Wes Iseli's Money Mystery

2014 year in review

2014 has been a fantastic year!
Here is my top 10 list of 2014

 

10. I got a new company mascot named HOCUS

  9. I got my new wesiseli/magicman Logo
  8. Made it through my 8th annual 24 hour magic show to raise money for the Children's Miracle Network
  7. New show commercial and publicity photos
  6. We performed a ton of illusion shows at High school auditoriums, performing art centers & resorts all over.
  5. We sold out State Theatre
  4. Lana became a bigger part in the show helping out onstage with 2-4 effects
  3. More publicity this year than ever before in the form of newspaper articles and radio appearances.
  2. I picked up an amazing publicist who is helping us move the business forward by leaps and bounds.
  1. I was asked to work on the Carbonaro Effect on Tru Tv as a magic consultant and animal trainer.
 

To see any of those stories in full check out past issues of this newsletter at wesiseli.com

Wes Iseli's Holiday Party Solution

24 hour magic show 2014

 

 

 

Photo 1 is me all set up at 10:00 am at the start of the event.
Photo 2 is me working for a crowd.
Photo 3 is of my little girl Lana visiting me around 10:00 pm.
Photo 4 is at 9:30 am the next morning with snow coming down hard.

This year's 24 hour magic show was another success. We got a bunch of press and most importantly raised money for the kids of The Children's Miracle Network. Due to all the press we recieved I did more magic this year than ever.  At 2:00 am  it started raining hard and it didn't stop, but I did have a few folks ask if I was gonna just pack up and head home but I told them I made a promise to the kids and I was going to stay right there for the whole 24 hours. To top it all off, with only 30 minutes remaining it started snowing, HARD. What a way to end a cold wet night. None of this would have been possible without my sponsors Wild Wing Cafe and Pepsi of Charlottesville, VA. Thanks again everyone who came by to cheer me on and visit me.

What does a show really cost?

 

When people call inquiring about hiring us for an event, I often wonder if they truly understand all that is involved in putting on a show.
 
Aren't you just paying for the 45 minute show or the hour and a half full evening illusion show?
 
Do you factor in the time it took to lug in the equipment and set it up and take it down?
 
Do you put into account wear and tear on the props, vehicle, etc?
 
Do you consider travel?
 
Do you consider the office time it takes typing up contracts and making calls to get the show booked in the first place?
 
Do you think about the animals onstage? Time and money invested in them to train them and feed them, not to mention bedding and cleaning.
 
Do you consider the years of practice and countless hours it took to develop the skills he is making look so easy on stage?
 
So, the next time you see an entertainer on stage stop for a second and think what it took for them to get there.  The show is the easy part, and as I have always said that’s the fun part, but no one sees everything else that is involved.
 
Besides, what would you pay for an event that can create memories that will last a lifetime?
 

Wes Iseli's Iphone Prediction

Why Magic as a career?

In case you don't know my back story, I grew up spending summers with my dad in his video store.I watched movie after movie all summer long and I dreamed of being a special effects make up artist. I even planned on going to the Art Institute of Pennsylvania after graduating high school. Well, towards the end of my high school years Terminator 2 came out and changed the game. CGI or computer generated imagery, was the new hip thing in movies. I wanted to do hands on movie make up and could not stand the thought of spending 80 hours a week behind a desk tied to a computer. So I went to college to study marketing and decided to do magic instead since I always wanted to do magic but special fx seemed more like a real job. I knew it would be tough and I also knew I loved magic and I was determined. I have been full time now for 18 years and have seen and experienced some amazing things that I would not have been  able to if I worked a 9-5 job. 

Some highlights so far: 

Performing for the British Embassy and other prestigious venues

Performing for furtune 500 companies, resorts, high school auditoriums, performing arts centers and theaters all over the East Coast

Being elected the president of the International Brotherhood of Magicians Ring 320 

Teaching private and public magic lessons

Headlining magic conventions

Lecturing to magicians

Working on The Carbonaro Effect 

Wes Iseli's behind the scenes look at The Carbonaro Effect

Wes Iseli, Brian Staples and Wilson the Monkey on WINA 1070

Natalie's Drink in a Shoe Trick

Natalie is always wanting to help out in the show, so I had my voice over guy cut a track and all she has to do is follow along. Voice track by Dennis Phillips.

Our State Theatre of Culpeper Illusion show Recap

A few years ago we did a small public TV interview show called Virginia Living TV in Culpeper, Va. One of the interviewers was Tammy Barboza who now is on the board for the State Theatre of Culpeper. She said she never forgot us and that our magic really blew her away. They have had all kinds of acts at the State Theatre, but they had never had a magician since the renovation. They contacted us to see if we were interested, but one person on the board was hesitant because they had only seen our small show and they thought that's what they were buying. I assured them that our big show was not like my small show and that it would play on a large stage. Well, needless to say, we were hired and the show was a huge success; IT SOLD OUT!

They treated us great; providing us with dinner, a backstage crew, a light guy, a sound guy, ushers, and even security to watch over our merchandise that we sold in intermission and after the show. 

When we got to the show their were three guys ready to help us load in the show and we loaded into the theatre in only 20 minutes, which blew us away! We have never done it that fast before. We were completely set up in two hours when it usually takes us four, and with all our extra time we just hung out in the green room, had dinner, and invited friends and family back to hang out with us prior to the show. 

The show went great and the house manager was talking to Natalie about having us come back again next year. We will post the date of that show on facebook, twitter and Google+ when it is finalized.

Here is the show all set up prior to the doors opening

All our friends and family who hung out with us in the green room pre-show

Our Fundraising show for Jaeda

Last month we did a show for a cute little girl who is battling a neurological disease called MLD. Although she has already had one wish come true with the help of the make a wish folks, Natalie & I performed our Full Evening Magic & Illusion show to help raise money to send her to prom. Due to her disease the doctors say she won’t make it to her own.  

Performing card to nest of boxes 

Performing my rope routine with Jaeda 

My dove opener

Performing dollar bill to impossible location 

Putting on the handcuffs before last illusion 

My new production opener

This is a new illusion I created and built by hand with the help of my friend Dennis Phillips.
I wanted to be able to produce myself at the beginning of my show and being that the effect is done with inflatable fabric it is extremely portable. It is our new opening effect for this season and folks seem to really enjoy it.

The State Theatre of Culpeper

While at a friend's 40th birthday this weekend in Culpeper folks at the party kept congratulating me on my "billboard", "poster", and/or "sign" that was seen on the building right in the center of town. I figured since we were scheduled to appear at the State Theatre on June 27th that maybe they had a billboard naming all of their upcoming acts, so I told Natalie after the party I wanted to check it out. Well it wasn't a billboard and it wasn't shared advertising either, it was probably 8 feet tall by 12 feet wide hanging on the side of the State Theatre building right on main street Culpeper. The banner looked great and we are really excited to do this show as we know it is going to be a good one. For tickets call the State Theatre or check out their website at www.culpepertheatre.org. See you on the 27th.

Wes Iseli's Fundraising Magic & Illusion Show

Wes Iseli's Signed Card to Pocket

Wes Iseli's Instant Logo

Wes Iseli's Instant Magician

2013 holiday recapped in photos

Thanksgiving into New Year’s is always a crazy time of year for us. Besides the usual hustle & bustle of the season add to it that we do a ton of shows all over this time of year. This year we performed at a bunch of company parties, church shows, family reunions, open houses, I did my 24 hour show right before Thanksgiving, taught magic classes at Ivy Creek school, & more. Here are just a few photos from our shows this holiday season and a couple family pic’s too...

Unfortunately several of our shows this Christmas had professional photographers on location and I gave them my business card and asked them to email me photos, but as of now I have not received a single one. Oh well, here is what I have...

Lana playing peek a boo with Santa in Lynchburg, Va 

Performing close up magic in Richmond Va 

Lana & Natalie in front of a roaring fire

Iseli Family 2013 

Performing at Glenmore 

Country Club New Year’s Eve 

At a tree farm in Staunton, VA 

Visiting with Santa after our show in Carlisle PA 

Wes Iseli's Magnetic Man

Show Business 101

I got a call just a few mornings ago (New Year's Eve) from an agent saying his magician canceled for that night's performance because of a stomach bug. Since I already had a gig for that night I couldn't help out, but that call really bummed me out. The first thing you should learn if you want to perform or be in show business is the credo THE SHOW MUST GO ON!  I have performed with a high favor, stomach pains, nausea, diarrhea, strep throat, bruised ribs (it hurt to breath), I had dental surgery done a while back and I was taking pain killers between shows, with kidney stones pains and I even had a show the day after my dad died which killed me because I was only 25 and my dad was my best friend.

What really got my blood boiling is that the "Magician" said he had stomach pains at 7:00 am and the show was after 5:00 pm. Has he ever heard of Pepto? This kind of nonsense makes all entertainers look bad.
As a fan of magic I still today plan vacation trips and other excursions based on the fact that a magic show is in the area. By the entertainer canceling the gig he is possibly ruining someone's day. You have no idea of how far someone has traveled or what they have gone through just to make it to your show, the least you can do is give them everything you have got. After the gig and after everyone has left you can then have a pity party for yourself...

Come on folks it is Show Business 101: The Show Must Go ON!!!