• CALENDAR
  • SIGN UP FOR EMAILS
  • DONATE
  • MEMBERSHIP
  • MY ACCOUNT

Academy Center of the Arts

Lynchburg's Local Arts Center

  • TICKETS
    • BOX OFFICE
      • Discounts
      • Ticketing Policies
    • Black History Month Celebration
    • Broadway at the Academy
    • Gift Certificates
    • Group Sales
    • RESIDENT COMPANIES
      • The Charlottesville Ballet 22/23 Season
      • Endstation Theatre Company 22/23 Season
      • Jefferson Choral Society 22/23 Season
      • Lynchburg Symphony Orchestra 22/23 Season
      • Opera on the James 22/23 Season
      • Thomas Jefferson’s Poplar Forest 21/22 Season
    • SEATING CHARTS
  • COMMUNITY ACCESS
    • Academy in Motion
    • Education Access Program
    • Facilities Access Program
    • Ticket Access Program
    • Artist in Residency Program
  • EDUCATION
    • ALL CLASSES
    • ADULT CLASSES
    • YOUTH CLASSES
    • POTTERY CLASSES
    • SUMMER CAMPS
    • YOUTH THEATRE
    • Field Trips At the Academy
    • Education Access Program
    • Instructor Interest Form
  • GALLERIES
    • The Academy Artist Expansion Initiative
    • 2023 National Juried Art Exhibition
  • RENTALS
    • PRIVATE EVENTS
      • Birthday Parties
      • Corporate Rentals
      • Professional Workshops
      • Social and Private Rentals
      • Weddings
    • Ticketed RENTALS
    • Performance Partner Program
    • Facilities Access Program
  • SUPPORT
    • Fall Campaign 2022
    • Volunteer
    • BECOME A MEMBER
    • Make a Donation
    • OUR DONORS
      • CORPORATE SPONSORS
    • LEGACY GIVING
      • Endowment
      • Legacy Giving
  • ABOUT
    • Annual Report
    • CONTACT US
      • CONTACT US
      • Board of Trustees
      • Staff Directory
    • Employment
    • GET INVOLVED
      • Internships
    • GETTING HERE
      • DINE
      • STAY
      • Parking and Directions
    • HISTORY
    • VENUES
      • Accessibility
      • PARKING AND DIRECTIONS
      • Tours
  • TICKETS
    • BOX OFFICE
      • Discounts
      • Ticketing Policies
    • Black History Month Celebration
    • Broadway at the Academy
    • Gift Certificates
    • Group Sales
    • RESIDENT COMPANIES
      • The Charlottesville Ballet 22/23 Season
      • Endstation Theatre Company 22/23 Season
      • Jefferson Choral Society 22/23 Season
      • Lynchburg Symphony Orchestra 22/23 Season
      • Opera on the James 22/23 Season
      • Thomas Jefferson’s Poplar Forest 21/22 Season
    • SEATING CHARTS
  • COMMUNITY ACCESS
    • Academy in Motion
    • Education Access Program
    • Facilities Access Program
    • Ticket Access Program
    • Artist in Residency Program
  • EDUCATION
    • ALL CLASSES
    • ADULT CLASSES
    • YOUTH CLASSES
    • POTTERY CLASSES
    • SUMMER CAMPS
    • YOUTH THEATRE
    • Field Trips At the Academy
    • Education Access Program
    • Instructor Interest Form
  • GALLERIES
    • The Academy Artist Expansion Initiative
    • 2023 National Juried Art Exhibition
  • RENTALS
    • PRIVATE EVENTS
      • Birthday Parties
      • Corporate Rentals
      • Professional Workshops
      • Social and Private Rentals
      • Weddings
    • Ticketed RENTALS
    • Performance Partner Program
    • Facilities Access Program
  • SUPPORT
    • Fall Campaign 2022
    • Volunteer
    • BECOME A MEMBER
    • Make a Donation
    • OUR DONORS
      • CORPORATE SPONSORS
    • LEGACY GIVING
      • Endowment
      • Legacy Giving
  • ABOUT
    • Annual Report
    • CONTACT US
      • CONTACT US
      • Board of Trustees
      • Staff Directory
    • Employment
    • GET INVOLVED
      • Internships
    • GETTING HERE
      • DINE
      • STAY
      • Parking and Directions
    • HISTORY
    • VENUES
      • Accessibility
      • PARKING AND DIRECTIONS
      • Tours

Talking Magic with Masters of Illusion® Performer, Michael Turco

January 20, 2022

 

You’ve seen them dazzle your TV screen on the CW network for years and through performances on various talk shows – but as they say in the magic world, you haven’t seen magic until you’ve seen it LIVE! 

 

What better group to see live magic from than the world-renowned, hit-television stars and America’s largest touring magic show, Masters of Illusion®? They’re hitting the road on their 2022 Believe the Impossible tour and will be making a special stop at the Historic Academy Theatre on Saturday, February 26, 2022!

 

From its inception in 2000 until now, Masters of Illusion® has remained one of the most unique and amazing groups of performers existing in the magic industry. They have performed live in front of tens of thousands of people around the US for the past seven years and have been seen by over 100 million viewers on the CW network as well as in 126 countries around the world. 

 

 

To so many people in those 126 countries and beyond, magic means nothing. It is viewed as a form of sorcery, a thing seemingly unable to grasp or understand. But on the opposite side, to so many, magic is everything. Magic represents the purest form of charm, an act that changes minds and can alter reality. 

 

One admirer of the beauty of magic is long-time Magician and Masters of Illusion® performer, Michael Turco. Described by the press as “a natural born talent… a true success story,” Michael has been in love with magic since he was five years old. Allowing a break from his busy schedule, Michael sat down for an exclusive interview with the Academy’s Content Specialist, Izzi Diaz. 

 

 

Michael Turco has never been a stranger to magic. During his childhood, he grew up in the city of Wayne, New Jersey, but would frequent the two hour trip to Atlantic City often. There, he found a love of magic and entertainment that would span decades. “I was instantly hooked,” says Turco, “I would force my mom to go with me to see magic shows.”

 

 

With a clear plan and understanding of his dream to be a magician, Turco tried his best to get in contact with the bigger magic names at the time. “I would write them letters,” confesses Turco, “I would even give them my business cards!”

 

 

He started to take to the stage, performing at his middle and high schools for talent shows, fundraising events, etc. “I dreamed of having my face on a billboard,” he voices. After graduating from college, Turco got the chance of a lifetime: making it on America’s Got Talent!

 

 

After being on the show and spending a few years performing in Las Vegas, Michael ended up in Los Angeles, California, where he eventually got involved with Masters of Illusion®.

 

“Masters of Illusion is a great family to be a part of,” voices Turco, “I get to bring my own magic to the world of television, put my own spin on it, and I get to do it live.” His childhood dream finally came full-circle, he was performing with the names of people he used to dream of meeting. When asked what makes Masters of Illusion so special, Turco praises the group’s variety of different magic forms. “We show all types of magic,” he says, “it’s bringing both the TV show and live show together.”

 

 

 

 

Masters of Illusion® truly strives to make the impossible possible, which ties into the name of their 2022 live tour, Believe the Impossible. From close-up magic to grand illusions (Michael’s specialty) and even to some voodoo-like magic – Masters of Illusion® proves with each live performance that they truly are just that, masters of their craft. According to Michael and audience members of the group’s live shows, these magicians bring a little bit of everything to the table. In an attempt to get everyone in their seats involved in the performance, the group typically features audience interaction at their shows, making each of their acts different from the last.

 

“The most rewarding part of performing is seeing how the audience reacts,” Michael notes, “to just stand on stage and see them lose themselves for about an hour.” He mentions that in that hour of the magicians’ performance, the audience gets to escape reality. He loves how audience members get to forget about the struggles or happenings of their daily lives and get to purely enjoy magic for what it is.

 

So, what is magic, really? Is it a trick, a science? The beauty of magic can be defined by the eye of the beholder, it can be whatever the performer or the admirer makes it. But to Michael, magic is a true form of art. “I definitely consider anything that you put your passion into as art,” he claims. “Magic is the way you perceive things, we will present magic in a way that we each feel it should be presented.”

 

In a time where our daily lives are unexpected, magic can pull joy out of a hat even on the darkest of days. It has the enchanting ability to bring both believers and non-believers of illusion together, even if just for an hour, and remind audience members that even the impossible is possible. “In the future, I’m planning to keep performing and showing different types of magic,” concludes Turco. “It’s a great avenue to spread both magic and positivity.”

 

See Michael and the rest of Masters of Illusion® take the Historic Academy Theatre stage on Saturday, February 26th, 2022 and experience the magic for yourself!

 

GET TICKETS

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Filed Under: Events

Categories

  • Art
  • Community Outreach
  • Donors
  • Events
  • Film
  • Gallery
  • Holidays
  • iPad
  • Local Art
  • Music
  • Press Release
  • Theatre
  • Uncategorized
  • Youth

Archives

  • June 2022
  • May 2022
  • April 2022
  • March 2022
  • February 2022
  • January 2022
  • December 2021
  • November 2021
  • October 2021
  • September 2021
  • August 2021
  • May 2021
  • March 2021
  • February 2021
  • January 2021
  • December 2020
  • November 2020
  • October 2020
  • September 2020
  • August 2020
  • June 2020
  • April 2020
  • March 2020
  • February 2020
  • December 2019
  • November 2019
  • October 2019
  • September 2019
  • August 2019
  • July 2019
  • June 2019
  • April 2019
  • March 2019
  • February 2019
  • January 2019
  • November 2018
  • October 2018
  • September 2018
  • August 2018
  • July 2018
  • June 2018
  • May 2018
  • April 2018
  • March 2018
  • February 2018
  • January 2018
  • December 2017
  • November 2017
  • October 2017
  • September 2017
  • August 2017
  • July 2017
  • June 2017
  • May 2017
  • April 2017
  • March 2017
  • February 2017
  • January 2017
  • December 2016
  • November 2016
  • October 2016
  • September 2016
  • August 2016
  • July 2016
  • June 2016
  • May 2016
  • April 2016
  • March 2016
  • February 2016
  • January 2016
  • December 2015
  • November 2015

Recent Posts

  • Spotlight on Academy in Motion
  • Celebrate Juneteenth at the Academy
  • Beyond the Bell Tower with Academy Youth Theatre Professionals
  • Recognizing All of Our Academy Volunteers
  • Behind the Scenes of Academy Youth Theatre’s Production of My Son Pinocchio, JR.

CONTACT US:

(434) 846-8499
600 Main Street
Lynchburg, VA 24504
  • Tickets
  • EDUCATION
  • Galleries
  • RENTALS
  • Support
  • About
  • Blog
  • Board of Trustees
  • Employment
  • Internships
  • Press & Media
  • Contact Us
SUPPORT THE ACADEMY DONATE
STAY UP TO DATE EMAIL UPDATES

Academy Center of The Arts Copyright © 2023