Eugene Burger Interview

So Eugene, how long have you been interested in magic/ When did you start?
I first became involved with magic when I was about eight years old. I was given a Mysto Magic set for Christmas. Soon thereafter I saw Jack Gwynne at the Oriental Theatre in Chicago and knew from that moment that I was being called to be a magician too. It took me over thirty years to answer that calling. I was deeply immersed in the study of magic until I went to college. When I was about twenty and in college, my interest in magic fell away -- and I sold all of my magic props and books. For a period of about fifteen years, I was not involved with magic at all. Then, when I was thirty-five, I returned to magic with renewed passion. Four years later I resigned from my job and turned to magic full-time. I have never regretted this choice because it was returning to a deep inward calling from childhood.

You are regarded by many as one of the 'great' close-up magicians, have you always specialized in this field or did you want to be a stage magician?
I never wanted to be a stage magician. My hero and role-model was Don Alan - and some of the other Chicago close-up magicians from the 1950s. My dream was always to do close-up magic exclusively - supporting myself, as it were, with a pack of cards. It has only been in the last three years that I have done real stage work. Three years ago I starred in a production of the Shakespeare Festival/Los Angeles that combined Shakespeare ghost scenes with spirit magic. Earlier this year, I co-starred with Jeff McBride in a stage show called, "The Forbidden Secret of Magic," that we are planning to do again next year. Although I never expected to enjoy stage work, I find that I do very much. And I greatly enjoyed and profited from working with Jeff. I consider him one of the great magicians of our time.

You mentioned Don Alan, do you have any other heroes of magic?
Albert Goshman, Max Maven, Jeff McBride - and, just to be safe, that other person whose name slips my memory at the moment.

Do you have any advice for young magicians starting out in magic?
When you are young, it is important to learn the basics. If you are involved with close-up magic, learn your sleights. Many fail to do this. If we are to play beautiful melodies later, we must first learn to play the scales now. When I was young, I loved practicing my magic in front of a mirror. It was a time of real enjoyment for me. I talked out loud to imaginary audience members. When I look back on it, I think that this was very good to do - and it helped me later in my performing. Always to ask yourself, further, how you might do things differently. Magic as an art never grows if we are all slavishly following and doing what the books say we should do. Magic grows when someone with courage does what the books say not to do! Finally, being charming is always a good idea. Charm works wonders.

I know that you are a master at 'setting the scene' for your magic, do you have any tips?
Yes, first one must be deeply aware that 'setting the scene' is tremendously important if our magic is to have great impact upon people. Then we must ask ourselves what we can do, what we might add, to embellish our magic. Perhaps a (short!) story. Perhaps a candle or an unusual looking prop.

Do you have a favourite trick?
No, all of the effects in my repertoire are 'favourite' tricks, otherwise I wouldn't be doing them. Very often I do not choose the tricks I perform; they choose me!!

Eugene, thank you very much.
My pleasure