Criss Angel has come a long way from those days in the 1980s when he sang with a rock band at Long Island clubs like Spit and Sundance _ and levitated the drum set.
Today, the master illusionist (originally named Christopher Sarantakos) is known more for raising the bar on magic as an art form, seducing fans with his tattooed, rock-star persona on TV (including six seasons on A&E's "Criss Angel Mindfreak") and stage (he currently has a long-term gig at Planet Hollywood in Las Vegas).
But now he's headed back to New York for "Criss Angel Raw: The Mindfreak Unplugged," part of the In Residence on Broadway series, running Tuesday, July 2 through Sunday, July 7 at the Lunt-Fontanne Theatre. The show promises to be an intimate evening of how'd-he-do-that feats, including a grand finale that's been called "the greatest illusion of all time."
Angel, 51, lives in Vegas with his partner, Shaunyl Benson, and their two sons, Johnny Christopher, 5 (who last year concluded an extensive series of chemotherapy treatments to fight a rare form of leukemia), and little brother Xristos, born last January. He spoke by phone with Newsday contributor Joseph V. Amodio.
Just how freaky will this show get?
This will be an evening of mind-blowing demonstrations, many of which people have said are impossible to do live. Now they'll see them inches away from their face.
I'm betting "impossible" isn't really in your vocabulary.
I try to blur the line between reality and illusion and let the audience decide what's what. Some of what I do is real, some is pure illusion. What I want to show people is that, in life anything is possible. I'm just a guy from Long Island who had a big, big dream. I had passion, perseverance _ it took me 18 years to become an overnight success. I'm not special. I'm like everybody. And everybody can pursue dreams, even if they seem impossible.
Were you always confident?
That's always been my fuel. It was instilled in me by my father. (I've used) that energy to embrace change and transformation.
Ohhh, I'm not fond of change, I must say.
Well, every day is a change in our bodies, our surroundings _ you have to accept change, embrace it and allow it to fuel you. I used to come to Manhattan on the Long Island Rail Road and pound the streets, knocking on doors _ producers, managers, agents _ no one would give me the time of day. But I never gave up. I thought of myself as a ninja _ I had to get inside, had to figure this out. And I was always optimistic, even in trying times. So now to come back to those streets I once pounded and perform at the Lunt-Fontanne Theatre, where my hero, (magician) Doug Henning, once performed, it's just beyond my wildest dreams.
So about this "revolutionary" finale _ it's been 18 years in the making. Was figuring it out a particularly tough puzzle to crack?
Yes, it's one of the most difficult things I've ever worked on. I had to get (someone) from NASA involved. I performed it in Vegas first. I levitate, and fly. Magicians have done levitation with props, in the dark...but I do it in full, bright light. I'm flying spinning, flipping. People in the business have no concept how I do it. NONE.
Do you have dreams where you fly?
I think we all do, right? We all yearn to fly. It's primal. We see birds, planes, and we want to have that ability to escape sometimes.
Congrats, by the way, on the birth of your second son. Did becoming a dad change your approach to performing?
Well...y'know...I'm still crazy (He chuckles.) But you can't help when you have two boys...it kind of grounds you. It reshapes responsibility and priority. I want to provide an amazing life for them...I want to be around to see my kids grow up, get married. So...I'm a little more safety-conscious than maybe I was. But I still take risks.
I'm also glad to hear your eldest, Johnny Christopher, is done with chemo for the moment.
He's in remission now for five months _ and that's amazing. We just hope and pray he'll stay on that path for the rest of his life. I'd give up everything I have if he could live a long, healthy, fruitful life. That's all I want. I know this sounds like a stock answer but it's really the truth _ when I look at my kids, that is the most incredible magic I've ever experienced in life. To think that somehow there's another human being that I'm father to.... I mean, when I hear my kid going, "Daddy, Daddy...," that's mind-blowing.
