Adam Rubin is a best-selling author, designer, and performer based in Brooklyn. He is one of the proprietors of the Art of Play curiosity shop and 69 Atlantic theater.
My definition of success in magic: Rekindling a sense of wonder in the world.
My definition of failure in magic:When cynicism outweighs astonishment.
One trick that I wish I learned to perform better: Card to Pocket.
One trick that I can always count on: Card to Pocket.
When it felt, to me, like real magic: One time, back in Chicago, my friends decided to surprise me with a random, stupid birthday gift. “You’ll never guess what it is,” they taunted the night before the party. “Is it a VHS copy of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles Live Concert from the ‘90s?” They were so mad I guessed correctly, they never gave me the present. To this day, I don’t know how I did it.