A magical night at the Evergreen

By Anne Ottow

For The Spectator

NovaNewsNow.com

It’s a wise theatre goer who books seats ahead at the Evergreen Theatre these days, as yet another show was sold out early. The April 19 performance brought many more families with children and young people than usual flooding in to see the magical presentation of Ted and Marian Outerbridge. A warning up front told the crowd to turn off cell phones and no cameras would be allowed.

Titled Magical Moments in Time, the show wowed the audience from the first moments. Ted Outerbridge, from Montreal, has a world wide reputation for conjuring and magic. He and Marian have appeared in movies with stars like Christopher Reeves, Bruce Willis and Leslie Neilson, and they have taken part in TV series, including some on the Discovery Channel. Outerbridge explained that the Evergreen show was the very last in a countrywide trip that began in January and has visited just about every venue across the country, including at times on the stage at the Skydome in Toronto. What a contrast with the timeless intimacy of the Evergreen on Saturday night. Outerbridge’s sleights of hand and mysterious motions immediately had the crown gasping. Marion Outerbridge brought a highly athletic and sensuous touch to the performance as she danced and pranced around the stage in addition to carrying out the customary disappearing tricks.

Ted Outerbridge gives a very personal note to his performance as he brings both children and adults up to the stage and invites them to take part in the tricks from the theatre seats as well. It was in just such a way that he, himself was first introduced to magic, he told the audience, so watching the Saturday night show and the response of children made one imagine there just might be some future magicians from the Annapolis Valley.

Another principal member of the performance was Zelda the Psychic Chicken. This small, tan coloured chicken (who Outerbridge revealed is nine-years old) took part in several tricks that saw feathers flying and her loss and reappearance. Zelda travels on all of the Outerbridge trips, resting in a big dog cage while en route, and being welcomed into the comfortable hotel rooms overnight.

Some acts were large, with the typical trick of thrusting swords into a container where Marian was confined. Others were hard to fathom, such as the breaking of an eggshell into a large, empty brandy glass, and then stirring it to its original whole form. He also borrowed three gold rings from audience members, magically linked them together and then whisked them apart with a chopstick. And there were jokes aplenty.

At last when the show concluded, the crowd rose to their feet in a standing ovation. They had enjoyed a show that is rarely seen in the rural Annapolis Valley setting. It was an experience that the children and teenagers will no doubt remember for years to come.