There’s more magic on Broadway than the upcoming Now You See Me Live production. One example is Paranormal Activity, a show based on the horror film franchise of the same name. NPR interviewed magician Chris Fisher, who is behind the magical effects seen in this production as well as other Broadway shows like Stranger Things: The First Shadow, and Harry Potter and the Cursed Child, about his work in illusion design.
The NPR coverage comes in two parts: a written article, and a four-minute audio clip. The two pieces complement each other but are different in content. The clip starts out with the audio from a scene in Paranormal Activity; the specifics of what’s happening onstage aren’t revealed, though you can hear the audience gasp and shout when something happens. It then goes on with insights from Fisher and also from Cher Alvarez, who stars in the production.
In the written piece, Fisher connects creating scares onstage with catching someone on the offbeat in magic: “We use this feeling of drawing you in—and then nothing happens. And then drawing you in, drawing you in—nothing happens, nothing happens. And then, just on an offbeat, something happens,” he said.
Back on the audio side, Alvarez shared her thoughts on working with Fisher. “Sometimes you’re like, what is that man cooking up? Because, yes, he’s an illusionist, but his mind is also working like an engineer, too, you know? He believes so strongly in it that you can’t help but just be like, yeah, I’ll try it… how can we make this better?”
She added, “I never thought that I would be doing magic onstage, ever, in my life… but I can tell people that I’ve disappeared onstage before, and that’s really freaking cool. Can’t tell you how it’s done, but I did it.”
Paranormal Activity production photos by Matthew Murphy