It’s been just over a year since 69 Atlantic Avenue in Brooklyn was transformed from a dilapidated 1980s-style credit union into an Art of Play store with a secret close-up theater nestled in the back.
Owners Adam Rubin, Dan Buck, and Dave Buck named the venue after the building’s street address, and since it has opened, it’s enjoyed a bevy of world-class talent.
Eric Mead was the first to perform there on October 18, 2024, which happened to be the first day the store was open as well. “Our plan was to open the store three weeks before our first show, to get our feet under us and figure out what the hell we were doing,” said Adam. “And instead we opened three hours before the first show.”
The 26-seat theater was, in fact, not quite finished, but Eric still had a great run. Since that beginning, almost 30 acts have performed in that secret space, including Garrett Thomas, Zabrecky, R. Paul Wilson, Andrew Frost, Jay Gilligan, Inés, and Alexandra Duvivier (all of whom have signed the bottom of the theater’s close-up table to commemorate their time there).
LEFT: Inés RIGHT: Mario Lopez / Photos by Hal Schulman
“It’s become really a wonderful chapel, a space that’s very intimate and warm and
inviting. And when people come to perform here, I think they find a real rare opportunity to express themselves and experiment, and present close-up magic at the highest possible level,” said Adam.
A Night Full of Surprises
The theater itself is often a secret even to those who’ve bought tickets; many who come to the address think that the show will take place in the Art of Play store. “It’s not that we’re secretive about it or lying about it,” said Adam. “We just don’t discourage any ambiguity about where it’s going to happen. And there’s no reason for them to know that there are secret doors.”
Once inside the shop, guests are greeted by hosts who give them wine or another drink of their choosing. After a brief introduction in the store, guests enter the theater space through one of those aforementioned secret doors. The theater itself has tiered seating, painted black walls, custom drapery, and is given a certain ambience with candles and a fog machine. Guests take their seats, and after a brief introduction, the performer of the night begins their 60-minute show.
Given the venue’s success, Adam, Dan, and Dave upped the number of shows from four to six a week, with Prakash Puru performing every Wednesday and the visiting magician performing one show Thursday and two shows Friday and Saturday nights. “We try to get a new performer every week,” explained Dan. “But sometimes that’s not practical, especially if they’re coming from halfway around the world.”
The magic shows aren’t the only events in the space. They also have a monthly speaker series—where people from other professions like woodworking, designing, and writing, come to speak about how magic relates to their respective practice—and a monthly movie session, where Dan or shop and theater manager Hal Schulman tees up clips from classic performances to share with some of 69 Atlantic’s regular visitors. “We are very much a community venue,” said Dan. “We have a lot of locals that come back once, sometimes twice a week, and some of them have seen every act, which is impressive.”
Adam added that their goal is to “cultivate an informed laity…. These are people that actually know magic, and that gives performers who come an opportunity to present at a higher level, and it also challenges them to present magic at the highest possible level.”
The Future
Art of Play and 69 Atlantic aren’t slowing down. In October, Adam, Dan, and Dave put up a neon sign for 69 Atlantic on their storefront, letting passersby know that something magical is within the building’s walls beyond what they may see through the shop window. Special events will continue as well, including a Potter & Potter auction there on October 12, which will have 100-year-old board games, impossible bottles by Harry Eng, and lots of Dave and Dan memorabilia up for sale.
Zabrecky will be performing there from October 16 to October 25, and Mac King and Dani DaOrtiz are also set to perform at 69 Atlantic before the end of the year. “There are some people coming that I just… it’s going to make me tear up when I see them on the stage here,” said Adam. “It’s a privilege, really, to be able to just point at this great art that’s happening that people would never get to see otherwise.”
69 Atlantic
The new home for close up magic shows in Brooklyn. Wednesday - Saturday @ 7:15pm & 9:30pm. A different artist in residence each week. 26 seats / 21+