The Successful Entertainers – The World Chapions of Magic

“You don’t get success just like that, the game of having success is long”

A few years ago Marcel and Aquila discovered to combine their talents, the art of magic with storytelling and strong visuals. This cooperation has transformed the way of performing magic drastically in the entertainment world. They are the first who created an illusion show with a logical storyline from begin till end. The illusions are not just tricks but the décor of the story. The showgirls have given place for mysterious characters. The illusionist is not the macho hero anymore but the protagonist in the story, in the case of Nightmares he plays the antihero. That’s why they have changed their artist and company name into MAGUS UTOPIA. A name that stands for a magical and imaginary world… (Source – magusutopia.com)

Interwiev made by Sebastian & Kristina during the performance in TRIKSTARS show in Kuala Lumpur!

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Nightmears and Sebastian & Kristina -Trikstars/Kuala Lumpur

Marcel:               I am Marcel Kalisvaart. I’m 31 years old. I live in Holland together with Aquila, who’s going to introduce himself later, I built the company Magus Utopia.

Aquila:               I’m Aquila. I’m 27 years old. My background, I’m a designer and I’m working in magic world now for about six years. It’s been a lot of fun and inspiration.

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Marcel

Kristina:             How you became magicians and why?

Marcel:               I was 10 years old and I got a magic box from my father for Christmas, like most magicians and it just interested me. I thought it was so interesting to amaze people and I just kept doing it. I found out there was a magic shop nearby so I went there to buy my first professional trick. And then, they told there were like magic clubs. So I was like, “Oh, I definitely have to go there.” I called them right away and go to the magic club. There, I met magic friends and told me there were magic days and competitions. My interest always moved on and moved on. And then suddenly, I wanted to become and illusionist when I was 15 years old.   I started building something, and my father saw that and was like, “That looks really cool. I want to help you.” A toolmaker can do a lot of things with metal and wood so he helped me out in building things. Step by step, it started getting bigger and bigger.

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Aquila

Kristina:              And for you Aquila?

Aquila:                I’m not a magician but I work with magicians. My background is a designer so I’m a graphic designer. I met Marcel eight years ago and I had my own substitute and Marcel as well. Suddenly, I saw the show and I saw the show with other eyes – not like with magician’s eyes with the colors and lines and characters and stories. Suddenly, we started working together. We created Nightmares.

Kristna:         How did you come up with the idea for Nightmares?

Marcel:               It’s been a long time that I actually want to work with the story but I never actually knew how. I always wanted to work with characters, with logic and story but it’s always very difficult. I didn’t know how. I didn’t have the knowledge. Then, I met Aquila and I told him my ideas that I want work with a story. He used to make stories since he was a child. You were like 5 or 6?

Aquila:                Yeah, something like that.

Kristina:         Why the horror story? Because of Walking Dead?

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The Nightmears

Aquila:               No not really. I’m dark from inside and Marcel as well. We have kind of a passion for the dark world and all like that. It’s also much more interesting because we have the bed (illusion box invented by Marcel) so wanted to have a dream. But a dream is like boring … you know… Fairy, flying and stuff. People don’t want to see that. People want to see… Adventure and problems.

Kristina:         What is important in a magic or Illusion act?

Marcel:              I think originality because originality brings you everywhere. Otherwise, they will say, “We’ve had that before.” Also, it has to be strong and visual,entertaining, very magical and strong effects.

Aquila           We mean like the effect is more like show presence. When you’re on stage, you have the x-factor. I also like to call it the sex-factor. It’s like the feeling you have that you want, “I want to buy them. I want to meet them because it’s so nice to look at that.” I call it sex-factor, actually.

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The amazing costume designs!

Kristina:          How important is the costume and costume design in a illusion or any special act?

Aquila:               I think it’s very important because the way you’re going to present yourself. It’s about being original.

Originality is not copying. You can be inspired but not copying somebody else. I think it’s important how you present that because that’s the way the audience is going to get the real intention.

Kristina:             What is the secret to create a successful act?

Marcel:               I think it’s never successful right away. To create success, you have to really go through failure. You have to fail and learn and learn and then, there will come a time when you think, “Hey, I learned so many things and now it’s even more successful.” To create something successful, it’s very complex because it has to deal with so many things. It has to deal with originality; it has to deal with strong characters; has to deal with strong music, your timing.

Aquila:               So many things. Like a movie, you have a movie but the movie has a good story but maybe doesn’t have a good visual. Nowadays, we have a green screen. Maybe the movie has a very good visual but a very bad story. So, it’s a combination of everything.

Marcel:               And then, it has to deal with your own power because you also have to promote, you have to do your management. And you also have to think how you’re going to do your logistics, your promotion. It’s working on everything to become successful. I believe marketing is very important – have a good website, have good photos, video and also connections. Also, have respect for everybody. Don’t be fake,be nice have respect for other artists and for your employer…. It’s the whole process actually. You wont become successful right away…

Kristina:             How did you choose your characters, your dancers in the act?

Aguila:                We normally do auditions. Lately we had an audition, more like 50-60 dancers came from all part of Holland. We got requests from Argentina, from Spain, France as well…They have to have something special,good dance education and some experience in work field. Strong presence and expression is very important!

Kristina:            What do you like most to be an entertainer?

Aquila:               It’s very nice. You get to meet cool people like you guys and like new places and culture and also giving people hope when you’re doing your show. They actually step out of the reality of the world. And suddenly, you have a fantastic world in a show. I think that’s the thing that I like.

Marcel:               I really like to…I really like to inspire people. So many people after the show they’re like, “Wow! I enjoyed it so much.” Like Aquila said, I really hope that they also have a hope and they like, “Hey I also want to create or make something out of my life ”

Kristina:             What was your biggest success and your biggest failure in your career?

Marcel:               I had so many failures in my career. My biggest failure was sometimes financially. If you hire people and see, “Okay, this is not going to work.” It costs a lot of money…. , Business-wise, sometimes it was not always a success.

 

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2012 – WORLD CHAMPION OF MAGIC (stage illusions) FISM official World Championships

But our biggest success when we won the World Chapions of Magic award in 2012 in Blackpool! The feeling was really good. We were thinking for years to compete and we really want to win it. We really want to come up with something new. You can only win it when you’re really, really original. On the championship was the first time we ever performed with Nightmares. That was very exciting. We didn’t know how the audience will react , Either they’re going to hate us or they’re going to love us. And we get standing ovation! And we won the prize! I was very proud. And one day after the World Championship, the whole Dutch Press was calling us, every big TV station, magazine… For the last three years, we’re working nonstop and even working with Double Team in China. Sometimes we have six shows in one day – three in China, three in Europe and it’s crazy. And sometimes three locations . We were in France but In the same night, we had a TV show in Germany.   And then, we were also performing in China.” Wow, we’re now like in three countrys with Nightmares.” We are very happy about that!

Krisitina:            If you could start over, would you choose the same path?

Marcel:               That’s difficult because now you know so many things… But I would choose the same because I’m very happy with my life.

Kristina:             What is your advice for the new generation?

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Be original but let yourself be inspired

Marcel:               We also get lectured with the magic community and stuff. Our advice is always be original but let yourself be inspired. You can pick up ideas.You can get something completely new. It’s not impossible to create something completely new because everything is already done. Just let yourself be inspired, and be creative. Follow your passion! Don’t copy! That’s my advice because otherwise you will be always just a copy, and you never will be the same who you copied! Copying others just because to earn fast money is just cheap entertianment! I believe in investment. The more you invest, the more money you earn back. We had thousands of Euros in our props and costumes and people see it. They’re like, “Wow, your props and costumes, they look so amazing.” That’s why people are booking us. We get more work and we ask a little more fee to get our investment back from what we did. If you think small, and if you don’t invest, you stay small, and cheap act, and you also will be booked for cheap markets.

Aquila: Focus on yourself and really fight for it. Don’t give up. You have to learn from your failures. We believe that actually mistakes doesn’t exist but only lessons. Every time something bad happens, it’s just a lesson and try to learn from it! Have a plan!! Plan your future! That’s very important We’re working on a five-year plan. We know what we want in five years! You don’t get success just like that. It needs time.
The game of having success is long. That’s why you need a plan.

Visit the amaizing website from Magus Utopia: www.magusutopia.com or like them on Facebook: www.facebook.com/magusutopia

AWARDS:

2013 – Best creativity and originality prize
China Circus Festival in Zhuhai

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The Hans-Klok Award

2012 – WORLD CHAMPION OF MAGIC (stage illusions)
FISM official World Championships

2011 – Audience Award
Martin Hanson Winter Circus

2010 – Dutch Champion of Magic (Grand Prix)
NMU official Dutch Championships of Magic

2009 – International Jury Award
International Circus Festival Enschede, The Netherlands

2005 – Mandrake d’Or Award
Le Festival International de l’Illusion

2004 – Beijing Golden Dragon Magic Award
China Acrobats Association

2003 – Best illusionist Award
FISM official World Championships

2002 – Dutch Champion of Magic (Grand Prix)
NMU official Dutch Championships of Magic

2000 – Circus Herman Renz Trophy
Circus Herman Renz

1999 – 1st prize winner (junior)
NMU official Dutch Championships of Magic

1998 – 1st prize winner + audience award
NMU official Dutch Championships of Magic – Junior department

1997 – 1st prize winner + audience award
NMU official Dutch Championships of Magic – Junior department