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Carlisle, Pa., magic man performs in England

By GREG GROSS

(AP)

Nathan Kepner spent his New Year's Eve miles from home.

The Carlisle native performed magic tricks in one of the world's most renowned and prestigious venues for a magician to perform: The Centre for the Magic Arts in London.

For musicians, typically the big goal is to play New York's Apollo Theater or Carnegie Hall; for actors it's Broadway. But for magicians, it's The Centre of the Magic Arts.

"It's one of those big ones where magicians want to perform," Kepner said.

Over the course of four days, Kepner said, he performed two shows a day at the historic venue, which is home to The Magic Circle, an organization of magicians from across the globe.

All 162 seats in the theater were sold out for all eight shows, he added.

Being able to perform at the venue was a great honor, Kepner said.

The over 100-year-old organization boasts, apart from the theater, a museum, and a library that contains all things magic. Kepner had one day of down time, he said, that was used to tour the British capital.

Early beginnings

Kepner got his start in magic early in life and was performing at birthday parties by age 10. At 14, he was taking part in competitions.

Now 22, Kepner, a fourth-year student at Penn State University, has taken his Rat Pack-styled show to places like Hollywood, Pittsburgh, and of course Las Vegas.

Though he's far too young to have been around at the height of the Rat Pack era, Kepner said the lounge and stage acts of the 1950's, with their liveliness and flair, are what inspired his style of performing.

"I like to bring that into the show," he said.

The style is evident in one of the acts he's known for called the "Jukebox Act," which is a fast-paced time warp to the 1940s usually performed at evening shows and theater events.

The act includes the appearance of a saxophone and a clarinet that hangs suspended in the air and moves across the stage.

Locally, Kepner gained fame by performing almost annually at First Night Carlisle, held on New Year's Eve as means of ringing in the new year.

However, this year Kepner missed the annual event because of his scheduled performance in the United Kingdom.

Prior to the 2009 event, John Jensen, a co-chair of the nonprofit board that organizes the event, said he was saddened Kepner wasn't going to around to share his magical talents in Carlisle, but added he was glad Kepner's career was progressing.

"His gain is our loss," Jensen said.

Full-time gig?

Though he enjoys performing in front of audiences, Kepner said he's not prepared to make it a full-time profession once he graduates from college.

Rather, Kepner will pursue a career as a teacher. Presently, he's a student-teacher at a school in Altoona, he said.

But that doesn't mean Kepner will shuffle his deck of cards for the last time anytime soon, he added.

Summers and weekends will likely be perfect times to continue showing his magical prowess and magic could prove as a means to gain his students' attention in class.

"You can always find times to perform," Kepner said.

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Information from: The Sentinel, http://www.cumberlink.com