How Magicians Think Audio Up Media

It’s definitely Teller. The shorter, silent half of Penn & Teller never speaks onstage, but we’re delighted to present this engaging conversation with magic’s most erudite scholar and performer. Teller creates magic with purpose, and he speaks in detail about what makes for a successful partnership. Joshua dials in on the creative process with Teller, who is candid and thoughtful about how he approaches his craft. His insights will prove invaluable to anyone who wants to elevate their work.

Joshua Jay speaks with Abbey Albani, a magician’s assistant who plummeted 12 feet while floating above a stage and broke her back. Joshua also talks with Mahdi Gilbert, an accomplished sleight-of-hand artist...born without hands. And Richard Turner also speaks with us, one of the world’s finest card magicians...and also blind. This is an episode about seeing beyond limitations and succeeding despite enormous obstacles. Bring a tissue and tune in.  Let this episode serve as your spiritual nourishment for the week.

We’re not saying who, but unless you live in Spain (hint, hint), you probably haven’t heard of him. Joshua traveled to the south of Spain to be with the Maestro of magic--a living legend widely regarded as one of the greatest magicians of all time. This is an episode about the role love plays in pursuing any craft. When it intersects with curiosity and hard work, you can master anything.

Remember those old Masked Magician specials? They were some of the highest-rated television events of the 90s: a guy in a striped mask revealing some of magic’s most enduring classics. The Masked Magician seemingly vanished when the shows were finally canceled. We tracked him down in rural Brazil, where he now resides. In his first public interview in 25 years, the elusive Masked Magician gets candid with Jay in this conversation, which takes some unexpected and bizarre turns. This is an episode about exposure, and why it matters to the craft of magic.

When you see a great magician, it all looks so smooth and elegant. It’s what you don’t see that fools you. Often magic is just science in disguise. Joshua speaks with Professor of Public Understanding Richard Wiseman about the benefits of magic. Then Susana Martinez-Conde and Stephen Macnick share precisely what happens in our brains when we’re fooled. Finally, Jay explores how science is helping magicians create better miracles.

There is a strange intersection between magic and belief. On one hand, magic requires a suspension of disbelief. On the other hand, magicians ought to know better than most that we humans are easy to deceive. This episode is all about real magic. Does it exist? Why do people believe in it? Jay speaks with magic essayist and consummate skeptic, Jamy Ian Swiss.