Photo courtesy of Barrie Cohen Public Relations.

“I’ve been doing this for 40 years and I’m always learning,” says Howard Stevens. Stevens, a native of Philadelphia and resident of Sarasota, is a man in possession of two identities: by day, he is Dr. Stevens, practicing physician, but by night he is Howard Stevens, the magician. Stevens has played these dual roles for the entirety of his professional career–both in the medical and theatrical fields–working as an apprentice in magic shops throughout his time in college and medical school, eventually taking his act to the next level as he became a full-time physician by day and professional magician by night.

Now on the Gulf Coast, Stevens is bringing his magic to Sarasota with his latest show, Classic Conjuring, an intimate performance of parlor magic and illusions held at the CMX Cinebistro Siesta Key on April 29th. “We did sort of a premier showing with two shows about two weeks ago and those sold out which was great. I did this show a few years ago, but then COVID hit and things got delayed, so I’ve switched it up to make it a brand new show,” says Stevens. “I’m looking forward to bringing it to the public–there are no public magic shows in Sarasota and haven’t been for a long time.”

Even though Stevens is a veteran, he insists that he’s always developing new techniques and illusions. “There’s always something new out, with new magicians coming up or younger acts bringing in new material. It’s an amazing art form because it entails many different types of things: you’re writing your own script, you're basically your own director and producer and you’re performing on stage,” he says. “It’s a very incredible performance art unlike any of the other ones because people don’t really realize all that goes into it–and you can’t tell them because that’s the secret. Every other art form people realize how much training it takes to be a great dancer, actor, or painter, but when you’re doing magic, you have to be clandestine with what you do and that becomes very special.”

Classic Conjuring, 8p.m. on April 29th, 2023, Cinebistro Siesta Key, 3501 S Tamiami Trail, Sarasota.

Photo courtesy of Barrie Cohen Public Relations.

To learn more click here.