New tricks up his sleeve

Magician Cyril Takayama is back with a new show, Cyril: Rio Magic, in which he once again puts on disguises.

In his previous show, Cyril's Family Vacation: Hawaii Edition, which aired in 2012, he had dressed up as different members of his family. This time, he is going in disguise to blend in with the locals in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, in six 30-minute episodes.

"I'm putting on moustaches, wigs and different kinds of costumes," the 40-year-old says. "At times, I was a waiter, a barista, a fruit vendor or a coconut salesman."

Cyril: Rio Magic is set in Rio de Janeiro because Brazil will be "the place to be", as he puts it. The country will be hosting the World Cup this year and the Summer Olympics in 2016. The series, which premiered on AXN (StarHub TV Channel 511) on May 4, airs every Sunday at 7.40pm. Born and raised in California, Takayama became interested in magic when he was six after watching a magic show in Las Vegas. At 12, he studied at a magic school in California before leaving for Japan when he was 16, where he performed magic as a busker.

Takayama, who is born to a Japanese father and Moroccan-French mother, says: "When I was going through my teenage years, I was trying to discover myself and my roots. That's why I moved to Japan when I was 16 to discover the other side of my culture. It was a journey to find myself."

Probably most well known in Japan, where he is now based, he has done 16 primetime specials on Fuji TV in Japan and has two other AXN original series - Cyril: Simply Magic (2009) - and Cyril's Family Vacation: Hawaii Edition (2012) - to his name.

One of the challenges in trying to blend in with the locals in his new show was the language barrier, he says. "I learnt some phrases in Portuguese, but obviously, my accent was not authentic, so it was quite a challenge to communicate. But that provided some of the funny moments of the show.

"Cyril: Rio Magic is not the kind of show you may have seen me do before. I had to learn to let go and laugh at myself. I hope that the viewers who watch my new show will laugh with me, and at times, you might laugh at me."

1 Are there any differences between the Japanese audiences and audiences from other parts of the world?

Yes, there's a very big difference. The Japanese audiences are very similar to the Taiwanese audiences. They're very open, they allow themselves to be entertained and to be a kid again when they are watching a magic performance. Audiences in some other countries in South-east Asia are a little bit more defensive and sceptical. They can't let their guard down. But it doesn't mean that they're not having a good time. It's just a different way of reacting.

When I performed magic in Rio de Janeiro, they reacted very differently from anywhere else in the world. There were a few people who screamed the building down and reacted amazingly. But the majority were television-shy, and as soon as they saw the cameras, they would not engage in the magic.

We discovered afterwards that this was because there are a lot of shows in Brazil that take advantage of the misfortunes of others. So if they see something that's suspicious, they don't want to engage in it because they think they are going to be humiliated on television.

2 Do you get mobbed in Japan?

For the most part, people are respectful in Japan. People will recognise me, they'll ask for a photo or an autograph, and I have no problem with that. But if there's a camera crew with me, that's when it sometimes gets a little out of control. It's quite an experience. The first time it happened, we had to call security and we had to stop the shoot. We weren't able to continue because we didn't expect such a big crowd.

3 If you weren't a magician, what would you be doing?

I would have been a chef. I love cooking. I'm a foodie and I appreciate great food. I think it's very similar to magic. A dining experience is like a show. I find those pleasures in cooking and in discovering what my audiences or customers would take pleasure in the first bite, what the first taste is, what the next course is, how it changes.

4 What do you think of shows that reveal the secrets behind magic tricks, such as Breaking The Magician's Code?

When that show first came out, I think it upset a lot of magicians worldwide, and it upset me. But when I think about it, I perceive it as increasing the public's interest in magic. People love magic.

A lot of people who watched the show don't even remember what the actual secrets are.

My magic is not about the secrets because the magic that I do is about the story that's being told. It's about the message and how it makes an impact on people's lives.

Nowadays, with YouTube, the Internet and social media, there's a lot of magic being exposed. But the bottom line is it's really up to the viewers whether they choose to know how a secret is done. Once you know the secret, there's no going back.

5 How do you come up with new tricks?

I don't sit at a table, stare at my computer or have a notebook and pen in front of me and just try to come up with ideas. The only way for me to be inspired is to keep up with the latest fads, to go out there, travel, meet new people and experience new things. In this process, magic just appears. For example, what if I needed to tie my shoelaces but I could do it without actually having to reach down and tie them myself? I would just whistle and it would be magically tied.

6 Do you think street magic is a fad that has passed?

I don't. It depends on the market you're in. The magic that I've done here in Asia for the past seven years is now trending in other parts of the world. My challenge is to present magic in a new way, which is what the new show, Cyril: Rio Magic, is about. It's doing new things that people have never seen. I'm putting myself in disguise and trying to engage people to do magic, not by saying "Let me show you a trick", and watching the trick itself and leaving, but to tell it in a whole new way.

7 Do you keep an eye on other magicians and what they are working on?

Great minds think alike. I seldom follow other magicians because I don't want to be influenced by them. I think that there are, and have been, magicians who come up with similar ideas, but my presentation will probably be different. You can make a strawberry shortcake and I can make a strawberry shortcake. They might be categorised as the same thing, but they would taste differently.

8 How would you like to be remembered?

Wow, nobody asked me that question before. I'd like to be remembered as the guy who brought a little smile into people's lives.

This article was published on May 12 in The Straits Times.

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