You didn’t see the gorilla?

If you were to watch a short video of people playing basketball, would you notice a person in a gorilla suit walk through the frame? Probably not. IF, that is, you were asked to focus on something else in frame. That’s actually science, not magic. But it gives us the same message. We trust our senses more than we should.

Six Impossible Things makes you question what you know.

What is Six Impossible things?

Six Impossible Things is a ‘new magic’ show, hosted by world renowned magician, Joshua Jay. A fusion of immersive theater and up close magic, uses context to shape the experience along with the tricks themselves.

You share space with things that you know aren’t possible

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What it’s really like:

When you arrive: You enter a world designed for the show. Hosted at Immersive Theater venue, Wilderence on Manhattans’ lower east side, you start with something unexpected… The door to the venue asks you the question: ‘Is this the right place?’.

Down a set of stairs, you’re in a new place. New + unexpected = adrenaline. Your brain preps to adjust, sucking in as much information as possible. Assessing; Memory improves, senses are sharpened, you become more alert.

This explains two things:

1. Why being dropped into a homey living room & kitchen could seem so off.   (You know you’re in for something unexpected. Your brain is ready. Then you get something seemingly familiar.)

and

2. Why if you’re, say…. a critic whose life is constantly ‘new environments’, why the environmental context might seem less enthralling. (Your brain is primed to move past change in setting for the sake of analysis)

There is no pretense in this show. The idea of Six Impossible Things isn’t one of overplayed mysticisms. The idea is an intersection of environment and experience.

Up close magic isn’t a new thing; it’s why you’re asked to pick a card. The ‘moment of pure astonishment’ is enhanced by your closeness. ‘Pick a card’ is a proof of concept. Standing in front of magic performed for you, is different than watching magic on a stage.

Then you meet Joshua Jay… If you’re inside Six Impossible Things, you almost certainly know who this is. Jay is indeed world renowned, not just as a magician, but as a consultant, author, lecturer, and even Guinness world record holder. Then you meet him.

Joshua could be described as the definition of understandable. He just makes sense. The definition of unassuming, you brain doesn’t have any questions to ask. There are no flags to be raised.

The act is just this, he shapes subconscious assumptions in the name of cognitive counterpoint.The magic itself, while in some ways comparable to tricks maybe familiar to magic aficionados, is only half the point. The magic is the tension between the familiar and the unfamiliar.

For the duration, you exist inside this odd space. There is something that doesn’t make sense, yet, it’s not uncomfortable. like the beginning of a story frozen in time -just for you to explore.