Rosemary Clausen Center Welcomes Back
the Magic of Bill Blagg
It was a bit of deja vu as Ken Buell announced the return of nationally known and top touring illusionist, Bill Blagg. Ken referred to Blagg’s show as one of the greatest of its kind in the country, and he was right. Bill had performed to a sold out Clausen Center in 2013, but that audience was mostly adults. This one was for the kids and their Kinderfest weekend.
If you were among the sizable number of fascinated spectators this night and expecting a great show, you got it! Bill started out with a bang, and with his young assistant Kiley, a visitor from Nebraska, he gave us a look at his ability to levitate her. The audience was amazed, and even Kiley was left wondering, “How did he do that?”
Blagg kept us at the edges of our seats with a series of dramatic illusions. There were the three unequal ropes that kept transforming into ever more dramatic shapes. He passed his arm and then his entire body through the spinning steel blades of a heavy industrial fan. His young assistant Colton helped with the chocolate milk trick, almost passing out from his efforts to keep the carton high. And Bill even put a little boogie into the act with his signature dancing hanky that performed to the music of, “Everybody Dance Now.” It was all magnificent and so much more than most expected.
The show came to a fitting end when our star brought us snow in June. He took one snowflake cut from paper, dipped it into a glass of water, rubbed his hands together, blew gently on his fingers and brought us a storm of snow flurries that engulfed the stage. After leaving us in complete amazement, Bill and his crew were given a much-deserved standing ovation.
Bill Blagg gave us much more than a magic show. He is a complete entertainer and a master of his art. He brought smiles and laughs to all in the audience, regardless of their ages, and he left us begging for more. For a while, we were all kids again.
We would like to extend a huge THANK YOU to Bill Blagg and his crew, the audience members who came out to enjoy the show and the Rosemary Clausen Center team who worked so hard to make this night a success. We hope future Kinderfests will be this successful.