Tag Archives: Mike D’Urzo

MIKE D’URZO WELCOMES 2024 WITH MEGA MAGIC AND SUCCESS ON TV REALITY SHOW!

Happy New Year to you all…I wanted to start off 2024 with a magical blog so I couldn’t think of anyone better to interview than the Canadian king of Mega Magic himself, MIKE D’URZO.

Mike D’Urzo is an international award-winning magician & mentalist. As the founder and creative director of Mega Magic, he performs hundreds of shows annually for some of the largest corporations, theaters, theme parks, festivals and television networks.He’s won the “Canadian Entertainer of the Year” award by the Canadian Event Awards and was the 8-time recipient of the “Performer of the Year” award presented by Festivals & Events Ontario. He is considered one of the “Top 10 Magicians Worldwide” by the Wedding Industry Experts Awards and the “Entertainment Act of the Year” by the LUXlife Global Wedding Awards. He was the 2-time winner of the Reader’s Choice Award for Best Entertainer by Special Events Magazine and was also named in the Top 5 Magicians in Toronto by BlogTO and won the Toronto Choice Award by Event Source. Mike is a member of the prestigious Canadian Association of Magicians and the International Brotherhood of Magicians.

Whew! that’s quite a staggering line-up of awards and industry accolades! I’ve been lucky enough to know Mike for over 15 years, seeing him at various special events and industry showcases as well as corporate soirees and in theatres. He’s also one of the nicest, most humble entertainers I know, so you can imagine how excited I was for him when I learnt that Mike not only participated in the new tv reality show, The Traitors: Canada, but that he won the big grand prize. He out-played and out-psyched all the other contestants…bravo, Mike!2024 marks the 20th anniversary of his specially curated show, Mega Magic, featuring his talents as magician and mentalist: Mega Magic is a full production show featuring spectacular grand illusions and lots of interactive magic & mentalism. It has elements of video, live eye projection, audio/ visual techs, camera operators and assistants on stage.  And it’s because of this special anniversary that I decided to reach out to my friend and ask him to talk about his career and his love of entertaining people.After starting out in the film industry as a publicity & promotions guy, what brought about the switch to magic?   I always had an interest in magic since High School. Throughout university I was working at Sony Pictures hosting premieres and launch parties for upcoming films. Although I loved the behind scenes world of movies, performing was my true passion.

Who or what inspired your love of magic as a youngster?   I remember growing up watching Illusionist David Copperfield on TV and seeing him live in Toronto – Copperfield (pictured below) was definitely an inspiration. Then there was one day that changed the course of my life forever: I was at Canada’s Wonderland and there was a small booth with a person selling magic. I spent my last dollar, bought a couple of tricks and the rest was history. I never saw being a magician as a career choice but from that day forward, I knew that I would pursue the art of magic.You do a lot of corporate events as well as festivals and residencies at large venues….what is your favourite audience – adults, children, business people looking to switch off from work?   In the early days of my career, I performed tons of kids shows. Although I love performing for family audiences, most of my work now is for adults. I love the thrill of truly messing with smart intellectual people and putting them in a state of disbelief and wonder. I feel like the art of magic has evolved so much from the stereotypical “pull a rabbit out of a hat” trick.You recently participated in a new TV game show called The Traitors Canada…and WON congratulations! How were you cast and how tense and stressful was this?  This was one of the most thrilling and exciting moments of my career. Such a cool experience being on a show with other reality TV stars and winning the prize pot. They loved the idea of having a magician on the show as it’s based around misdirection and deception. It was a stressful experience having to navigate the way the game would be played by manipulating, deceiving and backstabbing everyone. We all created a great bond so it put me in a very tough position. There is a whole other world of magic beyond the stage and it can be used to misdirect people in everyday life.

You’re celebrating a special anniversary in January 2024 – the 20th year of your “Mega Magic Show” which is a full production grand illusion show you’ve presented across Canada and the US. How did you put this show together and are you still excited to raise that curtain 20 years on?   This is a HUGE milestone for Mega Magic! Show business can be tough with many ups and downs but I wouldn’t change it for the world. Getting to do what I love is that best trick of all.  I’m very grateful that performing has allowed me to experience so many wonderful places and kept me creative for 20 years.You must tell us about your trip to China where you entertained an audience of over half a million – how did you get that gig? And was there any language barrier or did the magic and illusions overcome that?   China was one of the coolest show experiences of my life! I was brought in as a marketing campaign for English Schools across the country. They wanted to bring a Canadian performer to promote their schools in busy public areas. Performing magic for people who didn’t speak a word of English worked out because magic can also be very visual. It’s a universal language that transcends any barriers. I loved that the audiences were so receptive and shared the same passion for magic as I did. During the 2 ½ years of Covid isolation and non-performance, you created online shows and demonstrations – how cool is that?! Are you maintaining those online sessions and how do magic fans participate from home?   That was a challenge at first because so much of magic is interactive. Not having anyone physically present forced me to redevelop a show for an online audience. It turned out to be such a joy performing for people from around the world over Zoom where you could still interact with guests. In many cases, the magic seemed even more impossible doing it over a screen. There were days where I was performing up to 6 virtual shows for companies around the world without having to leave my studio. Luckily, I was able to adapt during that time as there were no live events!You have an upcoming New Year’s Eve show way down east in Labrador City, a far cry from China! You’ve played there before – how are the audiences in Labrador?   I love Labrador City and the East Coast of Canada. I’ve met some of the nicest people from the East Coast and happy to be making my return. I find in general, audiences no matter where in the world tend to love magic and have an appreciation for the art. It’s unique and certainly gets you thinking.

Any other exciting shows lined up for 2024…or maybe more TV shows?   There are always lots of events! Stay tuned for more exciting news in the New Year!

Follow Mike on his social media (linked via his website) and you can learn about his incredible body of work on his website:  https://www.megamagic.ca/

IGNITE MAGAZINE / CANADIAN SPECIAL EVENTS TRADE SHOW INTRO’S LOTS OF COOL SERVICES AND …. STUFF!

Every year, several special events, meetings and incentives organizations host industry expos featuring speakers, workshops, panels and great trade show floors featuring lots of vendors with event venues, catering, nic-nacs and logowear, everything an event planner could wish for. This year, Ignite Magazine and the Canadian Special Events organizations combined forces and held a joint business expo at the Metropolitan Toronto Convention Centre and yesterday, I had a blast wandering the aisles discovering new businesses and products, so come walk the trade show floor with me….

20150415_112817I was greeted by the pretty showgirl working the Hart Entertainment booth http://www.hartentertainment.com/ – a lovely way to start things off with a great big smile, eh?

As I was one of the first people there, I was able to navigate the hall quickly and see how they set up the performance stage…then I turned around to be greeted by the “town crier”. Hear ye, hear ye!20150415_112945 20150415_113000Loved the aqua blue and white of the Iris Blu booth below http://irisblu.ca/ and I even won a prize by picking a rose so I now have a discount off their event services (okay clients, who wants to take advantage of this?).

20150415_113631 20150415_113800It was time for “breakfast” so I shuffled on over to the PAL Insurance sponsored candy bar to enjoy a Cinnabon…..flavoured vodka shot!!!! LOL (hic)…never do this on an empty tummy (hic)

20150415_113930 20150415_114032Thank you to the ladies of PAL Insurance Brokers (below) http://www.palcanada.com/en/

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The crazy folks at PartyPix (below) did a great job of entertaining everyone with their interactive customized photobooths. http://partypix.ca/

20150415_115324 20150415_115325I just loved the mystical space that Eclectic Events created …only wish I’d had enough time to enjoy a woodland massage. But I did meet the talented glass sculptor, John (bottom pic), who created lots of cute animals…and he kindly gave me a dragon!!  http://www.eclecticevents.com/

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20150415_120019 20150415_120029Always a favourite must-taste exhibitor was the Ninutik maple syrup food artisans (below) ..oh so sweet and deelish! Great for catering fancy-schmancy soirees and they even have gift packages.  http://www.ninutik.com/store/home2.php

20150415_120258 20150415_120303One of the nicest, funniest and coolest magicians working the corporate and party circuit, Mike D’urso. I highly recommend Mike for all your magical needs! http://www.megamagic.ca/

20150415_120337 20150415_120341The Snapshot Photobooth people intro’d their new “Hashtag printer station” enabling events to brand their guests’ Instagram photos. Great marketing opps.   http://snapshotphotobooth.com/

20150415_121009An old industry friend, Raviv Krikunets, has just joined another design and events mgm’t firm R5 Events, and I was blown away by his beautiful set-up…wow, check it out below.  http://www.r5e.ca/

20150415_121109 20150415_121222(0) 20150415_121229And here’s Denise and Anna of Lucky Strike Lanes ( below) who always make the trade show fun….http://www.bowlluckystrike.com/

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Here’s a new talent supplier – Genevieve Demerchant of You Will Love it Live! She brought in musicians & a magician to entertain the event planners (below)…and they did a great job.  http://www.youwillloveitlive.com/

20150415_123509Aussie Aussie Aussie…oy oy oy! That’s our “war cry” when Aussies meet each other and here I ran into Kristen Thomason, originally from Melbourne, who is Dir. of Sales for the exciting new iFLY – the indoor skydiving venue out in Oakville. I really wanna try this out – looks like so much fun. http://iflytoronto.com/

20150415_123946Knights and wenches and swords, oh my! Medieval Times was there, too, and I can never say no to a knight with such a big….sword! The saucy wench kept him in line, tho. http://www.medievaltimes.com/toronto.aspx

20150415_124243 20150415_124255Nice to run into Kris and Maria, the sales reps for the Metro Toronto Convention Centre (below). I enjoyed a nice cuppa coffee and a 20min. rest in their relaxation seating area. http://www.mtccc.com/?m=0&t=0&c=1

20150415_132355Have you ever been to Moncton? I have and I love it…the people are so friendly, great facilities, fantastic downtown waterfront. Nice rep. at the City of Moncton booth reminded me what a great place it is to visit either with a business group or on a personal adventure.  http://www.moncton.ca/page4.aspx

20150415_133555Clearwater and St. Pete’s are two of my favourite places for a quick vacay from the cruel (and long) Toronto winters, and the ladies at this booth certainly made me feel welcome.  http://meetamplified.com/

20150415_134656Michelle of Northwest Territories Tourism (below) welcomed me to her spectacular booth…think I may have to visit myself soon. I wanna see the northern lights before I croak so I’ve just added Michelle to my bucket-list!!  http://spectacularnwt.com/

20150415_135043Here’s a great idea for team-building fun – the Bonnie Gordon College of Confectionary Arts offers group candy & sweetie making events. Chef Michael J. Smith (pictured below with events coord. Esther) was doing whisky tastings and food infusions…yumm…hic!  http://bonniegordoncollege.com/

20150415_135739Lots more to see and do at the show…

20150415_133355 20150415_135942 20150415_113921…but I had the most fun at the Ripley’s Aquarium Canada booth where they fed me to the sharks! www.RipleysAquariumCanada.com

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Many thanks to the organizers for presenting a great trade show.

www.ignitemag.ca   &   www.canadianspecialevents.com