Living for a sense of awe

Doug Brewer recalled admiring illusionist Doug Henning in the ’70s but when he got to college he gave up his childhood hobby to pursue a degree in engineering.

When he moved to Los Angeles after he graduated his love of magic reappeared and he’s found himself back in the business of tricking audiences. So what about that engineering degree? Well, it comes in handy whenever Brewer or his partner in magic John George need to design a prop for their act.

George’s path to magic started when his father, a Disneyland employee and childhood magician, would take him along to work to follow the theme park’s magicians. Audiences will get a chance to see Brewer and George, the Magical Misfits, do illusions at the Hilton Waterfront Beach Resort Friday.

George says the duo’s bag of tricks is only limited to their imaginations. If they can come up with it, George is confident in his ability to somehow figure it out. “If you called me and asked me if I can make an elephant disappear, I’d say yes immediately,” he says.

They have a simple definition for their work: “Magic is something where lay people get to say, ‘Wow, how’s that work? That’s amazing,’” George said.

The Magical Misfits remember what it was like as children when everything seemed magical. The duo tries to take audiences back to that sense of awe.

“I loved being amazed, seeing something that seemed impossible,” George said.

The mesmerized, wide-open eyes in the audience are what magicians like them live for.

“Most people think magicians get off on fooling people,” Brewer says. “In reality, they just want them to be flabbergasted.”

Brewer and George met more than 10 years ago while auditioning tobecome members at The Magic Castle in Hollywood. They’ve been performing together for more than six years. After two accomplished and award-winning careers — both have won close-up magic championships at Society of American Magicians competitions and George has similar accolades from the International Brotherhood of Magicians — they decided doing magic together would be more fun.

“It was more fun to show up to a gig with a friend to hang out with,” George said.

More importantly, it gives lets them both delve into the areas of magic they’re best in. “It allows us to actually take a little more time and add a little more depth to our tricks,” Brewer said.

Brewer is more the traditional illusionist. He makes audiences question reality with various tricks. He’ll make things disappear and reappear elsewhere and has an arsenal of card tricks. Brewer also likes to lace in jokes.

George is the quieter of the two, funny but in a more subtle way. His magic focuses on the mind. He is a mentalist, which creates the illusion of having paranormal psychic abilities. His tricks are less visual but equally difficult for audiences to wrap their brains around.

Since both are award-winning magic innovators, audiences are guaranteed to walk away scratching their heads. But they keep the mood light and will get even the most staunch of skeptics laughing. “A lot of times you’ll go to a magic show and it’s so serious,” George said. “We try to keep it fun.”

This will be the Magical Misfits’ second appearance at the Hilton and Brewer said it’s a great room to work in. “Any artist will tell you a venue is the toughest thing to find,” Brewer said. It’s personal so everyone gets a good up-close magic show, but it’s big enough that the two magicians can expand and use the stage.

Despite the difficulty finding venues, these magicians always have a rapt audience, and that’s no different in Huntington Beach.