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Steffan Soule performs artistic magic for the corporate and family audience aimed at invoking wonder, astonishment and awe. His tools are large-scale-grand illusions like his Giant Hour Glass; amazing-small stage effects like his Signed Bill in Lemon; his Cast of Mysterians; and his Lights, Sound, Smoke and Mirrors all run by SFX. His show, Mysterian, now in it’s fifth year, opened in 1999 with the perfect SFX system controlling the small 250 seat magic theatre designed and built for the show at Illusionz Magical Entertainment Center. |
| The owner of Illusionz, Mike Dobias, formerly with Microsoft product support, understands the power of technology and the need for people who can use it wisely. When Steffan’s dream to have a magic theatre combined with Mike’s willingness to build it and see if they will come, the ability to control the technology from one central computer was a major consideration. Steffan found SFX through his contact with the theatre world, and every piece of equipment was compatible with SFX from the beginning.This SFX system uses an Echo Layla Sound Card with Midi In and Out, a Yamaha O2R Sound Board, an ETC Express lighting board connected to 48 dimmers, Technobeams, hazer, fogger, color scrollers, and secret devices like an air valve that must open at a perfect, exact moment. In addition, the theatre is complete with Surround Sound (fully utilizing all 8 of the SFX outs and additional routing through the O2R for the on stage speakers), Wireless Mics, CD player, Boxlight, DVD, Video, Backstage Monitor, and the list goes on. SFX is used to control everything from the muting of the mics to the fogger and secret blast of air that propels a performer into a giant clock.
While Steffan’s Hour Glass Illusion originates with Steffan Soule and is featured in the Kennedy Center Award winning play “Still Life with Iris”, many illusions in Mysterian come from the classics of magic. SFX gives new life to the standard effects by framing the scenes with elegant sound and lights. And, SFX makes it possible for Steffan to produce complex cues for his original grand illusions and new works. The complex sound cues can be simplified and mixed down after months of working out exact timing. This is useful for performances at other locations or TV specials when the music must come from one CD.
SFX plays a central role in controlling the cues in every show and in the economy of the theatre. SFX provides over five versions ofMysterian, ten smaller shows for corporate events, and a fast way to create special scenes for various corporate meetings. The additional ability to send a wireless GO signal to the SFX computer from anywhere on stage offers a precision and a cost effectiveness that is unsurpassed. |
| Steffan Soule’s Water Fountain Levitation |
| Magic uses background and foreground music. When the magician performs silently to foreground music, the timing of the action to the music is important, but in magic, the magic come first. There are many reasons to ask for the music to end at a different point in every performance. Sometimes the magician will take longer to put the blade through the box; sometimes the assistant needs a few extra seconds to arrive on spike with a prop; larger audiences will applaud at several points in the middle of a routine while smaller audiences will wait until the end to applaud. While most magic shows fade out the music when the effect is over, SFX allows a musical ending to crossfade into the piece at the right moment, which can and should vary with each show. The “Ender” as it is called brings the music to a definite end, and when switched for the main music at an agreed upon cue, the performers and the music will end simultaneously from nearly any point in the music. |
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| This same principle is also used for “stings” and for transitions from one piece of music to another. In one of the grand illusions inMysterian, Steffan divides an unrehearsed spectator in half, which, by the way is impossible, and at the moment the audience sees the spectator in two places at once, a “ta-da” sting plays that blends perfectly with the main music at ANY point in the piece. Of course sometimes the “ta-da” arrives more perfectly on the beat, but, in general, no one can tell. This improves the show dramatically and gives a freedom to the performers that is appropriate for this type of art. |
| There is a basic transitional technique used in several key magical moments throughout Mysterian. When the magic reaches a visual climax, or just before, a crossfade to a transitional piece of music is used to accentuate the action. As the transitional piece fades in, the first piece fades out and cues the cast to connect with the final musical piece that comes out of the transition. The final piece then may also have an ender, and once again, the music will finish in perfect time with the cast. With any other way of running the show, this flexibility is lost, and the impact of the magic is diminished. |
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| In the Mysterian cast, all six performers understand SFX because Steffan’s approach to magic demands this, and a basic understanding of SFX is easily attainable. Even the non-technical performers must practice with each of their cues in front of the SFX screen. When Mysterian opened, there were three booth operators: a cue caller, an SFX operator and a lighting board operator. Within a month, they had it down to the original idea: one SFX booth operator clicking one GO button which sends midi show control signals to the sound board and lighting console. The hazer, fogger and other devices are triggered by DMX through lighting cues or macros. |
| For several years, Steffan developed and performed with a wireless GO button for use during his private one-man shows. Although Steffan prefers a live booth operator for Mysterian since the cues are rich with complexity, the economic times have necessitated the use of his wireless device for every performance. What started out as a way for Steffan to have a few nice cues during his solo performances for small corporate groups during the week has turned into another instance of technology replacing a person. Now, the wireless GO runs even the high tech show for the public on the weekends. |
| Each cast member is responsible for what are called “clicks” during the performance. The clicks send a GO to SFX by way of a wireless momentary switch into a Midi Solutions Footswitch Controller. This sends a midi program change to SFX, which SFX interprets as a GO due to settings pre-selected in the SFX Cue File. |
