By JESSICA NEU
At the opening of each Liberty Magic performance, venue manager Zoe Ruth gives a curtain speech where she explains that there are two types of people who watch magic shows: the skeptic and the dreamer. Since attending several shows at Liberty Magic and witnessing some absolutely incredible magicians,
I can proudly say that I have transcended from skeptic to dreamer. But even my dreamer approach was a bit baffled by Liberty’s latest resident, Siegfried Tieber. His show,Sixty-Seven Keys, runs through September 3 as part of the 2023-24 season special.
I never know how any of these talented magicians execute their tricks, but sometimes I can guess what the outcome of the trick will be midway through. Tieber’s approach to storytelling, sleight of hand, magic, and illusion honestly left me guessing about the outcome of the trick until the climax of each event.
His show is like a wild road trip with your best friend, with several exciting twists, turns, and detours along the way. Tieber’s talent has resulted in him being on the short list of magicians to fool Penn & Teller on the show Penn & Teller: Fool Us. Tieber, however, does not like to think of magic as a way to fool someone. He views magic as a way to create something to celebrate and share. He believes that magic brings people together, and even before his first trick, Tieber unites the crowd with his endearing and welcoming sense of humor and personality. Tieber’s love for people and magic shine through his entire performance as he involves more audience participation than any show I have previously attended. This level of involvement adds to the feeling of magic as a vehicle for togetherness. Tieber is upbeat and delightfully funny throughout the entire show, but underneath the gregarious personality is a serious and thought-provoking magician.
Tieber presents magic from a vantage point that I had not considered, referring to many of his tricks as a game. Beneath the wildly clever tricks, especially how he manipulates a Rubik’s Cube, are some potent life lessons: Life is a combination of chance and luck. Those who control the cards can control luck. You cannot control chance. Chaos and order are reciprocal in nature. There is order in chaos and chaos in order – your perception determines how you view each attribute. You have the power to control coincidence. “We don’t stop playing because we grow old, we grow old when we stop playing,” (Tieber cites George Bernard Shaw for this quote). Chess is nearly the perfect game. Everyone starts with the same advantages. Chess is fair. Life is not fair. Chess is long. Life is short. Embrace chess.
Many of Tieber’s tricks involve his impeccable memory. As someone who struggles to remember where they put their cell phone or car keys, I was amazed by this talent alone.
However, the biggest takeaway from Sixty-Seven Keys is that Tieber’s memory will create a lasting memory for audience members filled with thoughts of their own lives and a joyous sense of togetherness. After all, even the crowd at Liberty Magic is brought together by chance and luck.
TICKETS AND DETAILS:
Siegfried Tieber’s Sixty-Seven Keys has performances Wednesdays through Sundays until September 3, 2023, at Liberty Magic—a project of the Pittsburgh Cultural Trust.
Tickets at https://trustarts.org/production/87183/siegfried-tieber-in-sixty-seven-keys
Categories: Reviews
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