It’s all about astonishing the audience for John LeBlanc, who goes by the stage name Telemus.
For Sterling Dietz, it’s about telling stories through magic.
The two Washington-native magicians are bringing those purposes for performing and their magical skills to Everett Theatre for three shows this weekend, so local audiences can experience, as they say, what it’s like to be totally, and in some cases, emotionally, involved in their brand of entertainment.
“I want you to be able to enjoy the show and be taken for a magic carpet ride of emotional wonder,” Telemus, 51, said. “A few moments of pure astonishment is what we are here to give you. Life is not about how many years you breathe; it is about the moments that take your breath away.”
Dietz, 16, also works to involve the audience: “I like to tell stories with my magic, as I bring the audience along on my journey of wonder and mystery. Young people really enjoy my magic, but I get a real kick out of frying the brains of adults. They always walk away saying to themselves, ‘That’s not what I thought I was going to see.’ And that’s good!”
One example Dietz gave of telling stories through his magic involved a newspaper showing a picture of the world. As he tears the newspaper into strips, Dietz narrates the story of a girl who wants her father to go outside and play with her. In the story, the father hands the torn newspaper to the girl, and says once she puts the world back together correctly, he will play with her. Dietz flips the torn newspaper out of his hands, holds it in front of him, and the paper appears just as it was before being torn. The moral of this story, Dietz explains, is that magic is in all of us.
Telemus is a Boeing employee who started his professional magic career in 2002. He met Dietz in 2004 at a magic class in Bellingham, and again at another class in Las Vegas in 2005. The Everett shows will be their first time performing an entire show together, Telemus says, although they have done bit parts together in other shows.
“I really wanted to do a show with Sterling because it won’t be long before some casino or production house picks him up and he won’t be available any more,” Telemus said.
Dietz, an honor roll junior at Lynden High School, who already has been named a World Teen Champion of Magic, says being a student hasn’t delayed his progress as a magician, nor his ability to do shows; he’s performed 300 times in the past two years.
“It takes a lot, to do it all. … but I am very fortunate to have teachers who are supportive of my magical talents,” he said. “To find one’s passion so early in life is truly a blessing.”
Magic competitions are divided into a seniors division, with no age limit, and a junior division, for those ages 7 to 19, Dietz said, but since he has won every major junior competition in which he’s participated in the past two years, his plan for any future competitions is to move up to the senior division.
The emcee for this weekend’s shows will be Charles Dorby, a bodybuilder, comedian and entertainer, whom Telemus met through Boeing.
“He is involved because having a comedian in the show will relax the crowd,” Telemus said. “He is one funny guy and a great emcee.”
According to press materials, Dorby promotes bodybuilding, exercise and a healthier lifestyle through the use of stomach-clenching laughter, something which should be in no short supply during these three shows.
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