where one would not want to saunter without first donning a hazmat suit and mega-dosing amoxicillin).
His approach is different than others who claim to be Street Magicians.
“I can’t just ask someone for a ring, I have to convince them to give it to a stranger.”
That is a little tougher than confronting drunk groups of 20-somethings with a camera crew along to capture the moment.
(Editor: we assume the writer meant that the magician doing the confronting had a camera crew in tow as he confronted the drunken group of young people, not that the magician looked for the unique configuration — rarely seen on today’s city streets — of publicly intoxicated folks matching the show’s focus demographic who happen to also have a camera crew (presumably not similarly intoxicated) in their midst).
The Sun reporter asked Mr. Mayne if his impromptu audiences “see through him” on occasion.
“I think people see through me all the time!”
“I have had times when I do something like making a phone vanish – I then walk away thinking they are still standing there.
“Then someone will run up behind me and grab me and tackle me! They don’t know how it works but they know I had done something to them.”
His goal is not to prove himself superior to those he encounters.
Yes, his reputation precedes him and, as seen in some of the clips on YouTube, some folks run the other way when they see him coming.
“On the whole, I think many know that I am a pretty nice guy and if I get hold of them, they are going to have fun.”
Check out Mr. Mayne’s website here: http://andrewmayne.com.
