By MARIA SCIULLO
Brian Jay Corrigan, JD, PhD, is a storyteller with literally the magic touch. Part of his craft includes spinning historical fiction into a highly entertaining evening of illusion, sleight of hand, and a demonstration of mesmerizing proportions.
Charles Dickens, Conjurer, is the latest entry in the Liberty Magic series. As presented in the cozy Pittsburgh Cultural Trust‘s Liberty Magic theater, the program is lighter on tricks but deeper in contemplation than the usual fare.
Corrigan, who is a senior professor of Renaissance literature at the University of North Georgia, certainly has the magician’s cred: he’s a three-time winner of the Legion d’Horreur “Bizarre Magic Effect of the Year.” He’s also one of only seven honorary lifetime members of the British Society of Mystery Entertainers.
On a recent winter’s eve, he glided through some of Dickens’ best-known works, including The Pickwick Papers, Nicholas Nickleby and, of course, A Christmas Carol. Corrigan has a lovely way of becoming the characters. His background as an actor helped bring to life the writer, dressed in black as befitted the 19th-century author, he related tales of despair, scandal, love, and often, death.
And naturally, there was magic to do.
Liberty Magic always lends itself to audience participation. Sometimes, the effects were close-up fun — a card trick seemingly gone wrong that, of course, did not. Another involved a process Corrigan stressed was grounded in reality; “mesmerizing” is not hypnosis but can produce amazing results. (And, he added, “It doesn’t always work.”)
In the latter instance, a blond woman volunteer was called upon to concentrate on a gold watch while, in her peripheral vision, a series of cards was shown. “It’s relying on a filtration system to remember only what is needed,” he said.
Without spoiling the trick with details, suffice it to say, it paid off. The look of shock on the woman’s face was priceless.
After the show, Corrigan talked about his background growing up in both the American Midwest and England. His mother’s side of the family was in the entertainment business, and his Uncle Myles was a well-known magician in the 1930s and 40s. “Something in the blood,” he said, chuckling.
Corrigan has authored a biography of M.R. James, the “father of the modern ghost story.” He’s also performed programs that combine conjuring and other literary giants, such as Shakespeare.
But in this season, it’s appropriately Dickens. Ghosts abound, but so does the promise of redemption. Corrigan, the literary scholar, was pressed to name his favorite on-screen Ebenezer Scrooge.
He went with a classic choice: 1951’s Alastair Sim.
TICKETS AND DETAILS
Charles Dickens, Conjurer, runs through December 21 at Liberty Magic,, Downtown. For tickets, www.trustarts.org or 412-456-6666.
Categories: Arts and Ideas
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