Harrison Greenbaum State Theatre Center for the Arts October 25
Update: The original article was corrected on June xx, 2019 to correct information regarding Harrison Greenbaum's hometown, his grandparents and the work of Allan Zola Kronzek.
By Eric Schucht and Toby Tabachnick
Houdini, Copperfield, Uri Geller — the Jewish world has a long line of performers who focused on magic.
This fact isn't lost on Harrison Greenbaum, a Jewish comedian and magician coming to perform June 21-22 at the Smoke and Mirrors Magic Theater in Huntingdon Valley. The New York native has appeared on America's Got Talent, Terminal Comic Standing and Conan, amongst other programs. His show "Harrison Greenbaum: What Just Happened?" sold out the Upright Citizens Brigade Theater and ran off-Broadway for two months.
Greenbaum grew upwards in Woodmere, New York and is the grandson of ii Holocaust survivors on his father'southward side. He was 5 when his interest in magic first sparked. After his father showed him a card pull a fast one on and refused to tell him how it was done, Greenbaum said he became obsessed. At 14, he started attention Tannen's Magic Army camp in New York Metropolis, where his passion for the craft grew.
Greenbaum studied psychology at Harvard Academy and started performing stand-upwards, veering away from his old tricks. Now he'south reincorporated magic into his act.
"Information technology was a long route, but my unique journey has led to a unique deed," Greenbaum wrote via email. "Each trick in my show plays to a dissimilar force, so I love exercising all my one-act and magic muscles over the course of the show. I built a show that requires 100 percent of me in every capacity. And so I'thou a sweaty, exhausted mess at the cease of it, and I wouldn't have information technology whatsoever other way."
When it came to creating a hybrid magic-comedy show, Greenbaum mostly started out with ideas for jokes and worked to connect them to one of his magic tricks in a mode that felt organic. If y'all take abroad the fume and mirrors, Greenbaum could still perform the entire evidence as a typical stand up-up routine. Then, as he puts it, he's non a "sorcerer with comedy" but a "comedian with magic."
The tradition of magic — in Philadelphia and beyond — has been largely dependent on Jews, who not just take been disproportionately represented in the field historically, but also levitated the art to thrilling new heights.
Allan Zola Kronzek, a Jewish magician, writer and educator, has given lectures on "Magical Jews: The Life and Times of Great Jewish Magicians" at Jewish Community Centers and other venues. He is the author of several books, his latest titled Grandpa Magic: 116 Easy Tricks, Amazing Brainteasers, and Simple Stunts to Wow the Grandkids. Kronzek said some other researcher compiled a listing of the top 100 American magicians of the 20th century, of which 20 percent were Jews, despite the fact that Jews comprised only near 2 per centum of the total U.S. population at the time.
One of the greatest Jewish magic "superstars," according to Kronzek, was Erik Weisz, better known past his stage name, Harry Houdini. Born in 1874 in Republic of hungary to a father who was a rabbi, Houdini immigrated to the United States with his family when he was a child, first to Wisconsin, and so to New York. He developed into a top athlete besides every bit a "pretty expert sorcerer," Kronzek said.
Some other renowned Jewish magician in early on 20th-century America was Horace Goldin. Born Hymie Goldstein, he became famous for sawing a person in half. Although he did not invent the effect, "he certainly exploited it, and he had wonderful versions of doing it. He was a very colorful grapheme," Kronzek said.
Many other Jewish magicians took to the vaudeville circuit, which "was often Jewish-owned, so there was networking going on and they could get jobs," he explained. Why Jewish immigrants were attracted to the field of magic might be explained by some of the same reasons Jews were attracted to other operation genres.
"They did and so, I guess, because they couldn't become doctors or lawyers — or they were only very talented — but certainly the door was open," Kronzek surmised.
Jack Greenberg of Pittsburgh, a member of the Jewish community who has good magic for 80 years, said many Jews' attraction to the field may exist connected to the intellectual curiosity emphasized by their traditions.
"Many of the greats of magic were Jewish," Greenberg said. "I suspect our faith encourages investigation, curiosity, resolution of puzzles and problems. It goes back to the Talmudic scholars who spent their time interpreting and arguing with one another. This is built into our religion — we're raised to exist curious and enquire questions and try to resolve them. And that's a part of magic. The fine art of magic relies significantly upon that feature."
Magic, he added, is an inclusive pursuit, which could assistance explicate why so many Jews are drawn to it.
"Birds of [a] feather flock together," he said. "In that location is some grouping involved hither. There'due south no rejection as you lot notice in other pursuits. There'due south encouragement of people of all faiths, of all colors, of all origins to get involved with magic."
For Greenbaum, his Jewish-identity has influenced his show. Every bit a performer, he strives to present himself as authentically as possible, and existence Jewish is a part of that identity. When it comes to the draw of Jews to magic, Greenbaum believes information technology has to exercise with living in a world that has historically persecuted them.
"The history of the Jewish people is one of adversity and survival; in that location have been a lot of moments throughout history when a bigger, larger or more powerful group tried to kick out or exterminate the Jews. As a effect, an art grade like magic — in which yous tin at least requite the illusion of having power, the illusion of having supernatural abilities that transcends the normal — is very appealing to members of a group like the Jewish people, both in terms of performing magic and enjoying the performance of magic. Add to that how supportive Jewish parents tin be and you have a recipe for a lot of Jewish entertainers, including magicians."
Greenbaum said his goal is to get out audience members laughing hard. And the magic is his unique twist on classic stand-up.
"The show is built to make you laugh so hard you cry, or fifty-fifty pee a little, and astonish you so much your brain hurts," he said. "So be prepared for fluids to leak from somewhere — towel not included."
Toby Tabachnick is the senior staff writer of the Pittsburgh Jewish Chronicle, an Exponent-affiliated publication.
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Source: https://www.jewishexponent.com/2019/06/19/harrison-greenbaum-jewish-magicians/
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