06.20.19

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•CALENDAR•
20 PASADENA WEEKLY | 06.20.19
Ivan Amodei
Magic With a Message
ILLUSIONIST IVAN AMODEI BRINGS LIFE-CHANGING MAGIC TO THE ALEX THEATRE
BY CARL KOZLOWSKI
You have to be one hell of a magician to
confound the legendary magic duo of
Penn & Teller on their CW network TV
show “Penn & Teller: Fool Us,” but Ivan
Amodei is one of the few to have accomplished
just that. In the past couple of
years, he has parlayed that achievement
into a fast-rising career that brings him
to the stage of the historic Alex Theatre
in Glendale on Saturday night.
Titled “Secrets & Illusions,” the
show features Amodei leading audiences
on an epic journey to discover the
secrets of life.
Set on the dark and deserted
streets of Paris, audiences will enter the
legendary Louvre Museum, where an
enchanting musical muse escorts them
through galleries, while Ivan uncovers
life’s greatest mysteries deep inside
the priceless works of art, one dazzling
illusion at a time.
The 90-minute spectacular focuses
on providing “magic with a message,”
and displays Amodei’s signature style of
thought-provoking vignettes, audience
participation, and storytelling.
“The show isn’t just magic tricks, it
actually has parts that address important
life things like facing fears, making
choices and finding love all in a funny
way with illusions that support the message,”
says Amodei. “I say ‘we’re gonna
face your fear today,’ and a spectator
comes on stage and we play Russian
Roulette with a 12 inch hunting knife
hidden in a paper bag straight up and
you have to decide which one to slam
your hand into.
“There’ll be a large butcher knife with
a 12-inch blade, hidden under a paper bag
drilled into a stand so the blade is straight
up,” Amodei continues. “I cover the entire
stand and knife with a paper bag and put
the identical ones that are empty there
too, then mix them up on the table so we
don’t know which is which. And I tell her
the game is slam hand on the bag and
then come to which one will have the
knife. Most people run out and I have to
get a second participant. That just adds
to the suspense, and the whole point is to
face your fears.”
The 45-year-old Amodei was born
in Sicily and moved to the US at the age
of two, becoming fascinated by magic
when he saw a family friend performing
tricks when he was 5. He first started
performing small-group magic as a
waiter to earn better tips while saving
for college, then moved on to parlor-size
audiences before going fully professional
with large-scale crowds.
Rather than waiting for gigs to come
to him or languishing at a day job and
performing at parties for side money,
Amodei created a full-fledged show
after college and took the risk of selling
tickets to theaters he rented.
“The show’s illusions are demonstrations
of messages in life, not a
magic show where I put a girl in a box
and saw her in half,” says Amodei.
“This is a show about thinking about
the messages and facing your fears.
The participation allows the show to go
in a different direction. It’s a show that
actually will help inspire you to move on
to the next level of your life.
“A lot of people are stuck and
don’t know what they want to do,” he
concludes. “This is about how you can
achieve more and demonstrate and
prove what I’m saying is right. All of the
show’s illusions have premises in them,
including finding love, purpose in life,
why are you on this planet, your destiny.
What if you said yes to that job, no to
that job, move to this state? Things that
actually prove certain things about life.
It’s a really different show.” n
Ivan Amodei performs “Secrets & Illusions” at
7:30 p.m. Sat. at the Alex Theatre, 216 N. Brand
Blvd., Glendale. Tickets are $35 to $85. Call
(818) 243-2539 or visit alextheatre.org.
Thursday June 20 through Wednesday June 26
PLEASE NOTE: Deadline for Calendar
submissions is noon Wednesday of the week
before the issue publishes. Send to johns@
pasadenaweekly.com
THURSDAY
The Blue Guitar
Arroyo Seco Golf Course
1055 Lohman Lane, South Pasadena
blueguitar.club
The club at Arroyo Seco Golf Course presents
Twanguero at 7 p.m. Tickets are $14 general
admission, $20 for table seating, available on
the website.
Crowell Public Library
1890 Huntington Drive, San Marino
(626) 300-0777
crowellpubliclibrary.org
Tracy McCubbin, of the company dClutterfly,
presents a workshop on “Making Space,
Clutter Free,” explaining the seven emotional
clutter blocks leading to an inability to get rid
of unneeded items, starting at 2 p.m. Free.
Descanso Gardens
1418 Descanso Drive, La Cañada Flintridge
(818) 949-4200
descansogardens.org
Descanso’s annual Music on the Main live
jazz series features piano-driven jazz by Yuko
Mabuchi from 6 to 7:30 p.m., included in
Descanso admission of $9 general admission,
$6 for students and seniors, $4 for children 5
to 12, free for those 4 and younger.
Norton Simon Museum
411 W. Colorado Blvd., Pasadena
(626) 449-6840
nortonsimon.org
Thursday Summer Fun, Gameplay, invites
guests to explore games reflected in the collections,
then design a puzzle of their own, from 1
to 3 p.m., included in Norton Simon admission
of $15 for adults, $12 for seniors, free for
students, those 18 and under and members.
Pasadena Public Library, Hastings Branch
3325 E. Orange Grove Blvd., Pasadena
(626) 744-7262
pasadenapubliclibrary.net
A Pasadena Fire Department meet-and-greet
invites guests to meet the local heroes at 4
p.m. Author Kathleen Vallee Stein discusses
her book “Loving Choices, Peaceful Passing:
Why My Family Chose Hospice” at 7 p.m.,
followed by a Q&A session.
Pasadena Senior Center
85 E. Holly St., Pasadena
(626) 795-4331
pasadenaseniorcenter.org
Anthem Blue Cross representatives discuss the
dangers of sun exposure at 10 a.m.
San Gabriel Valley Orchid Hobbyists
Los Angeles County Arboretum and Botanic
Garden
301 N. Baldwin Ave., Arcadia
sgvoh.org
The club hosts and open forum for questions
on all things related to orchids starting at 7
p.m. Free and open to the public. Refreshments
are included.
FRIDAY
Center for the Arts, Eagle Rock
2225 Colorado Blvd., Eagle Rock
(323) 561-3044
cfaer.org
Mary Frances Spencer and Gongphoria present
Summer Solstice Sound Bath, a sonic vibrational
concert featuring symphonic gongs and
crystal singing bowls. Doors open at 7:30 p.m.
and the concert starts at 8 p.m. Tickets are $20
in advance, $25 at the door.
Pasadena Senior Center
85 E. Holly St., Pasadena
(626) 795-4331
pasadenaseniorcenter.org
Free films screen at 1 p.m. on select Fridays.
This Friday’s film is “My Fellow Americans”
(1996).
SATURDAY
Alex Theatre
216 N. Brand Blvd., Glendale
(818) 243-2539
alextheatre.org
Master illusionist Ivan Amodel, winner of Penn
& Teller’s “Fool Us,” brings his new stage tour,
“Secrets & Illusions” to Glendale. It is set on
the dark and deserted streets of Paris. Guests
seemingly enter the Louvre, where a musical
muse escorts them through the galleries, while
Amodel uncovers life’s greatest mysteries
deep inside priceless works of art, and other
illusions. It starts at 7:30 p.m. Tickets are $35
to $85.
Arcadia Performing Arts Center
188 Campus Drive, Arcadia
(626) 821-1781
arcadiapaf.org
Tribute artist James Garner and his band
faithfully recreate the music of Johnny Cash
starting at 7 p.m. Tickets are $20 to $60.
The Huntington Library, Art Collections and
Botanical Gardens
1151 Oxford Road, San Marino
(626) 405-2100
huntington.org
“Night Owls,” a Family Evening event, invites
families to learn about the animals that call the
Huntington home. Guests can tour the Desert
Garden, meet night creatures from the Wildlife
Learning Center and explore the Orbit Pavilion
at night, from 6:30 to 8:30 p.m. Cost is $20 per
person, free for kids younger than 5. Register
at huntington.org/calendar. A monumental
new, site-specific installation, “Tang Qingnia:
An Offering to Roots” by artist Tang Qingnian
goes on view, featuring full-size prints of five
banner paintings, the largest one, 18 feet
long, suspended from a framework above the
water of the Chinese Garden lake. It continues
through Sept. 23, during regular Huntington
hours, included in Huntington admission of
$29 for adults, $24 for seniors, youth 4 to 11,
$13, free for those younger than 4.
Norton Simon Museum
411 W. Colorado Blvd., Pasadena
(626) 449-6840
nortonsimon.org
A guided tour visits works from the Spanish
Golden Age from 1 to 2 p.m., included in
Norton Simon admission of $15 for adults, $12
for seniors, free for students, those 18 and
under and members.
Pasadena POPS
Los Angeles County Arboretum and Botanic
Garden
301 N. Baldwin Ave., Pasadena
(626) 793-7172
pasadenasymphony-pops.org
The POPS launches its Sierra Summer Concert
Series with music from the Great American
Songbook, from Stephen Foster’s “Beautiful
Dreamer” to Broadway favorites including
“Can’t Help Lovin’ That Man” and “Maria,” to
music of Frank Sinatra. Michael Feinstein conducts.
Guest vocal soloists are Kevin McKidd
and Melissa Errico. Gates open at 5:30 p.m.
for picnicking and the concert starts at 7:30
p.m. Tickets are $25 and up.
Pasadena Public Library, Central Branch
285 E. Walnut St., Pasadena
(626) 744-4066
pasadenapubliclibrary.net
The Family Science Fiction Classics film series
screens “Countdown” (1968), about two astronauts
vying to be the first American to walk on
the moon, starting at 2 p.m.
Vroman’s Bookstore
695 E. Colorado Blvd., Pasadena
(626) 449-5320
vromansbookstore.com