Jordi Magomero. Photo ©Herb Scher. The roots of Jordi Magomero's show Dreams About Magic are in a neighborhood arts center in Barcelona, where he developed it over two years. Eventually the show was expanded and showcased at El Rey de la Magia, the magic theatre at one of Europe's oldest magic stores. Jordi's magic was deeply influenced by his mentors in Barcelona, Gabi Pareras and Ricardo Vizcarra. His show reflects the traditional Spanish style, which he describes as a "journey" with the spectators. Jordi creates intimate miracles with cards, coins, and balls, many of which are woven into stories. In the following interview he discusses specifically the nature of magic in Spain, his work with Pareras and Vizcarra, the broader influence of magicians like Juan Tamariz and Jorge Blass and how his work has been shaped by the more direct style of magic he has encountered while living in the United States. Dreams About Magic will run May 8, 9, and 10 at the Treehouse Theater. More information is available: here.
Jordi, I’m looking forward to your show, but before we get into that, can you tell me a little bit about your background, about how you got interested in magic in the first place.
Jordi, I’m looking forward to your show, but before we get into that, can you tell me a little bit about your background, about how you got interested in magic in the first place.
Probably I got into magic like 99% of the kids all around the world. They receive a magic set when they were kids. But to be honest it was kind of frustrating when I was 7 or 8 years old. The quality of the props in the kit was really, really bad and I needed the help of my parents to understand how the tricks work, and then I realized that when I was ready to perform, the only audience I had was them and they already knew the secret. So I put it aside, and as a good European I was more focused on soccer and other activities, but the magic was always there. Every single time I had the opportunity to see a live show or a TV show I was there watching the special or the show. I remember that in 2006 I came home and I saw a TV show with young magicians. It wasn’t an old guy with a suit performing. What I saw was a young adult like me and he was performing on the street. His name is Jorge Blass and I got hooked. I saw the entire show and the good thing was that it a regular series shown each week. The show was called Nada por Aqui - Nothing Here.
After the second week I told my wife, you know what, ‘I really need to do that.’ And I went to a magic shop. I bought my first book and my first Bicycle deck and that’s how I started.
Wow, so you were already married at that point.
Yes, I was 28 years old when I started seriously. Kind of old.
After the second week I told my wife, you know what, ‘I really need to do that.’ And I went to a magic shop. I bought my first book and my first Bicycle deck and that’s how I started.
Wow, so you were already married at that point.
Yes, I was 28 years old when I started seriously. Kind of old.
Jordi performs at the Montgai street magic festival. Going back for a second to childhood. You got this magic set, but had you already expressed an interest in magic? What was it about magic that caught your attention? Do you remember the first magician you saw?
The first magician that I saw probably was Juan Tamariz on a TV program called Un, Dos, Tres. It was a weekly show where contestants were trying to win prizes and he was one of the characters that appeared. I don’t remember what the precise trick was that I saw, but of course he was the one that I saw. The second one I remember was a Catalan magician. I’m from Barcelona, from Catalonia, and we had our own Catalan magican called Magic Andreu. He was quite popular in the 80s and the 90s. The set that I received was a magic box from Magic Andreu and he appeared on the VHS tape that came with it. But I think that what hooked me probably is that I couldn’t understand what was going on. I don’t like to see magic as a puzzle, but it was something that was impossible to happen, but it happened. The ability to create something that is impossible and then to do it is what got me. [Story continues]
The first magician that I saw probably was Juan Tamariz on a TV program called Un, Dos, Tres. It was a weekly show where contestants were trying to win prizes and he was one of the characters that appeared. I don’t remember what the precise trick was that I saw, but of course he was the one that I saw. The second one I remember was a Catalan magician. I’m from Barcelona, from Catalonia, and we had our own Catalan magican called Magic Andreu. He was quite popular in the 80s and the 90s. The set that I received was a magic box from Magic Andreu and he appeared on the VHS tape that came with it. But I think that what hooked me probably is that I couldn’t understand what was going on. I don’t like to see magic as a puzzle, but it was something that was impossible to happen, but it happened. The ability to create something that is impossible and then to do it is what got me. [Story continues]
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