Marvyn's Magic Theater was created on a dare. It all started when Jeff Hobson formed a friendship with a previous client, Gary Beutler. Beutler, a magic enthusiast, told Hobson for years that he wanted to open a magic venue one day, and he wanted Hobson to run it. Hobson didn’t think much of the idea, even when the two were in La Quinta, California, and agreed that the area—full of retirees with money and too few places to spend it—would be the perfect spot for a magic theater.
Beutler said he was going to look for a place in the area. Hobson nodded, and then promptly forgot about it, thinking that his friend wasn’t serious. He found out, however, how serious Beutler was when he got a call from him while performing with The Illusionists in Sydney, Australia, telling Hobson that he was about to sign a lease for a space. “While I was on the phone, I realized this is going to be my last appearance with The Illusionists, because I have to quit,” Hobson told Genii.
The entrance to Marvyn’s Magic Theater on a sunny day in La Quinta. Marvyn’s 130-seat theater before the guests are let in
Hobson and his wife Yvonne moved to La Quinta, and Marvyn’s Magic Theater opened in the fall of 2019. They had a great six months before the pandemic shut them down, but they reopened again in the fall of 2021. Just before the reopening, the Hobsons bought the theater from Beutler and now own and run it outright.