With a combination of storytelling, fantasy and comedy that illuminates the stage, Houston-based illusionist/magician Robby Bennett is shedding a new light on some old tricks.
"Really, what I've tried to do is take the old methods of magic and modernize them ... add a more entertaining element to them, whether it be a story or some sort of comedic piece," said the 21-year-old who will kick off his national "Where's the Rabbit?" tour at 7 p.m. tonight at the Stephen F. Austin State University Baker Pattillo Student Center Grand Ballroom.
Bennett said that through his shows he tries to motivate the tricks the same way a special effect is motivated in a movie or TV show.
"With special effects in movies and television, they're always motivated," he said. "Instead of a contrived plot, I let the story create the magic."
Bennett got his introduction to magic at a young age.
"I got my first magic kit when I was 5, and like most kids ... I was kind of disappointed that I couldn't clean my room with a magic wand, so it sat in a closet and collected dust for a couple years," he said.
But, four years later, while undergoing treatment for a stomach condition at Texas Children's Hospital, the magic kit re-emerged.
"During that time, to keep myself occupied, I started to learn magic. And, as I worked my way through it (the kit), I moved onto different things to kind of occupy myself and keep my mind off the pain," Bennett said. "When I got back (home), I realized I had a skill that other people didn't have."
He said performances he gave to his teachers and classmates received positive feedback, and, in response, at the age of 12, he began to perform professionally at private parties and special events.
"I think it was something that made up for all those touchdowns I didn't score and home runs I couldn't make while I was sick," he said.
Since his departure as a patient from the children's hospital, Bennett has continued to support the place where his enthusiasm for magic first began. He said for the last decade he's volunteered there in different capacities and worked as the magic teacher for a camp for pediatric cancer patients. All of the proceeds from tonight's show, which is sponsored by Gamma Kappa Omega, will benefit Texas Children's Hospital.
His tour, "Where's the Rabbit," which got its title from the concept of moving away from old magic and the metaphoric and literary illusion of "Alice in Wonderland," will continue across the Southwest and East Coast in 2010. Tickets for tonight's show are $15 and $10, with six on stage seats for $100. They can be purchased online at www.robbybennett.com or Stacy@MadOneStudio.com.
